A teaching assistant from Cornwall who was diagnosed with terminal Hodgkin Lymphoma has seen her cancer shrink by 70 per cent after joining an experimental drug trial. Jan Hornsby, 49, had been told her cancer was incurable and given months to live, prompting her to create a bucket list that included visiting New York and snorkelling in the Maldives.
Ms Hornsby, from Par, was first diagnosed after finding a lump in her neck and underwent chemotherapy. When the cancer returned, she was told a bone marrow transplant was her only option, but complications from chemotherapy made surgery impossible. She was given a devastating prognosis of only months to live.
Determined to make the most of her remaining time, Ms Hornsby organised special days out with each of her three sons, Andrew, Sean and Paul. She also travelled to New York, snorkelled in the Maldives, and stayed in a log cabin. The only item left on her list was ice-skating, her biggest fear.
Before she could conquer that fear, doctors offered her a place on a trial for a new immunotherapy drug. The treatment has reduced her cancer by 70 per cent, making her eligible for a stem cell transplant that could cure her. 'My experience shows how vitally important research is,' she said.
Dr Graham Collins, who is running the trial in Oxford, said: 'We've only known about the benefits of this new immunotherapy drug in Hodgkin Lymphoma patients for the last year and it's giving people a real chance.' Ms Hornsby now urges others to support Cancer Research UK's Right Now campaign.
