Advances in Treatment

Not often, but once in awhile after seeing an ad on TV or hearing of another person with the dreaded disease, I wonder what would have happened if Jim had gotten GBM4 today versus 14 years ago.

The majority of brain cancers are highly invasive and rarely spreads to other parts of the body beyond the brain. Glioblastoma (GBM) is still the most dangerous and aggressive form of brain cancer. GBM patients still have short life expectancies after diagnosis. I looked it up and found that although there are new treatments and options it is still a rare form of cancer. It is still horrific and does not have a good outcome. I still hate cancer and I still pray for a cure. Ultimately I am grateful that November 5th was just a pause in Jim’s life, a transition to  the next and eternal part of his story.The stats are still the same and only 10% live past 5 years. Jim made it 22 months from diagnosis.

Jim took Temodar but studies have found that GBM is a smart cancer and generates its own DNA “repair” that neutralizes that drug. So, Jim might have had a slight addition of days with immunotherapay treatment or a clinical trial. I am not living in the land of “what-if”, rather I am just reflecting on what it might have looked like this many years later. It seems like it would be very similar.