A Personal Journey Through Cancer

Behind every cancer diagnosis is a person with individual needs, hopes and dreams – like Hannah*, a vibrant mother of three who was in the prime of her life when she was diagnosed with cancer. In that moment, she was no longer just a mother, a successful professional, or a woman who loved horseback riding – she was also a cancer patient.

When we met Hannah in 2018, she had just experienced her second recurrence of cancer. Her original diagnosis revealed lesions on her colon and liver. When her cancer re-emerged, it was in her ovaries and had spread to the lining of her abdominal cavity and spleen. Her condition had become more complex and her treatment options brought new risks and benefits that she needed help understanding.

“A strong woman knows she has strength enough for the journey…
but a woman of strength knows it is on the journey that she will become strong.”

While Hannah had colorectal cancer, the mutation driving her tumor growth was more commonly associated with breast cancer. This distinction is so rare it could have been easily overlooked. The team used this insight to inform and guide her entire treatment, which included medications that are more commonly associated with the treatment of breast cancer.

Hannah’s team provided two viable options to fight the cancer: aggressive surgery using heated chemotherapy delivered directly to the abdomen or a clinical trial targeting a unique characteristic in her cancer cells. Hannah elected the clinical trail route because her priority was to minimize side effects. While she initially responded well, her disease eventually began to progress again.

To attack this new phase of her disease, Hannah’s team worked with a network of oncologists around the world to identify creative treatment options that would attack the unique features of her cancer. Private Health characterized her tumor using comprehensive molecular profiling, including cutting edge RNA analysis, and from this, developed a personalized care plan that included cancer vaccines and peptide receptor radioligand therapy. This ground-breaking approach was recently published in a research study that helps illuminate the role that RNA plays in cancer growth and progression.

Hannah’s dedicated Care Team took the time to understand what mattered to her medically and personally. They learned her preference was to pursue a thoughtful blend of western and eastern medicine to both combat her disease and mitigate side effects. When we met her, Hannah was already taking complementary and alternative medicines to help her live her life as normally as possible. Following a thorough review, the Care Team eliminated any treatments that had no evidence to support their health benefit claims and shared well-researched treatment options such as amino therapy and Vitamin D that could help her recovery.

While Hannah’s struggle with cancer is still very much a reality, utilizing the invaluable insights that came from her health data and taking into consideration her wishes to incorporate CAM approaches, the Private Health Care Team has been able to create safe and effective treatment plans specifically for her – giving Hannah and her family confidence and a sense of control during a challenging time.

This is the future of medicine, and Private Health Management is helping to lead the way.

* Name changed to protect privacy

* Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.