We met with our oncologist yesterday to review the CT scan taken Wednesday July 11th. Compared with the previous scan of 5/14 there are no changes. We appear to be at a stalemate in this confrontation.
But life and research march on. A new drug now being tested on humans is still accepting participants for the "Phase 2" part of its clinical trial and shows promise for persons with the type of cancer the doctors now think I have: metastatic medullary thyroid cancer. The generic name is vandetanib, trademarked ZACTIMA.
This drug is designed to inhibit growth of cancer cells and the capillaries that supply them with blood. So far 20% of study participants with this type of cancer have experienced significant reductions in calcitonin (tumor markers that measure activity of cancer cells in this particular form of cancer). This excites the research doctors very much and is so promising that the FDA has designated vandetanib "Orphan Drug" status. I’m checking into what this actually means to us.
If it excites the doctors, then I’d like to have more of this type of excitement in my life!
Vandetanib is a one per day pill taken so once I’m signed up and registered, I’m sent home with a bottle of pills and a report card. We have no details at this time. The research unit is at Washington (D.C.) Hospital Center which is associated with Georgetown University School of Medicine.
So we stand at another crossroads. We’ll see what vistas open to us as we learn more.
The best news is that here it is July 2007, 9 months since the diagnosis, and I’m still here! Thank you for staying with us through a difficult time. We look forward to your company as the journey unfolds.
Copyright 2007
Posted: July 14, 2007
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