A year of life ahead and the only hope represented by an experimental therapy. Robert Glynn survived cancer and now his story is giving hope to thousands of patients around the world. The story comes from Manchester, in the United Kingdom. The man, a 51-year-old worker, learned in 2020 that he had cancer of the biliary tract. After the cure, all the cancer cells he had in his body disappeared: “Not even the doctors could believe it,” he said.
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The illness
The experimental therapy that saved Robert Glynn’s life was carried out by the Christie foundation NHS, Manchester. He was diagnosed with intrahepatic bile duct cancer one day before his 49th birthday. He discovered he was ill thanks to a checkup due to severe pain in his shoulder, which did not allow him to sleep.
Also known as biliary tract cancer, this aggressive condition causes the cells lining the bile ducts to multiply and grow more than they should. The bile ducts are small tubes that connect the liver, gallbladder, and small intestine (intestine). They release bile into the intestines after eating, helping to digest fat. Generally, only 50% of people diagnosed with this type of disease survive for at least five years after diagnosis, according to US studies cited by Liver Cancer UK.
The therapy
“I asked my doctor to be honest and tell me how much time I would have had if I continued like this, and he said 12 months,” Robert Glynn told the Guardian. The 51-year-old was considered a good patient by the foundation and they offered him therapy, with an immunotherapy drug, which works by helping the immune system to recognize and attack cancer cells. The treatment, which is given by drip and helps a person’s immune system fight the cancer, was combined with standard chemotherapy.
The drug cannot be named due to the experimental nature of this study for bile duct cancer. The tumor in the liver shrunk from 12 cm to 2.6 cm, while the adrenal gland tumor shrunk from 7 cm to 4.1 cm. That means Glynn was able to have surgery in April to have his tumors removed. The surgeons found only dead tissue, which meant the treatment had killed all the cancer cells. “They didn’t find any active cancer cells. They tested the tumors twice because they couldn’t believe it,” he said.
“Someone called it a miracle, but I don’t like that word,” he added. “The results of this research and another larger study are eagerly awaited by colleagues around the world as they could lead to a change in the way we treat patients like Robert in the future,” said Professor Juan Valle, Consultant oncologist at Christie’s and one of the world‘s leading experts in biliary tract cancer.
Robert Glynn from Greater Manchester, who had less than 12 months to live is now clear of cancer, and back at work, thanks to a clinical trial at The Christie.
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— The Christie NHS (@TheChristieNHS) January 1, 2023
Last updated: Monday 2 January 2023, 18:43
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