Cindy: Clinical Trial for Breast Cancer Treatment

On the day after Christmas last year, Cindy learned that a dimple that had developed in her breast was due to a fast-growing breast cancer. Cindy chose to have a mastectomy to remove the tumor, and then learned from the pathology report that her breast cancer was high-risk, a type referred to as "triple negative." Hormone therapy and Herceptin, two common approaches used after surgery to prevent recurrence, do not work for patients with triple negative breast cancers. Cindy needed chemotherapy.

When discussing chemotherapy options with her oncologist, Dr. Bradley Arrick, Cindy learned that she was eligible for a clinical trial being conducted at the Cancer Center. She agreed to participate almost immediately. "My husband, Joe, died of renal cancer," she explains. "But before that, his life was extended by a series of treatments that had been tested in clinical trials. Joe got extra life from those drugs. Without the people who were willing to participate in the clinical trials that developed them, Joe would have died much sooner."

With cancer, Cindy says, comes a feeling of losing control—of your life, and of what's happening in your body and to your body. Being able to choose how she deals with the cancer helps her to take back control. "I didn't choose to get cancer," Cindy says. "But I've decided that I can choose how I will have cancer. And I choose to be positive, to not get too down, and to live normally."

For Cindy, taking control of her cancer also meant learning as much as she could about her options. Cindy understood that participation in the clinical trial was her choice, and that she could choose at any point to leave the study.

Before she began the trial, Cindy also met with a clinical research nurse, Ellen Parker, RN. One of seven nurses in the Cancer Center's Office of Clinical Research, Parker provides information and support for women participating in breast cancer clinical trials at the Cancer Center. She explained the details of the trial, including any risks and benefits, to ensure that Cindy was giving her complete and informed consent in participating. Now Parker checks in with Cindy each time she is here for her treatment, and runs any necessary interference along the way.

Cindy feels that the results of clinical trials are critical, and something she wants to be a part of. "I know that what's happening with my cancer care has been shaped by the thousands of women before me who were willing to participate in clinical trials. I want to be part of that possibility—of giving another woman life."

For more information, please visit http://www.cancer.dartmouth.edu/breast/

Category:

Education

Tags:

• breast cancer
• norris cotton cancer center
• cancer
• dartmouth hitchcock
• comprehensive breast program
• cindy
• clinical trial
• ellen parker
• bradley arrick
• oncology
• chemotherapy
• hormone therapy
• herceptin
• triple negative
• mastectomy

[AgendiaInc]

Cindy, great job on doing your own research to find the best treatment available for your specific needs. We strive to do exactly that, also - personalize breast cancer treatment. You're such a strong woman - good luck and great job on your journey!

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