Upon a friend's suggestion, I went to a 'ask the doctor' session at the New Hope for cancer patients and families on Wed. It turned out that I was one of the only two patient families present, as a result, I got to consult with the oncologist Dr. Edmond Tai for one whole hour. Dr. Tai practiced at Palo Alto Medical Foundation with 25+ years of experience in oncology practice.
Dr. Tai's recommendation for treatment:
- Tested for gene mutation (EGFR, ALK and KRAS) first. If Dad's gene mutation matches one of the above, use the targeted therapy for the according type of gene mutation for effectiveness and less side effects.
- If gene mutation doesn't match, use chemotherapy (Carboplatin + Alimta, may be with Avastin)
- In China and Hong Kong, even if the gene mutation doesn't match, the doctors usually start the patients on Tarceva because Asians are more responsive to Tarceva.
Notes:
- There are 3 grades of cancer cell in histology term. 'Poorly differentiated' means grade 3
- He commented that cancer staging system should be used only as a reference. The system is 50 years old and was based on size and location of the tumor. The system was designed when surgery was the only option, thus to help the doctor decide whether surgery was possible. The staging does not take into account patients' biological characteristics, age, health condition, etc. Also, the bio technology has advanced greatly in the past five years in the targeted therapy. I was relieved to hear that.
- Jacqueline
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