I18 -- May 2008 -- Brain Tumor Drug

Intro: Every year more than 21-thousand people in the U.S. are diagnosed with brain cancer. Unfortunately, many of those people will die within a year of diagnosis. But Mayo Clinic doctors are hopeful that a chemotherapy drug approved to fight other types of cancer, may help people with brain cancer live longer, fuller lives.

EVERY TWO WEEKS DAVID ROSE SPENDS THREE HOURS AT MAYO CLINIC RECEIVING CHEMOTHERAPY FOR A BRAIN TUMOR CALLED A GLIOBLASTOMA. HE STARTED THE EXPERIMENTAL TREATMENT ABOUT 9 MONTHS AGO.

"THEY SAID THIS IS PRETTY MUCH YOU'RE LAST CHANCE."

STANDARD TREATMENT: SURGERY, RADIATION AND OTHER TYPES OF CHEMOTHERAPY WORKED FOR A WHILE, BUT THE TUMOR KEPT COMING BACK.

"HIS TUMOR WAS MUCH MORE AGGRESSIVE WHEN IT CAME BACK. IT WAS DIVIDING AT A MUCH MORE RAPID RATE. WE THOUGHT IT WAS PRETTY MUCH THE END FOR DAVID AT THAT POINT."

BUT DR. KURT JAECKLE [JAY'-CULL] SAYS A CHEMOTHERAPY DRUG CALLED BEVACIZUMAB, [BEV-AH-SIZ'-UH-MAB] WHICH IS FDA APPROVED FOR COLON AND LUNG CANCER, HAS REDUCED DAVID'S TUMOR TO THE POINT WHERE YOU CAN'T SEE IT ON AN MRI.

"IT'S GONE. MY TUMOR'S GONE."

TUMOR GROWTH DEPENDS ON BLOOD FLOW FROM NEARBY VESSELS. THESE VESSELS GROW INTO THE TUMOR AFTER RECEIVING A SIGNAL FROM THE TUMOR. THAT SIGNAL IS A PROTEIN CALLED VEGF [VEJ-F]. THE MEDICATION DAVID RECEIVES BLOCKS THE VEGF FROM ATTACHING TO RECEPTORS ON THE BLOOD VESSELS.

ITHOUT THE SIGNALS TO GROW, THE TUMOR CAN SHRINK.

"IT WENT FROM THE SIZE OF AN ORANGE TO NOTHING."

THIS DRUG HAS NOT YET BEEN APPROVED BY THE FDA AS A BRAIN CANCER TREATMENT, BUT RESEARCH SUGGESTS THAT IT COULD BE EFFECTIVE FOR MORE THAN 50% OF THE PEOPLE WHO USE IT.

"THE JURY IS STILL OUT IF THIS WILL TRANSLATE INTO PATIENTS LIVING LONGER, STAYING DISEASE-FREE FOR A LONGER PERIOD OF TIME. BUT WE'RE ALL EXCITED."
EXCITED FOR DAVID. WHO'S LIVING A NORMAL LIFE WHILE BATTLING A DEADLY DISEASE.

FOR MEDICAL EDGE, I'M VIVIEN WILLIAMS.


Anchor tag: David says the chemo he gets every two weeks can wipe him out for a day or so, but he also says it's a small price to pay for life.

Dr. Jaeckle isn't sure how long David will have to continue the treatments, as this medication is so new in regards to brain cancer. It's still being investigated, and it is not right for all patients with brain cancer. But it may become one more vital weapon in the fight against this deadly disease.

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