Friends’ cash plea to buy lifeline drug for cancer victim
FRIENDS of a Scots woman with stage four lung cancer are desperately trying to raise money to help buy a drug which could prolong her life.
Last November, Angi Lamb, from Edinburgh, was diagnosed with small cell lung cancer, after repeatedly being told by her GP she had a virus.
The 63-year-old has had chemotherapy and radiotherapy but the only hope she has of extending her life is with the drug Keytruda. It is not yet licensed for small cell use in the UK and clinical trials are still ongoing into its effectiveness.
However, the Federal Drug Agency in the US approved it for small cell use a year ago and in trials, more than 50 per cent of patients’ lives were extended by 18 months or more.
Angi, a retired IT consultant at Edinburgh University, doesn’t know how much time she has left – and hasn’t asked.
She said: “It depresses me too much but I know the survival rate after five years is about six per cent.”
Her only option is to pay for Keytruda herself through a private hospital. It costs £12,800 for a six-week treatment block but if she reacts well, Angi hopes the drug company may step in to provide it on compassionate grounds. She said: “It’s all about trying to buy some time. In one case, a patient had three treatments and couldn’t tolerate any more but is still here four years on.”
Angi added: “I’m not afraid of death – I just don’t want to hurtle towards it. I look for positive outcomes and never want to give up. I’m very determined.”
She will never know if the vital weeks before diagnosis could have prevented her cancer becoming so advanced but is certain she wouldn’t have suffered a paralysed vocal cord, which affects her speech, if it had been caught earlier.
Her friend Martin Belk has started a GoFundMe page to raise money for the drug.
He said: “Angi is very well-liked in her community so I’m hoping they will rally round. We’ve raised enough for the first round of treatment and are looking at things like equity release from her house but we need help. Time is of the essence. We don’t have months and months to wait.” ● To donate, go to www.gofundme.com/f/angi-lamblast-resort-critical-cancer-treatment