Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 29:19 — 26.8MB)
Subscribe: RSS
The annual Kidney Cancer Symposium was held this year in Miami, Florida. It was chaired by Dr. Toni Choueiri of Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Institute in Boston, and contained a wealth of information for physicians, both urologists and oncologists dealing with kidney cancer.
This year for the first time in many years more patients and patient advocates were included in the mix. In the past Joyce has been one of 4-5 patients invited to help report the meeting, under the general editorship of Mike Lawing. This year, in part to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the founding of the Kidney Cancer Association (KCA) by a kidney cancer patient, more patients were invited to attend, including two from outside the United States: Caleb from Nigeria and Juanita Ruiz from Peru.
Billy Foster, a long-time KCA supporter and jazz musician, was on hand to provide wonderful music for the reception. He has given us permission to broadcast an interview he recorded with Caleb Egwuenu, founder and president of Stand Up to Cancer Naija. In Nigeria many people still believe that cancer is “juju” or some harmful magical power inflicted by someone else, or as a result of something you did wrong. The biggest challenge to managing any cancer is that diagnoses are usually after the cancer is already advanced to a late stage. For Nigeria as for most developing countries, the management of late stage cancer is beyond the skills and budgets of the health care systems. Their only hope of managing cancer is to find it at early stages.
Billy’s jazz music show can be found at http://billyfosterjazzzone.com
Opdivo (nivolumab) was approved the day before this broadcast. It is a very exciting advance, but do approach with caution. This drug is not for everyone, and managing its side effects if very different from the management of side effects of other cancer drugs. Be sure you are working with a team that understands this new kind of drug. See http://www.opdivo.bmscustomerconnect.com/ and discuss it with your health care team.
