[adrianm]

I am being treated with pembrolizumab for metastatic MSI-H CRC (I'm in my late 20s). Last year the cancer rapidly metastasized further, covering my abdomen in tumors. Prognosis was not good to say the least.

It took around 12 weeks for the treatment to "kick in", but at that point tumor regression became rapid. Every CT scan since has shown significant reduction in the abdominal tumors until my last one a few weeks ago; there is no longer any sign of cancer in my abdomen. Overall, it went from "countless" visible tumors ranging from a few mm to several cms each in size, to nothing visible on CT today. o_O

Who knows what the future will bring. I'm trying to be optimistic but I'm also realistic about the statistics here. However, going from my literal death bed where I was in horrible pain suffering for 24 hours a day to quasi-normalcy in a matter of several months blows my mind when I think about it. It did give me horrible colitis (yay for autoimmune side-effects!), but I'll take that over a painful death any day of the week. The colitis is bad enough that they had to discontinue the treatment for a while.

tldr; Science rules. Side effects suck. And a sincere thank you to anyone reading who is or was ever involved in cancer research.

[victor106]

Congratulations on your recovery!!!

Death is so final, yet life is full of possibilities. – Tyrion Lannister / Game of Thrones

[iskander]

I'm really glad the treatment has worked for you!

Were you treated in the context of a trial or was pembro used as standard of care?