I was a participant in a trial of the TIL therapy at NIH in 2012 for stage 4 melanoma. I chose to participate in this trial because it was retraining my own immune system to fight my cancer.
Within three months of treatment, 99% of my tumor load was gone (with the remaining was unknown if it was active malignant cells or scar tissue). By 15 months, there was no evidence left.
In the last 11+ years, I've had no further treatment and the melanoma has not returned. I'm very lucky to be a complete responder and have a long-term remission.
When TIL adoptive cell therapy works, it works well. It's amazing, and I'm thankful for Dr. Steven Rosenberg's life work in developing this.
Now that it's FDA approved, many other melanoma patients will have a shot to try a therapy that, for all practical purposes, can be a cure for a disease that not too long ago was a terminal death sentence.
Within three months of treatment, 99% of my tumor load was gone (with the remaining was unknown if it was active malignant cells or scar tissue). By 15 months, there was no evidence left.
In the last 11+ years, I've had no further treatment and the melanoma has not returned. I'm very lucky to be a complete responder and have a long-term remission.
When TIL adoptive cell therapy works, it works well. It's amazing, and I'm thankful for Dr. Steven Rosenberg's life work in developing this.
Now that it's FDA approved, many other melanoma patients will have a shot to try a therapy that, for all practical purposes, can be a cure for a disease that not too long ago was a terminal death sentence.