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During a clinical trial clinic visit in January, my trial coordinator at Roswell Park Cancer Institute asked me if I would be interested in speaking before the FDA’s Oncologic Drug Advisory Committee about my experience as a patient taking the experimental drug rociletinib. Clovis Oncology, the company that makes and is testing the drug, was hoping to receive accelerated approval to start being able to sell this drug on the market, and a hearing scheduled for Tuesday, April 12 before this important advisory committee was key. The company was looking for patients to speak about their experience with the drug.  I immediately said yes. Such opportunities are rare, and it’s exciting to have an opportunity to be part of the important process of drug approval beyond taking a drug as an experimental subject. As a bonus, the hearing would be held in Silver Spring, MD, near where our daughter lives, and I would get to see her and her husband. In February, I talked with an executive...

There are two types of centers that treat cancer: community cancer centers, and comprehensive cancer centers. I recently had an experience that made it clear to me that if you can get yourself to a comprehensive cancer center, you will likely find that the additional travel and related expenses are worth it. I began care at a community cancer center, the Richard E. Winter Cancer Center in Ogdensburg, NY. I love this center and my doctor there, and continue to have a relationship with it - that’s where I get my bi-monthly Xgeva shot. Community cancer centers are necessary and valuable, especially for standardized treatments, but they offer little access to clinical trials and highly specialized services. I need my local center, because if I need a standard chemo treatment, it’s crazy for me to travel 5 hours one-way for the same treatment I can have only an hour from home. My doctor there is very sharp and good at seeing me and my situation holistically, but she is a general oncolo...