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Doctor finds cure to his own disease

Shared by JoanaSaraiva on 2019-09-20 11:21

About the solution

David Fajgenbaum was a medical student when he fell ill. After being wrongly diagnosed with lymphoma, the doctors finally diagnosed him with ‘Idiopathic Multicentric Castleman disease’, a rare, potentially fatal lymphoproliferative disease, which provokes an overgrowth of cells in the body's lymph nodes.

‘They told me my kidneys, liver, and bone marrow were shutting down. My immune system was attacking my vital organs.’, he explained.

Chemotherapy was effective to some degree, but eventually David had more relapses. So, after several near death-events, without a cure and only limited treatments available, David decided to try to create a solution for his problem.

“There were no promising leads, no drugs in development, and very little research being done,” David said.

After obsessive research, David finally found an FDA-approved drug in the literature that he thought might help him. Sirolimus is used to prevent organ rejection in receptors of kidney transplants. Since the drug suppresses the immune system, he wondered if it could help him fight his disease.

‘Certain signals in my samples … made me think this drug that suppresses the immune system, so it doesn’t attack and reject the kidney, would work’, David explained.

After his doctors agreed to try the drug on him, David became his own test subject in February 2014. He has not relapsed ever since and is currently doing clinical trials to see if the drug might also be used on others.

‘I feel great,’ he says. ‘I’m back to my old self.’, David said.

Adapted from: http://bit.ly/2kujnWk
https://cnn.it/2kUK6eS

More info: https://amzn.to/2m3uR3C
https://cdcn.org

This solution shall not include mention to the use of drugs, chemicals or biologicals (including food); invasive devices; offensive, commercial or inherently dangerous content. This solution was not medically validated. Proceed with caution! If you have any doubts, please consult with a health professional.

DISCLAIMER: This story was written by someone who is not the author of the solution, therefore please be advised that, although it was written with the utmost respect for the innovation and the innovator, there can be some incorrect statements. If you find any errors please contact the patient Innovation team via info@patient-innovation.com

About the author

David Fajgenbaum, born in 1985, in the U.S., found a solution for his Idiopathic Multicentric Castleman disease. He is an assistant medical professor at the University of Pennsylvania, and runs a research lab. He is also the founder of the non-profit ‘Castleman Disease Collaborative Network’ and author of the memoir ‘Chasing My Cure: A Doctor’s Race to Turn Hope Into Action’.

Comments (1)

  • samuelddarden Wed, 10/02/2019 - 00:11

    Great read! I always appreciate new information on the health news.

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