Rick Liddle's Road to Recovery
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Rick's story:
In late 2011, a mole that had been on my foot all my life changed from a glossy brown color to a dull gray. My wife was concerned about it and made me see a dermatologist. He removed it, but the biopsy came back positive for melanoma. We were told there wasn't a big concern - in more than 95% of cases like mine, a simple surgery to get good margins was all that would be needed.
I had the surgery, but a needle biopsy showed that the melanoma cells had already moved to lymph nodes at the top of my leg. Those were removed and I had reconstructive surgery on my foot. A few weeks later I started interferon, my first experience with immunotherapy.
That held things in check for about a year and a half, and then the melanoma returned in my calf and my lungs. More surgery and two more treatments, ipilimumab and interleukin-2 (IL-2). The IL-2 is especially rough - it's only administered in ICU or CCU because it's so hard on the body.
Another year went by with good health, but then the tumors in my lungs began to grow again. This time I went on a clinical trial that kept things in check for about six months.
In November of 2016, I started on pembrolizumab, another immunotherapy drug. The tumors had spread further in soft tissues throughout my abdomen, the space between my kidneys, more lymph nodes, and my lungs. In January, I began coughing up blood and underwent aggressive radiation therapy to stop a tumor in my lungs from bleeding.
This past week, an MRI showed that the cancer has metastasized to my brain. I will be undergoing another intense radiation therapy called stereo-tactic radio surgery (SRS), also known as a gamma knife. About a week and a half after the SRS procedure, I will have brain surgery to remove the tumor from my brain.
All told, I've had surgery seven times and been on five different oncology medications, along with countless prescriptions to counter the side effects and symptoms. I know there is more to come, but I'm extremely grateful to be in the excellent care of the oncology team at UT Southwestern in Dallas.
In late 2011, a mole that had been on my foot all my life changed from a glossy brown color to a dull gray. My wife was concerned about it and made me see a dermatologist. He removed it, but the biopsy came back positive for melanoma. We were told there wasn't a big concern - in more than 95% of cases like mine, a simple surgery to get good margins was all that would be needed.
I had the surgery, but a needle biopsy showed that the melanoma cells had already moved to lymph nodes at the top of my leg. Those were removed and I had reconstructive surgery on my foot. A few weeks later I started interferon, my first experience with immunotherapy.
That held things in check for about a year and a half, and then the melanoma returned in my calf and my lungs. More surgery and two more treatments, ipilimumab and interleukin-2 (IL-2). The IL-2 is especially rough - it's only administered in ICU or CCU because it's so hard on the body.
Another year went by with good health, but then the tumors in my lungs began to grow again. This time I went on a clinical trial that kept things in check for about six months.
In November of 2016, I started on pembrolizumab, another immunotherapy drug. The tumors had spread further in soft tissues throughout my abdomen, the space between my kidneys, more lymph nodes, and my lungs. In January, I began coughing up blood and underwent aggressive radiation therapy to stop a tumor in my lungs from bleeding.
This past week, an MRI showed that the cancer has metastasized to my brain. I will be undergoing another intense radiation therapy called stereo-tactic radio surgery (SRS), also known as a gamma knife. About a week and a half after the SRS procedure, I will have brain surgery to remove the tumor from my brain.
All told, I've had surgery seven times and been on five different oncology medications, along with countless prescriptions to counter the side effects and symptoms. I know there is more to come, but I'm extremely grateful to be in the excellent care of the oncology team at UT Southwestern in Dallas.
Organizer and beneficiary
Dustin Umberger
Organizer
Irving, TX
James Liddle
Beneficiary