Treatment Choices

After multiple rounds of treatments for his metastatic castration resistant prostate cancer, Donald Reynolds learned there were no more treatment options. Then he learned about a research study at the Rogel Cancer Center for Pluvicto, a radioactive drug treatment for metastatic castration resistant prostate cancer.

After learning she had stage 4 colon cancer, Kat Forsythe came to the Rogel Cancer Center. Given her tumor type, she choose immunotherapy for her treatment and credits it with saving her life.

Radiologists are the “ones behind the curtain” when it comes to the discovery of cysts, tumors, and cancer diagnoses. Most radiologists go unacknowledged for their early detection of life-threatening abnormalities.

Hospice is often an incredible resource for patients at the end of life, as well as the best way to support families, through care within their own home or nursing facility – but it does not necessarily mean that someone is actively dying.

The team of providers has an “amazing toolbox” of different options to assist with pain management, medication tweaks, emotional support and more.

When Lori Robertson learned about her rare bile duct cancer had not only returned several years after undergoing surgery but had also spread to the lining of her abdomen, she was shocked. Her doctor offered her the chance to enroll in a phase 1 clinical trial, an early-stage research study that investigates the ideal dose for a potential new drug.

Adrenal cancer is diagnosed in one in every million people — and studies to test new treatments for it are just as rare. As the first patient in one of the few clinical trials for the disease, Tina Reuben hopes her participation will advance the field.

Recent studies suggest that people who are immunosuppressed should receive a third dose of the COVID vaccine. A study done in Toronto found T cell responses and antibody responses, which are different elements of the immune system were significantly higher for those who received a third dose of the vaccine.

For many types of cancer, people of color are more likely to have poorer outcomes than those who are white. This disparity exists for COVID-19, too — and for many of the same reasons. We asked Michigan Medicine’s John Carethers, M.D., to explain the similar factors behind racial disparities in both diseases and to discuss how the pandemic has affected efforts to close the inequality gap.

For people with cancer or other serious health conditions, volunteering for a clinical trial is a way to make an important contribution to the future of medicine. We've put together six things you need to know about participating in a clinical trial.