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Janice Baker (right), from Romiley in Stockport, who is now retired, was diagnosed with large B-cell lymphoma \u2013 a type of cancer of the blood and lymph glands \u2013 in April 2018 after feeling unwell for several months.<\/p>\nThe first patient to undergo the pioneering CAR-T therapy for cancer at Manchester Royal Infirmary (MRI) has shown promising results following treatment last year.<\/p>\n
Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT) was named as one of a very small number of centres in the UK to offer the revolutionary new treatment, widely regarded as the most exciting cancer treatment development in decades, in 2018.<\/p>\n
Janice Baker (right), from Romiley in Stockport, who is now retired, was diagnosed with large B-cell lymphoma \u2013 a type of cancer of the blood and lymph glands \u2013 in April 2018 after feeling unwell for several months.<\/p>\n
She underwent two separate bouts of chemotherapy in August 2018 and February 2019, which didn\u2019t manage to successfully treat the cancer. It was then she was offered CAR-T therapy at Manchester Royal Infirmary, which is part of MFT.<\/p>\n
Janice, who was diagnosed with the cancer in the same week her husband Chris was diagnosed with prostate cancer, said; \u201cOver the last 18 months my health was very up and down. At my worst I could barely get out of bed. I had to use a wheelchair, lost a lot of weight and hardly left the house, except for hospital appointments.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I heard I was eligible for CAR-T cell treatment I was thrilled as I had read up about the amazing results and it felt like a real lifeline. My chemotherapy had limited success which was unfortunate but did mean that I was a bit stronger to face the CAR-T treatment.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe treatment itself was actually quite straightforward. The removal and replacement of cells is not that intrusive, and the wonderful staff were very attentive and kept a very close eye on me. There can be a few side effects but, fortunately, I had very few problems and the after effects were quite minimal.\u201d<\/p>\n
Janice had the CAR-T treatment in May 2019 in Ward 44, which is the Haematology Adult Transplant Unit and was an inpatient for a couple of weeks at the MRI before returning home.<\/p>\n
CAR-T (Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-cell) therapy is a personalised medicine used to treat patients with certain types of leukaemia and lymphoma. It is a highly complex new type of immunotherapy which involves collecting and using the patients\u2019 own immune cells to target their cancer in a process which is completed over a number of weeks.<\/p>\n
Janice added; \u201cAfter two weeks I was feeling encouraged that everything was going well. I was still quite poorly and it has been a long slog but I have slowly been building up my strength.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had a scan in August, which we hoped would show a significant decline in the cancer, but the results amazed both the doctors and ourselves, as it showed that the cancer cells seem to have gone completely.<\/p>\n
\u201cThings are now getting back to normal. I have been on holiday, am back to driving my car and, best of all, I have the energy to look after my Grandson. I really feel like I have the opportunity to start planning for the future again.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had another PET scan in November 2019, which was also clear, so I am feeling really optimistic now.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Dr Eleni Tholouli (right), Consultant Haematologist and Director of the Adult Stem Cell Transplant and CAR-T Therapy Unit at Manchester Royal Infirmary, and who has been involved in Janice\u2019s care throughout, said: \u201cWe are delighted for Janice and her family that she has responded so well to CAR-T therapy. This is a ground-breaking new treatment for adult cancer patients at the MRI which uses the patient\u2019s own immune cells, allowing us to create a powerful medicine tailored to an individual\u2019s needs.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo to see Janice have these incredible results in such a short space of time is really encouraging. This reassures us that we have to continue all the hard work and make this therapy available to more patients.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The first patient to undergo the pioneering CAR-T therapy for cancer at Manchester Royal Infirmary (MRI) has shown promising results following treatment last year. Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT) was named as one of a very small number of centres in the UK to offer the revolutionary new treatment, widely regarded as the most […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1947,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,138],"tags":[83,84,85,31,28],"class_list":["post-1908","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-patient-stories","tag-cancer","tag-car-t","tag-lymphoma","tag-manchester","tag-nhs"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n