07 Nov Finding luck in cancer journey
Deljuan Hunter had just turned 42 a few days before he was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer in January 2019.
Hunter, a sous chef from Milwaukee, recalled leaving the doctor’s office at about noon—but not leaving the parking lot until 5 p.m. He sat in shock, thinking about his life, his family and his loved ones.
He knew the death rate was high for metastatic pancreatic cancer, and it didn’t matter who you were. His mind went to celebrities like Alex Trebek, who died of pancreatic cancer in 2020.
“When you’re watching TV and you’re seeing people that’s worth millions, some money that you will never attain, and they aren’t being saved … what kind of hope have I got?” Hunter said.
Yet Hunter is still fighting and grateful to feel good. For the past year, he’s been part of a phase 2 clinical trial at UW Carbone Cancer Center testing a new targeted therapy for patients whose tumors have a rare gene fusion that is found in only 0.2% of all solid tumors. The treatment is a weekly infusion of a monoclonal antibody, Seribantumab, that is meant to inhibit tumor growth for these patients.
For Hunter, the treatments have led to tumor shrinkage and a renewed sense of peace and hope.
“I don’t see the figure of death following me anymore,” he said.
Right after he was diagnosed in 2019, Hunter began chemotherapy in Milwaukee. Those treatments came with difficult side effects, including pain, nausea, extreme fatigue and loss of his trademark dreadlocks and beard. Hunter said he put on a brave, happy face for his friends and family because he didn’t want to add to their grief, but privately he felt so sick and defeated.
Faced with dwindling treatment options, Hunter’s oncologist urged him to consider UW Carbone’s clinical trial because Hunter’s tumor had the rare gene fusion to qualify. Hunter initially had no desire to do any clinical trials, but because he had a strong, trusting relationship with his oncologist, Hunter listened. Read more …