Most patients and their families have no clue what to do or where to turn when faced with an aggressive or advanced malignancy. Moreover , many will never look for multiple opinions or know how to research their own tumors.
The question is how badly do you want to survive? And do you want to leave your fate up to the first oncologist you meet, who might have limited personalized data to draw upon for your care. If you are facing a more than a simple , early malignancy , you might need more eclectic, open-minded professionals to save your life. Many patients think of nothing spending weeks and months researching and assessing new homes and vehicles,,,but will not take the effort and time to find the right help to save their own lives. Studies show that establishing these lifesaving tools and networks help increase survival times during catastrophic illness.
I asked Ronnie Morris MD, president of Champions Oncology ( A company that uses animal surrogates to grow and test patients tumors ) whether to current standard of care is enough, if and individual receives a diagnosis of cancer. His response below:
After firstline treatment fails, for most cancers there is only a 10 percent chance of finding an effective treatment option. The process of finding this treatment relies on ineffective population statistics and trial and error, which also takes precious time and exposes patients to toxic side effects or treatment without benefit.
What I am saying is many patients that are up against the wall have no clue that there is another avenue called Personalized / Precision Cancer Care that has been around for over a decade. This type of approach has saved my life over and over since I was diagnosed back in 2002 with sarcoma all over my liver and lungs. Testing such as molecular profiles, circulating tumor cell assays , animal surrogates and chemosensitivity assays are available but not offered to a large number of patients.
These tests may become “Lifelines” to you an your families if you look for and access them. They have saved my life a number of times and may help you. Patients travel to our office from around the country to attain these connections and tools. The large majority of visits to our practice are covered by insurance .
