We have a clinical trial. The nice folks at UAB wasted no time in getting into high gear once they had Maggie’s records sent from the equally nice folks at MDA. We travelled to UAB Thursday morning to meet with the investigator (Dr. Saleh) and coordinator (Traci). Dr. Saleh provided an in depth explanation of the two drugs Maggie will be getting. They are both “targeted therapies”. One is a “mab” drug similar in performance to several Maggie has received in standard therapy. The other will target a different signal pathway involved in cancer cell proliferation. Dr. Saleh’s explanation with drawings to aid our understanding was fascinating and gave us a deeper appreciation of the challenge involved in treating colon cancer. Because this is a Phase Ia study, Maggie will be getting both agents in the trial – there is no double-blind/placebo feature. This is the reason her oncologist recommended we find a Phase I trial. The drugs will be administered in a 28 day cycle with infusions at UAB given on day 1 and 15. The other drug is administered orally at home. Once we meet the pre-study requirements of tests and scans, the trial will start and will only require two trips to UAB every 28 days.

We were very impressed with the UAB staff and the facilities. Maggie’s infusions will be given in a private room with her favorite brand of hospital bed (remember the Hill-Rom Versacare?), tv, and recliner for me. Because all the details were simply perfect for us – proximity to home, low in-clinic time requirement, ability to customize schedule, and familiarity with Birmingham – I was concerned we might be choosing the UAB study over a potentially more beneficial study being offered soon at MDA. I sent a message to Dr. Raghav at MDA to ask his opinion about which study – UAB or MDA – had the most potential to benefit Maggie. His timely and thoughtful response assured us the UAB trial was a good opportunity for her and encouraged us to continue in that direction. He will continue to follow her care and at any time her disease starts to progress, we will return to MDA for the next step.

We are scheduled to return to UAB for testing this Wednesday. If all goes according to plan, Maggie will start the trial the first full week of November – after she takes part in Sr. Fall Retreat at TBC, of course. Once again we are facing a sea of unknown with only our faith in the All-Knowing I Am. We continue to follow Him. We are blessed to have your prayers and encouragement. We’ll keep you posted.