That's an Affirmative on the Clinical Trial

Yesterday's appointment at DFCI was productive indeed, and they had us in and out in record time. Perhaps because Dr. Choueiri (I think I spell his name differently each post) was within hours of becoming a first time dad and it was like dealing with someone on speed. It was quite endearing actually.

So this clinical trial- it's Dr. C's baby- he's the principal investigator and the one who will also follow Mom. So far they have 70 participants out of a desired 140. It is for patients with recurrent metastatic TCC that currently have measurable disease that can be quantified. In other words, they can easily track if tumors are getting bigger or smaller. She will receive IV (intravenous) chemotherapy once every 21 days (each cycle is 21 days) at DFCI, during which she'll also have a quick check up and blood drawn. Additionally she will take a pill every day, which is either the test drug or a placebo. The drug being tested ideally isolates the cancer cells and keeps them from growing and spreading. The positive thing is that the chemo given in the study is the same chemo she'd get if she didn't do the study. So it's a win win! She will have a CAT scan every 6 weeks to check the status of the tumor size. If it is the same size or shrinking, they'll continue as planned. If the tumor grows or changes, they'll open up one of the pills Mom's to take daily to find out if it is the placebo or test drug. If she is not on the test drug, they put her on it and see if that makes a difference.

A bit confusing, but it's all very closely regulated and monitored because it is a clinical study that hopefully will benefit Mom, but also cancer treatment in the future. We met the entire team, including the researcher and one of the nurse's who will be following Mom closely. The atmosphere was very positive and we were laughing so loud in the office, people were poking their head in to see what we were up to!

Next week they'll dedicate to ensuring that Mom meets all qualifying standards, then she should be able to start the week after.