Mike Hennessy

The last five years have seen enormous advances in immunotherapy. Consider that three checkpoint inhibitors and a bispecific monoclonal antibody were approved during that half a decade alone, and you’ll get a sense of the rapid acceleration of progress in this important field.

These drugs can mean everything to some patients, especially those who have been treated with other standard therapies for conditions such as melanoma, lung cancer or acute lymphoblastic leukemia, and experienced disease progression nonetheless. In 

, we give you the stories of some of these patients. Peter Daly, for example, after being diagnosed with metastatic melanoma, helped pioneer the use of the checkpoint inhibitor Yervoy (ipilimumab) in a clinical trial in 2004, and is still thriving. And then there’s Maureen O’Grady, who had run out of approved options for her stage 4 lung cancer by 2008. In a trial of the checkpoint inhibitor Opdivo (nivolumab), which has since been approved for the treatment of lung cancer, she saw her disease recede and stabilize.

We don’t share these stories simply because they’re inspiring, but also to demonstrate the great possibility and hope promised by immunotherapy in the treatment of cancer.

, we will expound on that theme with articles about the approved and/or experimental immunotherapies available for the treatment of melanoma, as well as for renal, lung, breast and prostate cancers. We’ll give you a picture of immunotherapy through time, and perspectives on how immunotherapies will fit into cancer treatment plans, who is eligible for these therapies and how patients can get access to them. We’ll round things out by looking closely at the costs of immunotherapy.

We hope these insights will answer your questions about what immunotherapy is, how it works in the body and how it might be able to help you or a loved one through your experience with cancer.

Articles

Patient success stories illustrate the hope promised by cancer immunotherapy.

Great Possibilities

ONE OF THE MANY THINGS that excited us whenour company acquired CURE magazine last yearwas the opportunity to revive one of the group'ssignature publications, Heal magazine. The goalof this quarterly publication is to be a forum wherethose who have been touched by cancer can sharetheir perspectives and provide hope and inspirationto others on this same journey.

In this first issue, you will hear the voices ofpeople like you who are regular contributors toCureToday.com. These individuals share insightsfrom their own experiences navigating a cancerdiagnosis and its aftermath and offer practicalsuggestions to help you navigate life during, andafter, the "game-changer" that is cancer.

You will also find inspiring stories from thosewho have survived and thrived after cancer, includingour cover story by a long-standing friend toCURE, Kathy LaTour, a woman who exemplifies theempowered survivor yet understands all too wellthe many challenges survivors face.

As Heal evolves and grows, we want to hearfrom you about what challenges you face and howyou are meeting them. We hope that Heal will bea place where you draw strength from knowingthat you are not alone, a place where thoughtsand emotions are freely expressed, and — most ofall &mdash; a place where the exchange of insights andperspectives from your compatriots in the cancercommunity will help you to truly heal.

We hope that Heal will be a place where you draw strength from knowing that you are not alone.

Living Well With and After Cancer

Upon receiving a cancer diagnosis, and during the journey that ensues, patients and their caregivers may sometimes feel helpless. Yet there’s a lot they can control, not just by helping to make decisions about medical treatments, but by purposefully shaping the course of their lives post-diagnosis and into survivorship.

In the spring issue of CURE, we look at ways for patients and their loved ones to achieve that control.

In our cover story, we explore the challenges involved with adhering to oral drug regimens, something patients are largely tasked with doing on their own. Our article considers the reasons for non-compliance and the support systems being put into place to help patients adhere.

An in-depth look at those who lobby to raise funds for cancer research — or to change health policy &mdash; highlights members of the cancer community who volunteer their time, and offers suggestions for those who would like to join the effort.

Also included in this issue is information about online matching services that patients can use to search for clinical trials suited to their needs. These services offer patients — many of whom aren’t told about clinical trials by their health care providers &mdash; an opportunity to help drive their own treatment.

Further, we delve into the possibility of changing careers after cancer as a way of finding more meaning in working life. Our article gives advice on what to consider and how to get started.

Finally, we feature a piece for caregivers looking after loved ones in chronic pain. This article offers a solid base of information about common pain-related issues, with the goal of helping caregivers remain calm and sure during challenging moments.

We hope these articles will not only inform and inspire, but will provide strategies that offer you a greater sense of control as you help shape the course of your cancer journey.

Upon receiving a cancer diagnosis, and during the journey that ensues, patients and their caregivers may sometimes feel helpless.

Taking Control

ON THE VERGE OF UNDERSTANDING: That’s what the cover of this issue of CURE declares, and that’s exactly where science is when it comes to figuring out colorectal cancer today.

With notable recent advances accumulating, researchers are now on the brink of discovery when it comes to understanding the inner workings of this disease, and thus treating it with more precision—vitally important for a cancer that often hides silently until it becomes advanced and aggressive.

If you are reading this issue of CURE, it’s likely you have had personal experience with colorectal cancer. We’ve put this special issue together expressly for you, because we’re committed to keeping you up to date on medical advancements in the disease. In our article about treatment, we look carefully at the value and side effects of the various targeted therapies approved, in recent years, for use in combination with chemotherapy. And we look ahead at drugs in the pipeline, with a word of advice from an oncologist to patients: Help move research forward by enrolling in clinical trials.

Also in these pages, we fill you in on the latest developments in colorectal cancer prevention, diagnosis, survivorship and caregiving.

As we finished our work on this issue, national Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month was coming to a close. Rightfully, awareness activities in March focused on a very important issue — screening for the disease. Although, as you will read, colonoscopy screening is not a guaranteed preventive measure for every case of colorectal cancer, it is remarkably successful overall. In this issue of CURE, we grapple with the questions that remain about this practice: how to reach more of those eligible for screening, whether colonoscopy could be replaced with less invasive tests, and whether younger adults should be routinely screened.

We also explore several hereditary syndromes that raise the risk of colorectal cancer, looking at the often life-changing physical and emotional aftereffects of a diagnosis.

For survivors, we look not only at the difficulties of living with changes such as ostomies or preventive hysterectomies, but also at the hope inherent in evidence that a non-Western diet and regular exercise can improve outcomes and quality of life. And we highlight some important aspects of how to be a successful caregiver to a patient with colorectal cancer, as well as advising spouses in patient-caregiver roles on how to retain their intimate relationships.

Included in the mix is the perspective of one survivor of colorectal cancer, an entertainer who is grateful both to take the stage and to simply drive himself to the grocery store, and who is working hard to give something back to others undertaking similar journeys.

We hope that this special issue of CURE will enhance your own understanding of colorectal cancer, preparing you to ask good questions and make sound decisions as you navigate your experience with this disease.

ON THE VERGE OF UNDERSTANDING: That's what the cover of this issue of CURE declares, and that's exactly where science is when it comes to figuring out colorectal cancer today.

Mike Hennessy

Great Possibilities

Living Well With and After Cancer

Taking Control

Coming to an Understanding

Latest News