Today was The Big Dana-Farber Adventure (TM). We knew going into it that it would be a long day, a commute down to Boston on a business day would take about an hour and a half one way at least. As expected, the final half-hour was stop-and-go traffic on 93 south onto Storrow Drive. Oh, how we have not missed the Boston traffic!
To preface things, we had set the expectation that the meeting would be to go over possible clinical trials and to hear what they recommended for treatment given the details of my case. We were looking to make sure that what my oncologist had suggested made sense, and see if there were any other opportunities that might be better for me.
My appointment was with two doctors, the main doctor and someone I am guessing was a resident. Honestly, they were fantastic. They listened to our concerns, talked about the background of my case, and answered our questions. Unfortunately, the doctor did not have any specific clinical trials that he would recommend for me. He mentioned only two trials that he'd even have considered in my case. The first was the immunotherapy I was already interested in, but with an extra drug to manage the symptoms. So this would not change the effectiveness of the treatment.
The other trial was a personalized vaccine treatment based on the exact mutations of my tumors. This would be more experimental and with no known data on long-term results. Given my age and overall health, he didn't recommend either clinical trial unless for some reason general immunotherapy doesn't work. He was very frank and said given how young and healthy I am, he would recommend going with the known, solid data, which shows that immunotherapy is most effective for both treatment and long-term control of melanoma.
The doctor also mentioned that he understood that we weren't necessarily choosing to pursue treatment at Dana-Farber given how far away it is from home. He was very honest that there's really no reason we should prioritize care specifically from DF unless for some reason immunotherapy is not effective. He said this treatment is not really something that can be "screwed up" (he used air quotes and it was amusing). He also gave us the same data and information that my oncologist in NH had already mentioned regarding the treatment, so it was really nice to hear that they had the same thoughts and plans for me.
So with Dana Farber's proverbial blessing, I will pursue immunotherapy treatment in New Hampshire.
It was also made clear to us in this appointment that DF is available for me at any point, whether it be questions we have or choosing to move my care to them. It felt genuine, and I am confident that I can keep them in my back pocket if needed.
Next on the calendar (and something the doctor today was relieved to hear I have scheduled): Gynecology Oncologist on Friday to check out what shenanigans, if any, are going on in my uterus. Fun times over here!
Here's a song I've been listening to.