New melanoma treatments a ‘godsend’

Only one thought ran through Susan Bauml Thomas’ head when she was diagnosed with melanoma.

“I’m dying. I’m dead. I’m finished,” Bauml Thomas said. “I’m not gonna make it through.”

Bauml Thomas and five other survivors of melanoma spoke at an education event at the Sheraton Hotel on Saturday, hosted by Dr. Tahir Abbas from the Saskatoon Cancer Centre.

As a former radiation therapist, Bauml Thomas was no stranger to the dangers of cancer — and the low survival rates for melanoma. She and her colleagues would often start the day by reading the obituaries in the newspaper and reminiscing about the people they’d treated who had since passed away.

“The moment I was diagnosed, it’s like ‘I don’t want to read mine, I don’t want to see mine.’ And so I’m never looking at another obituary again,” Bauml Thomas said.

Bauml Thomas went through the processes of treatment as most patients do: she had surgery to remove the cancer, started on radiation treatments, and was expecting to take the only melanoma drug that she knew of — which was “toxic” and had a low rate of success, she said.

What she didn’t realize at the time is that large strides have been made in medicines for the treatment of melanoma in the past few years, and it was a clinical trial

I have nieces and nephews, and they’re just little. And I’d like to see them graduate, and get married.

Bauml Thomas became involved in that saved her life.

When Dr. Abbas began focusing on melanoma treatment in 2005, he said the chances of survival for a patient with late-stage melanoma was probably around 50 per cent. And they were given a year to live, at most.

Now, with new drug treatments available, Abbas said 25 to 30 per cent of patients can be cured of melanoma — and 50 to 60 per cent can have what he calls a “good” or “stable” quality of life. But Abbas also said the best possible outcome would be to deal with the disease before it reaches its later stages.

“Early detection is important. If we find it earlier and we can take it out, that’s the best,” he noted. “Awareness is very important. There are many risk factors, like sunbathing and sunbeds. So prevention is more important.”

Dora Beckman’s melanoma is now officially in remission, and she’s waiting for results of tests from earlier in the week to see if the cancer is gone.

For her, Dr. Abbas and the clinical trials he pointed her toward are a “godsend” — and are the only reason she’s still around today.

“I have nieces and nephews, and they’re just little. And I’d like to see them graduate, and get married,” Beckman said. “I can’t describe the feeling you get when you know that you’re OK.”

After a long time worrying about her health, Beckman’s battle might not be totally over. But she said it’s wonderful to have far less pressing problems to deal with.