Wonder drug gives cancer patient Bob a new lease of life
ACHRISTIE patient given just 18 months to live has been left with no trace of cancer after testing a new wonder drug.
Bob Berry is one of just three people to take part in the trial at the hospital – and one of just 12 in the world.
The 60-year-old was diagnosed with cancer three years ago after suffering pains in his shoulder.
Scans revealed a shadow on his lungs, and he was referred to hospital where he was given the devastating news that he had lung cancer.
Bob, from Hazel Grove, underwent surgery to remove the tumour, but the disease had already spread to his nodes.
He was referred to The Christie and soon began a gruelling course of radiotherapy and chemotherapy.
But it was unsuccessful. Bob wasn’t responding to the drugs, and doctors told him he had around a year-and-a-half left to live.
They decided to transfer him to the hospital’s clinical trials unit, and 12 lymph months ago Bob became one of the first people to be treated with the brand new drug, which can’t yet be named.
It is the first time it has been tested on humans, with the study taking place at only six centres worldwide.
It combines the drug with an immunotherapy treatment with the intention to make it more effective.
Immunotherapy treatments harness and enhance the innate powers of the immune system to fight cancer.
Bob’s consultant at The Christie, Dr Matthew Krebs, said: “Bob has had a phenomenal response to taking part in this clinical trial. His most recent scans show that he’s had a complete response with no apparent trace of tumour in his body. We will need to monitor Bob closely with regular scans to assess how durable this response will be.
“As it is a combined study with a brand new drug, we still have a lot of further research to do before we can establish how these findings can help more patients like Bob in the future as cancer is a complex disease and not every patient responds as well as this.”
Bob, who takes his great, great nieces to their ballet class every week, said: “Three years ago, I was given 12–18 months to live but I have already surpassed that and I feel well.
“This clinical trial at The Christie has extended my life and I couldn’t be more grateful.
“Anyone who is offered a clinical trial should seriously consider it.”
Around 600 clinical trials could be taking place at any one time in The Christie’s National Institute of Healthcare Research Clinical Research Facility – a large, high-quality, dedicated clinical research environment where patients can participate in complex and early phase clinical trials.