Vaccinating Against Cancer

MORE THAN 380,000 WOMEN IN THE U.S. WILL BE DIAGNOSED WITH BREAST CANCER THIS YEAR. A NEW BREAST CANCER VACCINE IS SHOWING PROMISE IN THE FIGHT AGAINST THE DISEASE. THE CLEVELAND CLINIC RECENTLY RELEASED FINDINGS FROM THE FIRST PHASE OF A CLINICAL TRIAL FOR THE VACCINE. IT AIMS TO PREVENT TRIPLE NEGATIVE CANCER, WHICH IS THE MOST AGGRESSIVE AND DEADLY FORM. I HAD THE CHANCE TO SPEAK WITH ONE OF THE VERY FIRST PATIENTS TO TAKE PART IN THE CLINICAL TRIAL TO LEARN MORE ABOUT HER STORY. >> THE CHASE YOU ARE DIAGNOSED AT THE VERY YOUNG AGE OF 31. >> WITH ONE OF THE MOST AGGRESSIVE FORMS OF CANCER, CAN YOU TAKE US BACK TO HOW YOU EVEN DISCOVERED THE YOU HAD THIS TERRIBLE CANCER IN YOUR REACTION TO IT? >> YEAH, ABSOLUTELY. SEE. I WAS I WAS VERY YOUNG WHEN I WAS DIAGNOSED MY DOG KATO ACTUALLY IS THE ONE THAT ALERTED ME TO THE FACT THAT THERE WAS AN ISSUE. HE STARTED ACTING REALLY ANXIOUS AROUND ME. AND AND THEN ONE DAY, HE JUST KIND OF KNOWS MY LEFT AND SET DOWN IN WIND AND LOOKED AT ME AND THEN HE DID IT AGAIN IN WAYS THAT THE SECOND TIME IT HURT AND I FELT A LUMP RIGHT WHERE HE PRESSED. SO I DECIDED TO. AND JUST OFF OFF THE WRONG, I CONTACTED MY PRIMARY CARE PROVIDER AND TOLD THEM THAT I HAD FOUND A LUMP AND WANTED TO GET CHECKED. AND I WAS TOLD YOU'RE TOO YOUNG FOR CANCER. DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT. WE CAN SEE YOU IN 6 TO 8 MONTHS. AND THAT WAS NOT A SATISFACTORY ANSWER FOR ME. SO I ENDED UP GOING TO A PHYSICIAN'S ASSISTANT AT DUKE AND SHE GOT ME AND WITHIN LIKE 2 WEEKS AND SHE CHECKED IT OUT. ALSO SAID IT, YOU'RE TOO YOUNG FOR CANCER. ALSO, CANCER USUALLY DOESN'T HURT. AND SO IT'S PROBABLY NOTHING. AND AT THAT POINT I PUSHED AND I SAID WELL LET'S GET A TEST TO FIND OUT WHAT IT IS BECAUSE IT SHOULDN'T BE THERE. AND THAT'S WHEN THEY SENT ME FOR MAMMOGRAM. I DO. AND IT LOOKS SUSPICIOUS. A MAMMOGRAM AND ULTRASOUND AND I ENDED UP DOING A BIOPSY AND IT CAME BACK A STRICT ABOUT TRIPLE NEGATIVE CANCER. AND YOU HAD THOSE SYMPTOMS. NO SYMPTOMS. NO FAMILY HISTORY. NO KNOWN GENETIC MUTATIONS JUST COMPLETELY OUT OF THE BLUE, CAME UP. BACKED BY WORLD FOR A BIT. >> WHEN THEY TOLD YOU WHAT THE DIAGNOSIS WAS, WHAT WAS YOUR REACTION? >> I WAS >> BUT I ALSO LIKE I KNEW FROM THE WAY MY DOG WAS ACTING, THAT THERE ARE SOMETHING WAS OFF. >> AND IT JUST FELT IT FELT LIKE A HARDER