Drug trial patient making progress

4:57pm Thursday 17th May 2007

A CANCER patient has been making remarkable progress after receiving a trial of drugs that were originally denied him by Worcestershire Primary Care Trust (PCT).

Bryan Baldwin, from Church Hill, was diagnosed with incurable renal cancer last June and told he would not receive funding for the drug Nexavar, which could give him more time.

But after presenting his case to a PCT appeals panel, Mr Baldwin was told the decision had been reversed and he would be prescribed the drug for a three-month trial period.

Now, after having a scan, Mr Baldwin has been told his tumors have shrunk so much they cannot be seen.

"I was absolutely shocked," said Mr Baldwin, "I was waiting for the results of the scan and I would have been happy if the tumors hadn't grown any bigger but they told me they couldn't even find them.

"Mentally I'm feeling great, I've tried to be positive all the time. I'm losing my hair slowly and I feel very tired. I feel only 75 per cent of what I should be but it's a small price to pay for such good news."

Mr Baldwin has to keep taking the pills to stop the cancer returning but at the moment things are looking a lot better for him.

"I'm hoping that it will prove to the health authorities that these drugs work and it's worth giving people a trial. I still hear about people having to sell their houses to afford the drug, which is terrible," he added.

A PCT spokesperson said: "We're very pleased that this gentleman has done so well. Deciding whether to fund new and expensive cancer treatments are some of the most difficult decisions that the PCT faces.

"We want to offer individuals every chance of a longer life or a reduction in symptoms but there is a good deal of uncertainty at the outset about whether the treatment will actually work and every pound we spend is a pound we can't spend on other services."