Elephants and Tea - Precision Medicine - 6

Genetic Testing
LEARNING ABOUT GENETIC MUTATIONS
prescription. The PMB kept giving me the
run-around, but I persisted and eventually
discovered what they were trying to do. My
oncologist intervened and explained that
there weren't any cheaper generic drugs
that could replace my targeted lifesaving
TKI. What a classic example of putting
the corporate bottom-line over the lives
of real people!
Christmas 2023 marked the seventh
anniversary of my diagnosis, and the
milestone for the average survival rate for
ALK+ patients. Although Lorlatinib continues
to keep my cancer under control,
I'm comforted by the fact that a fourth
generation TKI is already in clinical trials.
Christmas 2023 also marks the seventh
anniversary for Rogue One: A Star Wars
Story, which I saw shortly after being
diagnosed. I love Star Wars and thought
Rogue One would be a great way to take my
mind off things-boy was I wrong! Rogue
One is much darker and more gritty than
other Star Wars films, and (spoilers) I was
shocked when so many heroes died in the
bloody conclusion. At the time, I felt like
it was the worst movie to see after being
recently diagnosed.
6
ELEPHANTSANDTEA.ORG
PRECISION MEDICINE ISSUE 2024
But, after revisiting the film over the
years, it's become one of my favorite
movies from the new Disney canon. I
was thri l led when I recent ly had the
opportunity to meet Alan Tudyk, who
played K-2SO, at a convention and get his
autograph. While Rogue One is a stylistic
departure, it still shares the underlying
reliance on hope that nourishes the Rebellion
and people living with cancer. As
the reluctant heroine Jyn Erso declares
in her dramatic speech, " Rebellions are
built on hope! " l
Christmas 2023
also marks
the seventh
anniversary for
Rogue One: A Star
Wars Story, which
I saw shortly after
being diagnosed....
While Rogue
One is a stylistic
departure, it
still shares the
underlying
reliance on hope
that nourishes
the Rebellion
and people living
with cancer. As
the reluctant
heroine Jyn Erso
declares in her
dramatic speech,
'Rebellions
are built on
hope!'
http://www.ELEPHANTSANDTEA.ORG
Elephants and Tea - Precision Medicine

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