EVERY LUMP AND THAT FELT LIKE SOMETHING THAT SHOULDN'T BE THERE. SO I I HAD A FEELING IN MY GUT THAT THAT IT WAS SOMETHING VERY BAD, BUT IT'S IT'S ALWAYS A SHOCK TO GET, YOU KNOW, AT THAT AGE IN PARTICULAR, WHEN YOU'RE OTHERWISE HEALTHY TO GET A DIAGNOSIS LIKE THAT AND TO FIND OUT THAT IT'S THE MOST AGGRESSIVE FORM OF CANCER. THERE IS. AND TREATMENT OPTIONS ARE VERY LIMITED. >> AND FROM THAT POINT FORWARD, WHAT TREATMENTS TO TO UNDERGO? >> YES, SO I DID IV CHEMOTHERAPY AND ATE ROUNDS OF THAT. I THEN HAD SURGERY TO REMOVE THE TUMOR AND ALSO SOME LYMPH NODES. AND THEN I HAD 24 ROUNDS OF RADIATION AND THEN I HAD 6 MONTHS OF ORAL CHEMO. >> HOW DID YOU FIND OUT ABOUT THESE VACCINE TRIALS THAT WERE UNDERWAY AT THE CLEVELAND CLINIC? >> YEAH. SO UNFORTUNATELY, TRIPLE NEGATIVE CANCER HAS A REALLY HIGH RATE OF RECURRENCE. MY ONCOLOGIST TOLD ME THAT FOR MY SPECIFIC AND STAGE IN GRADE OF CANCER THAT I HAD ABOUT A 40% CHANCE OF IT COMING BACK IN THE FIRST 2 TO 3 YEARS. AND THAT WAS TERRIFYING TO ME BECAUSE OFTENTIMES WHEN IT COMES BACK IT IT COMES BACK IN A CHEMO RESISTANT FORM. AND THERE'S NOT THAT MANY TARGETED OPTIONS FOR TRIPLE NEGATIVE CANCER IT CAME A DOESN'T WORK. IT'S IT'S VERY DISAPPOINTING. AND YOU DON'T HAVE A LOT OF BACKUP TREATMENT MODALITIES. SO I STARTED RESEARCHING, YOU KNOW, KIND OF WHAT I FOUND THAT IT WAS THEIR CONVENTIONAL TREATMENT. I STARTED RESEARCHING EVERYTHING THAT I COULD POSSIBLY DO TO PREVENT, YOU KNOW, RECURRENCE FROM HAPPENING. AND THAT'S WHEN I FOUND THE CLEVELAND CLINIC TRIAL AND KIND OF THE RESEARCH BEHIND THAT THAT HAD BEEN ONGOING FOR ABOUT 20 YEARS AND I LOOKED AT IT KIND OF DIGEST ALL OF THAT AND THEN TOOK IT TO MY COLLEGE US AND CHINA TURNS OF LIKE, WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THIS? I REALLY WANT TO TRY TO GET IN AND SHE WAS SUPPORTIVE. SO THEN I REACHED OUT TO THE CLEVELAND CLINIC AND GOT PUT ON THEIR WAITLIST. AND YOU ARE ONE OF 35 PARTICIPANTS IN THIS PHASE. ONE. WHAT HAS BEEN THE RESULT SO FAR IN YOUR CASE? IT'S BEEN GREAT. SO I AM STILL NO EVIDENCE OF DISEASE, JULY. 2ND OF THIS YEAR, I WILL OFFICIALLY BE IN THE 5 YEAR MISSION CATEGORY, WHICH I'M REALLY EXCITED TO ACHIEVE. SO, YEAH, IT'S BEEN IT'S BEEN PHENOMENAL. I TRULY FEEL LIKE THIS VACCINE HAS MADE FROM PATIENT PERSPECTIVE, AT LEAST HE'S MADE A BIG DIFFERENCE IN MY SURVIVAL AND NOT HAVING A RECURRENCE. >> DID