Suffering from a very advanced form of incurable brain cancer, an Australian professor is testing his own experimental treatment based on immunotherapy. Result: a year later, he was in remission. This unique case could improve the management of these formidable tumors.
Suffering from incurable brain cancer, he decides to experiment with a new protocol
Professor Richard Scolyer is a renowned researcher at the University of Sydney. He was even voted Australian of the Year in January 2024 alongside his colleague Georgina Long for his groundbreaking research into immunotherapy. His work has significantly improved the chances of survival of patients suffering from very advanced forms of melanoma.
After having an epileptic seizure in Poland in June 2023, he was diagnosed with stage 4 glioblastoma, an incurable cancer for which the median prognosis is 6 months. Far from being discouraged, the 57-year-old Australian professor is far from discouraged and decides to experiment on him with a new protocol based on his knowledge of immunotherapy.
Monday May 13, 2024, he announced that his last MRI had not revealed a recurrence of the tumor. An exceptional case, reported by the BBC.
Intraoperative immunotherapy and personalized vaccine
Applying a protocol modeled on his research on melanoma, Richard Scolyer benefited from combined preoperative immunotherapy. He is the first to have received a personalized vaccine based on his tumor. This risky protocol carries risks that can ultimately shorten lives.
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During the first months of treatment, he suffered epileptic seizures, pneumonia, liver problems… but today, he declares: “I've never felt this good in years“.
Upcoming clinical trials to test this treatment on other patients
Even if he has returned to sport, the researcher does not claim victory.This certainly doesn't mean my brain cancer is cured… But it's nice to know it hasn't come back yet. So I still have some time to enjoy my life with my wife Katie and my three wonderful children“, did he declare.
While the chances of remission were very low, this experimental treatment raises significant hopes for the 300,000 people diagnosed each year with this type of cancer. Complete data concerning his case should soon be the subject of a scientific article. Beyond this, this new protocol should also be the subject of clinical trials.