“We must increase the number of four-leaf clover people like myself.”

By Kathy Palmer, PWG Member.  

I will always remember the October 2020 phone call that started with “I’m so sorry, you have a tumour on your pancreas”. 

My tumour was identified through an ultrasound exam that was part of my executive annual medical checkup. I was immediately distraught as I knew that the statistics on pancreatic cancer did not support long life expectancy. I felt my best chance was to act quickly so I went straight to surgery without confirmation/analysis of my tumour. Having surgery during the COVID19 pandemic was scary and without the visits of my fiancé or family I continued to be in fear. My surgeon removed 75% of my pancreas and my spleen and was able to draw a more precise picture of my cancer: I was assessed as having stage 2b ductal adenocarcinoma cancer with 3 lymph nodes impacted.  

After regaining my strength at home, I underwent bi-weekly sessions of Folfirinox chemotherapy. I won’t lie, undergoing chemo was the hardest experience I have ever had. My oncologist told me that my body couldn’t handle any more treatments after 10 sessions so I stopped. I worried that the cancer could return as I didn’t complete the standard protocol of 12 sessions. 

Five years after treatment I am happy to report I am clear of cancer. A prominent oncologist recently told me I should consider myself a lucky four-leaf clover, likely because most oncologists don’t witness the success I have had. But surviving pancreatic cancer should never be a matter of luck. 

This is why precision medicine is so important to me. I know far too well what occurs when pancreatic cancer is not diagnosed early enough, or when individuals cannot tolerate traditional Folfirinox chemotherapy. My sister survived only 1 month after being diagnosed, and two co-workers, diagnosed in 2019 and 2021, survived less than 3 months. In my role as a patient peer support, I am aware of many others who unfortunately experience secondary cancers and then are too frail to survive secondary treatments after taking Folfirinox as primary treatment. Folfirinox is extremely potent. It is a combination of four drugs: folinic acid, fluorouracil, irinotecan and oxaliplatin. It is considered the “gold” standard, and this protocol has not changed for more than 15 years even though the side effects are extreme. I was prepared for hair loss and nausea. I wasn’t prepared for the adverse reaction to cold, the loss of feeling in hands which limited my ability to use the computer or dress myself, and the loss and distortion of taste which made eating and drinking unpleasant. I also experienced loss of feeling in the soles of my feet which made walking any distance challenging and breathless. Two months in of taking chemo, a CT scan identified I had blood clots in both my lungs. I learned that blood clots are not an uncommon side effect and I was lucky that there were identified and treatable without further damage. Of course, injecting myself with heparin needles in my abdomen was a new fun routine on top of the 2-week cycle of chemo. I give thanks to the support of my fiancé and the hospital care team to my recovery with no evidence of disease (NED). I am a four-leaf clover! 

I’m excited! I am convinced the Marathon of Hope Cancer Centres Network will improve the current outlook for hard-to-cure cancers like pancreatic cancer, through the advancement of precision medicine. Did you know precision medicine for pancreatic cancer could provide customized treatment based on a patient's specific genetic and molecular tumour profile? Did you know it’s already happening? In Ontario, tumour analysis is now the standard for pancreatic cancer which is providing oncologists the advanced knowledge on how the tumour will react to different chemo treatments and can open the door for patients to receive more tolerable and more effective chemo treatments. In addition, the creation and build of the Gold Cohort, a Canadian resource of clinical and genomic data from a diverse pool of 16,000 Canadian cancer patients, is exponentially increasing tumour research/knowledge and may provide key insights supporting earlier diagnosis.  

Patient voices are important, and myself along with many others continue to champion and support the work of the Marathon of Hope Cancer Centres Network. We must increase the number of four-leaf clover people like myself. People and families impacted by pancreatic cancer deserve better outcomes that the current statistics provide. What does better mean? Better means earlier diagnosis, shorter turnaround on tumour analysis, wider access to treatments and trials, and treatment options that are still highly effective but less toxic. Join me in encouraging more investment in precision medicine. Together we can change the statistics for pancreatic cancer. Let’s create a world filled with four-leaf clovers! 

About the author 

My name is Kathy Palmer. I am a proud daughter, mom, and grandmother. I am also a person who was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. This cancer message is shared with you not for sympathy, but to provide optimism for others with similar diagnosis, and to express my excitement for current advancements in pancreatic cancer treatments. I am very hopeful that future cancer patients will have greater opportunities to live healthy lives beyond cancer due to genomic sequencing and bioinformatics analysis of patient tumours and precision medicine, which is a main focus of the Marathon of Hope Cancer Centre Network, of which I am proud to be a member of.