Melanoma hits Alexander relentlessly: it spreads to the lungs, liver and brain, but she has to take care of the treatment herself | Lifetime



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The disease returned with force

About Alexander 15 minutes LIFE IS ALREADY wrote, when the woman still did not have any financial support, only hope and a crazy desire to live. As the woman herself said, at first it seemed that the unexpected moles seen unexpectedly by the man would not pose a major threat – the melanoma was detected at the same time, at a very early stage. It was planned for two years, but a year later the drug disappeared from the Lithuanian market.

So the doctor decided that this duration of treatment would be long enough to protect me against recurrence of the disease, especially since all the tests were good. Everything went well for a year and a half until 2019. In April I have a bad cold. Pneumonia was suspected and an x-ray was taken. At that time, metastases were noticed in the lungs, ”said the woman.

The woman was prescribed a modern immunotherapeutic drug, but it only helped temporarily. One year later, in 2020. In March, studies showed that some malignant foci in the lungs increased by up to 39%, new ones appeared, and metastases spread to the liver.

“Doctors said he needed another immunotherapy drug. Unfortunately, that drug is not reimbursed in Lithuania. Therefore, chemotherapy was offered, which does not help me: the disease continues to spread, metastases have already appeared in the brain. The surgery will come soon, the doctors will try to remove these tumors, “said the interlocutor.

The cost of a four-cycle immunotherapy course with a woman requires about 50 thousand. euros. For Alexander’s family, it is unimaginable money. The Cancer Treatment Support Fund took over the help after consulting with doctors. And a miracle happened: a large part of the amount needed for treatment was collected.

There was enough money for 3 doses of the drug.

“It just came to our knowledge then. The amount seemed unimaginably large, but I didn’t lose hope from the beginning. And now I don’t lose it,” Aleksandra assured.

As soon as he learned that approximately half of the required amount had been raised, he immediately asked his doctor to start treatment. “I decided that if there is already half the amount, somehow it is possible to collect the second part with the help of friends and family. The most important thing is that the disease moves away from me, and with money we will somehow get away with it, ”the woman opened.

Although she feels physically weak at the moment, nauseated, and her whole body aches, Aleksandra says she doesn’t lose her optimism.

“Before taking the medicine, I had read people’s opinions about possible side effects, so I am not afraid and I try not to give up. Although everything hurts now, I have no strength, I try not to lie all the time, I walk around the house less because I want to live. It doesn’t matter that it costs me a lot to prepare to eat, I travel and I do. If I lie down, all sides will get hurt from lying down.

A man supports me a lot: if I can’t, he is obliged to eat and tidy up the house, but I don’t want to feel helpless, so I try to do the housework myself. Sure, I’m doing less than before, but I’m trying.

I am very grateful to all the people who helped me. Words are lacking to express this gratitude. They gave me hope to live. When the first post came out, I received so much support from people who once knew me that it was possible to start healing with just that. People even from the town where I was born answered, classmates, neighbors with whom I had to live in one place or another, colleagues who looked for economic sources in various ways.

Many of my acquaintances simply did not know that I was sick, after all, the patient does not attack everyone to announce his illness. I thought I was going to cope on my own that I wouldn’t have to ask for help in public, “the woman said.

Words are lacking to express this gratitude. They gave me hope to live.

But the public request was worth it. As Alexandra herself admits, she was hoping to get people’s support, but she really didn’t expect the support to be that good. Many people who once knew her donated money and spread their cry for help to her circle of acquaintances.

“It’s amazing! And this is the best therapy for me,” the woman assured me. However, at the moment, the woman still lacks money for the last (fourth) dose of the drug.

Therefore, the Cancer Treatment Support Foundation is asking people of good will to help Alexander acquire the latest course of treatment that can open the door to life. From space 50 thousand. Only about 10,000 euros remained to be collected.

Doctor: this is your last chance

According to the chemotherapist oncologist of the doc of the National Cancer Institute. Dr. Vincas Urbonas, one of the most disadvantaged cancers in the treatment of advanced metastatic melanoma. Clinical trials are underway in developed countries, including melanoma patients who have access to the latest drugs, but in Lithuania those opportunities are limited.

From space 50 thousand. Only about 10,000 euros remained to be collected.

“Many cancers are sensitive to chemotherapy, and melanoma is one of the few for which chemotherapy is practically ineffective. Its efficiency ranges from 0 to 10-15%. Therefore, this method of treatment is questionable and in patients Developed countries of the world practically does not apply in this case.

If a patient does not have a mutation in the BRAF gene, we only have one type of immunotherapeutic antibody against the PD-1 receptor in Lithuania. If these drugs don’t help, there is no second-line compensatory immunotherapy. So situations like this are common and we use chemotherapy for further treatment, which, as mentioned, is not very effective.

photo nvi.lt / Vincas Urbonas

photo nvi.lt / Vincas Urbonas

If second-line treatment is compensated for by another group of immunotherapeutic drugs that block the CTLA-4 receptor, then at least the possibility of second-line treatment would arise. Unfortunately, patients currently have to buy the drug on their own. One hundred percent guarantee that it will help is not, but without trying you don’t know. For a woman, this is the last chance. He has already tried compensatory immunotherapies against the PD-1 receptor and chemotherapy, but sadly the disease has progressed. Therefore, it is currently the only drug that can be expected to respond positively, “said the doctor.

According to the interviewee, there are beautiful examples of patients living long enough without relapse after treatment with this drug. It is almost impossible to completely cure the spread of melanoma, but gaining more than a year of quality of life is a great gift.

Those who can contribute to Alexander’s treatment and give him hope to stop the disease, donate money in the following ways:

Container: Cancer Treatment Support Fund

How: LT932140030004135605 (Luminor bankas)

Purpose: help Alexander Žavoronok



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