A Nottinghamshire woman says being on a "groundbreaking" new cancer treatment has given her hope for the future. Karen Corrigan, 42, was first diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer at King's Mill Hospital back in 2018 after she found a lump in her left breast.
She was told the cancer was treatable and underwent chemotherapy - 14 rounds in total. In January 2020 Karen had a mastectomy, but, in April of that year, scans showed the cancer had come back and spread to her liver and lungs.
Then, in April of this year, her doctor managed to get her on to a trial of a new treatment called Trodelvy and she began taking it on May 13, so far only undergoing one cycle. She says there are hopes the treatment, which she first learned about through celebrity Stephen Mulhern online, has given her a lot of hope going forward - she is now enjoying a holiday in Florida.
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She said: "It's worked for a lot of other ladies - it really is groundbreaking stuff. It is quite a new treatment. I pushed for it as much as I could but there wasn't much chance I was going to get it, so, when I was told it was available, I was absolutely elated. I still just want everybody else who needs it to have it, I want to raise awareness that it's out there as much as I can.
"There have been side effects. I have had total hair loss which started on the plane to Florida when my hair started coming out in clumps. I think that's the worst thing that's happened to me - mentally, at least. I've also had a lot of tightness around my stomach."
Trodelvy has been dubbed a 'Trojan horse' as it can penetrate tumours, delivering powerful chemotherapy agents that attack cancer cells from the inside, Daily Mail reports. Reports suggest it has already proved effective in patients with triple-negative breast cancer, a notoriously hard to treat form of the disease which accounts for 15 percent of cases. In these women, the drug can double survival rates.
There are hopes that thousands of women like Karen could soon benefit from the drug which is not a cure, but can give patients more time to spend with their loved ones. After posting a picture of herself online having lost her hair, Karen says she's been completely overwhelmed by the support she has received from others online - she received nearly 16,000 replies and the picture was retweeted more than 3,000 times. She describes herself as a very positive person who now wants to enjoy her life as much as she can.
She added: "On the Facebook page I am on, I would say at least 60% of the women who are undergoing the treatment are reporting stable scans. If I continue as I am at the moment, I will be able to live a relatively normal life as long as it's not getting worse."
Max Summerhayes, Country Medical Lead, Oncology, Gilead UK & Ireland: “Triple-negative breast cancer is a notoriously difficult type of breast cancer to treat and one where there are limited treatments available for people who have already been treated for the condition. Trodelvy is by no means a cure, but it does present an opportunity to give people extra months of valuable time with their families and loved ones.”
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