So far, so very very good ...
Brave mum Lesley Graham fought hard to be given access to the cancer drug that could help prolong her life. Now she reveals her joy at the incredible early results of her treatment
A BATTLING mum has declared a cancer- fighting drug a “dream come true” after an astonishing turnaround in her symptoms.
The Sunday Post revealed in May how mum- of- two Lesley Graham had appealed to Scottish Health Secretary Shona Robison to be given a drug not widely available in Scotland because of its high cost.
Lesley wanted access to Kadcyla, which costs around £15,000 a session, after hearing remarkable success stories from people lucky enough to be on it in England and Wales.
After her story was carried in The Sunday Post, Lesley was told she’d be allowed to take it, and her first set of results are amazing.
Her scan results showed the cancer in her liver has shrunk by a third, her brain cancer halved and the cancer in her bones has halted.
Lesley, 39, from Barrhead, near Glasgow, said: “I was given three treatments, then told I’d be scanned. If the treatment hadn’t worked I wouldn’t have been allowed to continue. But all I wanted was the chance to try it.
“The results are a dream come true for me. It means I’m now on my second three sessions of treatment, after which I’ll be scanned again to check if there’s been any progress.
“If that’s been successful, I’ll begin my final three sessions. I don’t want to tempt fate but so far so very, very good.” On Tuesday last week, Lesley – who has two daughters, Re bek ah ,12, and Charlotte, 14 – travelled to the Beatson Oncology Unit in Glasgow with hubby Colin, 47, and mum Alison for her allimportant scan results.
Lesley said: “I can’t describe how I was feeling. Everything – my life, my future, my family – was dependent on my results.
“If there was no change, I wouldn’t get any more treatment. Then what? What would happen to me?
“When they told me I had responded well to treatment we were overjoyed.
“I immediately phoned Charlotte and Colin phoned Rebekah.
“I asked if I could begin my second session of Kadcyla while I was there, and they agreed. I am so happy and relieved. I have another treatment later this month, then one in September, followed by another scan.
“And if the results are as positive I’ll be allowed the final three sessions recommended for Kadcyla. I am very hopeful.”
Just four months ago Lesley was told she had four to six months left to live.
After battling breast cancer and being given the all-clear in January, the cancer was back and it had spread to her liver, ribs and brain.
She said: “I was told Kadcyla wasn’t available in Scotland because it’s so expensive and I was raging that I could just be written off like that. “I wasn’t going down without a fight. “But at a time when I was so tired and ill, it took everything I had to fight for the right to access to this drug.” Lesley is just ecstatic to still be alive. She said: “On Monday Rebekah starts secondary school and I’ll be there to share it. I didn’t think I’d be alive for her prom in June, but I was. And I was here for her 12th birthday. I don’t know what the future holds, but at this moment in time I still have one. “I just want to see my girls grow up. “I get tired but I try to keep going because it’s important to spend as much time as I can with Colin and the girls.
“I’ve ticked even more off my bucket list thanks to my friends. We’ve been to the Titanic Museum in Belfast, and gone sightseeing in London.
“Colin and I were gifted an overnight at Andy Murray’s Cromlix Hotel in Perthshire, and we were invited to stay at a friend’s home on the Isle of Arran so I’m determined to make the most of whatever time I have.”
Husband Colin is equally delighted with the progress so far.
He said: “We’ve had tremendous support and now the results of Lesley’s scan are so positive. It’s been a frantic time for everyone, and Lesley has fought one hell of a battle. She’s a wonderful person. I’m just so proud of her.”
The drug that’s keeping Lesley alive is manufactured by Swiss pharmaceutical giant, Roche.
It is not currently recommended for use in Scotland on cost grounds.
Lesley added: “When I first found out about this drug I was told it could extend your life by six months.
“But when I started looking into it, I found people were alive much longer than six months, with some in remission and cancer-free. “I wanted the chance for that to be me. “I don’t think anyone has the right to simply dismiss someone on the basis of a budget.
“Funds can always be found for other things, and I’m sure most taxpayers would agree that cancer – all cancers – should take priority over methadone programmes.
“Our government shells out £ 17.8 million a year to chemists for methadone treatments to help addicts. It’s all wrong.”
Lesley met with Shona Robison in June, to explain why she felt she had been written off and why she had to fight to get the last- resort drug which she hoped might save her life.
I don’t know what the future holds, but right now I still have one
Lesley said: “She was very nice but budget restraints just don’t wash with me.
“There is money available, it’s how its prioritised that’s wrong.
“So far I’ve had an excellent result and now on my second round of treatment. If I hadn’t stood up for myself and got Kadcyla I’d never have known these benefits.
“But no one should have to kick up a fuss to be listened to. These drugs should be made available for everyone who might benefit.”
Mary Allison, director for Scotland at Breast Cancer Now, said Lesley’s story shows how important it was for women in Scotland to access the most promising breast cancer treatments.
She said: “At the moment, women with secondary breast cancer in Scotland face a postcode lottery when it comes to accessing drugs like Kadcyla.
“The drugs approval system for rare and end-of-life conditions is under review in Scotland.
“At Breast Cancer Now, we have clear plans to help improve this. We hope the review will help to unlock life-extending drugs for women with secondary breast cancer in the future.”