Thirty years ago I drove back from Sydney to the country to spend the last few hours of my Aunts life with her. Having fought against bowel cancer in her early 50’s she was losing the battle. Months earlier having been upbeat after attending the then Ian Gawler school for cancer patients, a retreat espousing alternative medical therapies wherein the philosophy of positive thinking was intertwined with a strict diet of vegetables, fruits, soups and healthy recipes. She was fighting the fight, at least that’s how I remember it. Then having entered my Aunt’s house after a day of financial advising in the city I was instructed by her carers to go in and see her. “She has been waiting for you,” they said at the time. Lying next to her, as the steady stream of morphine worked on slow revolutions to relieve her pain I spoke of poetry, family, life and friendships to her. Of how much I loved her, of her importance to me. She was tired. Could she hear me? I pray she could, as I clasped at her wandering hand, searching for strength in her weakened grip. The next morning I awoke on her bed, staring at the chandeliers, the press metal ceilings above and led lit windows beyond. She had passed. Her skin grey in colour, her body no longer warm, lifeless. I wasn’t sure whether to alert her carers, to stay and hold her hand, or to cry. Cancer had captured another victim, there was no turning back.
Twenty five years later after prolonged drought my father and I spent the best part of two hours pulling a steer from a spring in which it was bogged, a hairs breath from death. Having finally reversed the jeep far enough to save the wretched animals life we ran in fear as it then proceeded to stampede toward us in fury, all but trampling over us in a maddening rage. Afterward Dad complained of feeling drained, somewhat weak, unable to carry on working that day. Twenty four hours later I visited him in hospital after him having had a a solid tumour the size of a small football removed from his stomach. Cancer had befallen our family yet again. Only this time the medical science was vastly improved from all those years earlier. As Professor Fong pointed out, upon entering the medical profession as a cancer surgeon, much of the then dialogue surrounded counselling patients “To get their things together’. Today medicine has improved in leaps and bounds. Yet there is still a huge unmet need. Still there are patients knocking on deaths door in search of answers, vaccines and treatments to save them from this critical disease. Many of us have been touched by cancers unwanted hand. Felt the brunt of a life cut short. Cried in anguish as our loved ones perished. Searched for solutions that were out of hands.
A few years ago my brother in law told me the story of a virus that only killed cancer. It was successful in annihilating all cancer lines, he had said, as we stood drinking our Great Northern’s, beneath the starlit sky of the north coast bushland. Later that night I wondered if this concoction, this virus victorious in curing mice of cancer, could one day save human lives. For those few seconds I dared to dream…
Yesterday we learned Professor Fong’s powerful, potent, parental oncolytic virus Vaxinia had been approved by the FDA to progress into another cohort of patients, at yet a higher dose than those already treated. Before too long we would learn of the health outcomes resultant from this higher biological dosage rate. Could Vaxinia annihilate all manner of solid tumours as it had in rodents all those years before? The answer to this important question it now appears shall be but weeks away. Professor Fong has already hinted at triumph in the trials. Imugene CEO and MD Leslie Chong eluded to positive signals, from the first patients administered with Vaxinia. Oncologists were said to be lining patients up for enrolment in the trial. Therefore yesterday was a great leap forward on the road to eliminating cancer. Another step on the road to eradicating solid tumours in cancer patients. The FDA placed significant restrictions through calling for exceptionally low doses of Vaxinia in the embryonic stages of the trial, however now with the initial cohorts free from toxicity it was time to get the ball rolling. Dosing patients both intratumorally and intravenously at a dosage rate nearing the “sweet spot’ promises to deliver healthy outcomes for all those involved.
Yet such a significant announcement in the history of cancer research tended to have little impact on the investment community. Perhaps all biotech announcements look the same to the naked eye, and tend to er on the side of caution. Few investors tend to read the fine print and therein fail to comprehend the gravity of the announcement being made. But for those in the know, for those who had dared to dream, the announcement was big. Vaxinia had jumped through the FDA hoops and was now being administered at a respectable dose. The time was upon us. Imugene had amassed significant data on Vaxinia, and the signs were to say the least, positive. It was simply a matter of time before patients dosed at the higher increment of Vaxinia, were to be assessed by the monitoring authorities. It was only a few weeks before the FDA would have their paws on Vaxinia’s read outs. Soon the public at large could hear of this novel technology. This ingenious medical breakthrough, destined to change the world in an ever changing landscape. Could my hopes and dreams from all those years earlier, having heard of the power of Vaxinia, become a reality? Could cancer patients with solid tumours eating at their very core have a reason to live? Could they one day have hope? Would Vaxinia be the lifeline they had prayed for at night?
Last week Dad went back to the oncologist for his annual check up. In the foyer a friend greeted him.
“Your skin looks great” she said.
“What are you up to?” Dad enquired.
“I’m just heading in for another round of treatment” She replied.
Later that day Dad told me his friend had been given until the end of this year to live. Late stage pancreatic cancer was the diagnosis. He asked me yesterday if I thought there was any chance of enrolling her in the Vaxinia Trial. I said we would meet and discuss things with her. Speak with her about Vaxinia, and of her current needs and wants. Perhaps we could show her the videos of CF33 and Yuman Dad had said, as he sought to help his friend.
Driving home last night I pondered as to how many other cancer patients out there were hearing of CF33 and Vaxinia, the virus that only attacks cancer cells. Of Yuman Fong, the world renowned cancer surgeon and researcher who had spent the best part of life searching for a solution to this ever increasing problem. I wondered how oncologists would hear of Vaxinia, and of the existing trials. Was there already a buzz in the medical community surrounding the virus? If there wasn’t now there soon would be, I thought. If the results were sound and positive at low doses, surely they would be even more promising in this the current cohorts. Word would soon get out among oncologists, if it hadn’t already, I mused.
Best of luck to all today when the market opens and over the coming Easter break. Thank you for all your wonderful comments and thoughts. Go Team Imugene I say. The company appears to be kicking more and more fundamental milestones out of the park, and in my opinion soon not only cancer patients but investors alike are to reap the rewards for their patience.
DYOR Seek investment advice as and when required Opinions Only
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