My sister-in-law has been diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer. So, I was strolling around the web and happened upon a new treatment using dichloroacetate in Canada which is getting excellent results. Medicor has been using it for a while now. Naturally I continued my exploration to see where it could be procured in the USA. That's when I discovered that the FDA has banned it in the US... It has been used for years to treat “congenital lactic acidosis”, and consequently can not be patented. In other words, the drug companies can not make money off it.
So, I checked the FDA website to see why they've banned it, but couldn't find it listed anywhere. It's like they never have even heard of it, let alone banned it. How weird is that?
It can be bought online and shipped to Canada, Italy and Russia for those who are interested. I also read (not verified) that it is actually manufactured in the US. You just can't buy it here.
23 comments:
I'm sorry about your sister-in -law.
What a raw deal with the dichloroacetate!
Thanks Brooke:>D
Sorry to hear about your sister-in-law. I was a cc 3-B who did surgery, 5fu/radiation and a round of folfox. Other than some neuropathy, it seems to have worked for me... but I suspect Avastin would have been my next attempted play... a friend of a friend was part of the original trials... and it worked well for him for quite a while... but he did eventually succumb.
Wow, sorry to hear that FJ. How long ago? Was it stage 3? In her case they think it's in the blood, lymph nodes and liver. 6 months to 3 years (best)is their prognosis depending on whether the chemo works. Maybe they're going to do Avastin..
No worries. It was stage 3-b about three years ago. It had just reached the nodes. I had another catscan scare last fall, but it turned out to be non-cancerous. So far, my liver and lungs are clear. My prognosis had been a 65% chance of five years... but I've been doing great (knock on wood). Neuropathy is my chief complaint... fingers and feet only have about 1/10th the sensation they once had. The oxypaltin in the FOLFOX packs a real wallop near the end of the chemo treatment cycle... the effects are accumulative.
Of course, getting a port implanted and using the portable infusion pump was kind of a pain, but I hear the "oral" 5-FU might be just as good as the liquid/infusion form so... who knows.
Best of luck w/your sister-in-law.
btw - It helps to be "young". Much of the statistics involved in the prognosis are because people tend to get cancer at older and older ages these days...
I don't know what side effects of Avastin are... I know it's extremely expensive... but also extremely effective in holding the spread of cancer in check. My friend's-friend was getting great results until he went off it.... and his wife called me shortly after my diagnosis and urged me to try and get on it (she had been an RN).
Hi FJ, You've really been through the 'ringer'! I'm glad to hear you're okay now. Past the 5 year mark, will you be considered totally free and clear? I've heard that number batted around for breast cancer. I'll forward this stuff to my sister-in-law. I'm sure she would prefer the oral or the inplant!
I just saw on TV that they're getting close to running trials on a version of salmonella which targets cancer tumors. That would be really great!
Yes, I think five years is considered "cured". The Avastin works on a tumors blood supply, to cut it off. My friend's friend was actually seeing his tumors shrink on the scans. I don't recall why he went off the trial, but once he did they wouldn't let him back on. But he survived quite a while... ten years at least, on and off. I don't remember what his original diagnosis/staging was... but I know he was Stage 4 during the Avastin trials.
Thanks for the info FJ. I'll definitely pass it on. Since it was 10 years ago, it should be available to her now! Thanks a bunch!
Good info, FJ. And you have been throuh it!
My late had lung cancer that went into the liver...but no one mentioned Avastin. Of course that was 6 yrs. ago that we were going through the chemo merry-go-round.
Our oncologist was wonderful, and tried hard...but the thing was just to entrenched.
May your sister-i-law fare much better, Eyes!
tmw
Avastin was only approved for colon cancer recently, in the last year or three. My friend's friend had been part of some of the original Avastin clinical trials for people with advanced stages of cancer. He had originally contracted colon cancer, had a colostomy, went into remission for a couple years and eventually ended up with liver cancer and a more metastatic form of the disease... and it was in this form that the Avastin was so effective and was "shrinking" the tumors.
Of course W/stage 4, the sooner you get on it, the better!
I know what you mean, tmw. My cancer treatment w/5FU was a holdover and has been the "standard" since the 1950's. My radiation treatment may have been much more "precise" than in the past, but was invented back then as well. There haven't really been many modern cancer breakthrough's. The doctors and researchers today have lost themselves in the "scientific method" and vocabulary and "trial and error experiments", but no longer seek to understand how to "cure". It's the great failure of the modern age, IMO.
Hi FJ, I don't think people are as smart as they used to be...
Thanks TMW,,, that must have been a horrible ordeal to go through with your husband. He must have been quite young.
He was shy of 58, I was not a happy camper...neither was his oncologist. Who was a Christian, and not worried about extending the agony to give him a chance to get saved. He stopped treatment and let us have the last little bit of time without that misery.
tmw
And yes, I'd rather have him still around, he was good company!
:>D TMW, he sounds like he was a good man!
If U live in US, you can get DCA here:
http://cancer.vc
Wow, thanks Josh. Unfortunately she passed away on November 23rd. I've book marked it in case anyone else gets the deadly C....
Your are absolutely right, many people wonder why. I hope everyone is well informed about this.
Thanks and hope your sister recover fully.
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I read that colon cancer is the one type that DCA is not recommended for. The compound actually increases cancer cell growth.
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2012/08/04/dca-and-turmeric-on-cancer.aspx
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