YOU HAVE ANY CONCERNS ABOUT SIDE EFFECTS? >> ABSOLUTELY. YEAH. AND AT THE TIME THAT I PARTICIPATED IN THE TRIAL, ALL THOSE CONCERNS OF KIND OF BEEN ALLEVIATED BACKSIDE SPENT SO MUCH TIME DIGGING INTO THE RESEARCH. BUT, YOU KNOW, I THINK ANYTIME YOU TRY SOMETHING NEW, THAT'S THAT'S BY ITS NATURE EXPERIMENTAL LIKE THERE'S A CERTAIN LEVEL OF ANXIETY THAT GOES WITH THAT. BUT THE SIDE EFFECTS THAT I EXPERIENCED, AT LEAST WE'RE VERY MILD. THEY'RE LIKE INJECTION SITE REDNESS, EXPECT A FEVER A COUPLE HOURS AFTER THE INJECTION, WHICH WAS NOT SUPER HIGH AND ONLY LAST A FEW HOURS. AND FOR ME, THOSE SIDE EFFECTS WERE ACTUALLY A BIT ENCOURAGING BECAUSE I FELT LIKE, YOU KNOW, THE VACCINES DONE SOMETHING, AT LEAST WE KNOW IT'S IT'S DOING SOMETHING AND BECAUSE I'M HAVING A REACTION. SO THAT WAS ENCOURAGING THAT THEY WERE THEY WERE VERY MILD AND CERTAINLY IN COMPARISON TO CONVENTIONAL TREATMENT FOR CANCER. I JUST 9 DAY DIFFERENCE. WHAT IS YOUR HOPE FOR THE FUTURE OF THIS VACCINE? I HOPE IT COMPLETELY ERADICATE CANCER. AND IF IT DOESN'T COMPLETELY ERADICATE CANCER, I HOPE THAT IT BECOMES A VIABLE TREATMENT OPTION FOR PEOPLE THAT ARE DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER BECAUSE THE CURRENT TREATMENT OPTIONS THAT WE HAVE TODAY ARE JUST VERY EXTREME. AN I STILL HAVE SIDE EFFECTS FROM CHEMOTHERAPY AFTER A PUPPY IN MY HANDS AND LEGS AND THE ALTERNATIVE IS OBVIOUSLY WORSE. I'M VERY HAPPY AND VERY FORTUNATE TO BE ALIVE. THEY DO HAVE SEVERE SIDE EFFECTS AND I HOPE THAT YEAR 10, 15 YEARS FROM NOW, WE LOOK BACK AT THAT IV CHEMOTHERAPY AND HELP, HOWEVER, LIKE YOU CAN JUST GO IN OFFICE, GET A 10 MINUTE AND YOU KNOW. OFFICES THAT HAVE A VACCINE INJECTION AND BE PROTECTED. >> IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE TODAY WITH OUR AUDIENCE? >> YES, I WOULD JUST SAY BE YOUR OWN ADVOCATE. I THINK HAD I HAD MY DOG NOT ALERTED ME AND HAD I NOT ADVOCATED FOR MYSELF THAT I WOULDN'T BE HERE TODAY. SO AND YOU HAVE TO TRUST YOUR GUT. AND EVEN IF YOU KNOW THE EXPERTS, THE DOCTORS ARE TELLING YOU THAT EVERYTHINGS, FINE, YOU'RE TOO YOUNG CANCER DOESN'T HURT. YOU KNOW, THE LIST OF THINGS. JUST GO WITH YOUR GUT AND KEEP PUSHING UNTIL WE FIND >> I'M SO GLAD THAT YOU ARE SO HEALTHY. TODAY AND YOU LOOK AMAZING AND >> THANK YOU FOR SHARING YOUR VERY PERSONAL STORY. THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME.