For the first time, a case of terminal cancer is treated

A woman with end-stage colon cancer has been treated with new treatments. This is the first time a metastatic cancer has been successfully treated.

Until now, metastasis is considered a "bulletproof" state , meaning they are against conventional cancer treatments, and we often joke about "out of cure". But the case was treated by Dr. Steven A. Rosenberg and colleagues at the US National Cancer Research Institute for miraculous results.

7 metastatic tumors

Patient Celine Ryan, 50, a programming engineer and mother of five children, found herself suffering from colon cancer at the end of her life. She underwent surgery to remove the tumor, then underwent radiotherapy and chemotherapy, but the condition was still not better. The disease is even more severe because the examination revealed that she had seven metastatic tumors in her lungs.

When almost desperate, she searched for the latest research to try new treatments. In 2014, she contacted the American Cancer Research Institute. After going through the test, she qualified to participate in research and treatment with new methods.

Ms. Celine Ryan is cured of cancer at the end.

This method uses immune cells called lymphocytes to penetrate tumors, or TILs . This is a type of white blood cell that gathers around the tumor and attacks the tumor. Dr. Rosenberg has been studying TILs for decades for the purpose of increasing their ability to win cancer cells.

The team performed surgery to remove some tumors in the lung, then treat with TILs. Before treatment, Ms. Ryan had seven tumors in her lungs. In the next 9 months, six tumors shrank and disappeared.

The 7th tumor also shrinks, but then continues to grow. Doctors have removed her lower lung left lung to remove the tumor. Tests showed the reason that the tumor did not respond to treatment, because it had another mutation and no longer contained cells sensitive to TILs.

Currently, Ms. Ryan has no signs of cancer."I think it's great," she said, wishing that many other cancer patients would be treated like her.

New hope for cancer patients

According to Dr. and Mrs. Ryan, there is a mutation of KRAS gene - a very common mutation in patients with colorectal cancer and pancreatic cancer. TILs effectively attacked the cancer cells carrying this mutation, so that Mrs. Ryan's cancer was cured.

This is important because we hope to save many cancer patients. This is a breakthrough field in cancer treatment.

Once successful, it cannot prove efficacy in other patients, but doctors believe this result opens up great potential to save more lives. With this therapy, Dr. Rosenberg treated 20-25% of patients with skin cancer (melanoma).

The director of the Bloomberg-Kimmel Institute, John Hopkins School of Medicine, said: "Cancer cells are always intelligent and make them difficult to cope with." Still, he said research on TILs was worthwhile to continue investing.