Update and News

A small update on me and some exciting news about cancer treatments in Winnipeg.

I’m doing fine from a lymphoma cancer perspective. I have no signs or symptoms of anything that might be worrisome, and as we know worrying is pointless anyway 😊. My next checkup is March 27, 2023 which is almost exactly two years after the CAR-T treatment in Toronto. I’ve been told that the two year mark is a bit of a turning point as statistically the success rate of the treatment increases a fair bit. I’ll take that!

On the news front it’s literally news as in an announcements that CAR-T treatments will be available in Winnipeg starting this spring. This will be such good news for those needing treatments who will no longer be required to travel and be able to remain close to their family and support networks. This support is a huge factor is the success of the treatments in my mind. We were so fortunate and blessed to have and abundance of very supportive relatives in the Toronto area during our 75 days away from home.

Some links to the announcement…

New specialized cancer treatment program coming to Manitoba

Manitoba provides $6.6M for new cancer therapy program.

When I had my CAR-T treatment my T cells were sent to a lab in California, USA for “manufacturing”, the process of genetically modifying the T cells to attack the cancer cells and growing several million of these modified T-cells for infusion back into me. The logistics and costs of this process are quite amazing and expensive.

However, Canada is getting in the game with CAR-T manufacturing in B.C!

First made-in-Canada CAR-T cell therapy for cancer shows promise in clinical trial

The new trial, called Canadian-Led Immunotherapies in Cancer-01 (CLIC-01), is the first to manufacture CAR-T therapy in Canada. It uses a different kind of cell manufacturing that opens the door to less expensive and more equitable treatment.

So thankful for our medical system and CAR-T, it’s a life saver.