Just watched the tv show Bang Goes the Theory 15/8/22 BBC1, was so heartened to see the work being done in to research into Breast Cancer.
I was lucky enough to be honoured to be asked to donate my cancer (had a mastectomy and lymph node sweep) and other samples to the research programme at the Imperial College London.
Although I had a lump in my throat, how wonderful to see what happened with tissue (and probably my sample) when it is there and hear how they use the samples.
I feel incredibly useful and for once like I am helping in a very very small way.
Thank you to all those who patience, dedication and determination in their work to help fight this awful disease.
To all those patients and families who offer their support be it giving permission for their samples to be used, their experiences shared or in other ways we are a fighting community, one day we will win the battle!!!
What a lovely post… and thank YOU for giving your tissue in this way.
At the hospital where I was treated we were asked to consider tissue donation for research and/or teaching purposes. To me it was a no-brainer - if my cancer cells could be put to good use in training pathologists or used to do some sort of research that seemed fantastic.
As you say, it does help to make us feel more ‘useful’ especially at a time when we can feel decidedly the opposite.
I absolutely agree…its one positive thing we can do isn’t it?
I also allowed my tissue to be used and my medical history to be accessed in a study into the genetics of lobular cancer
As you both say it made me feel a bit useful
E x
Just tried to find it on BBC iplayer, it looks as if the programme’s not available at the moment, and not sure if it will be available later. I think it’s on again on Sunday evening, so if you can’t catch it then, then maybe on iplayer from Monday onwards?
i spotted on my path report under the permission to use sample box it said–not determined. I asked the nurse and she said-- oh that meant they forgot to ask you. Can you believe it? i would gladly have let them have it.
they could have had mine as well, i’d have been more than willing but i wasn’t asked. So they either forgot to ask or maybe they can only ask a certain amount of the same type of people, ie due to age/ethnic origin/cancer type etc.
I donated my sample a year after I had a lumpectomy to st barts. I received a letter through post asking for it also a blood kit that I took to dr and was sent on. I had a mx this Jan, but have not been asked as yet for that sample.
It was good to see it being put to good use.
Good question. It kinda sucks doesn’t it - I was a blood donor and on the organ register…
I don’t know the general answer, however, someone I knew who died (of a different kind of cancer)last month had offered her body for research and it was declined because of her cancer. Someone else I knew a few years back was asked if she would allow her body to be post-mortemed as her cancer (again not breast cancer) was very unusual and hard to diagnose or treat. Maybe it depends on the type of cancer among other things.
I have just watched this on iplayer. I agree with others, it was great to hear about the research that is being done, and the doctor saying in his lifetime he predicts BC will stop being a killer.
However I was upset to hear what a huge problem it is getting samples to test, and how this is basically the biggest hold-up for research. I was never asked if any of my tissue could be used for research. I would gladly have said yes, how wonderful to think I could help in some way. Instead presumably it went in the medical waste bin. It made me quite angry - I am a big recycler and hate waste of any kind!! I cannot believe that while researchers are desperate for tissue samples that could potentially help to find a cure are presumably just being chucked away.
The programme was really good. Worth catching on i player. It is the last third of the programme if you don’t want to watch the lot! Makes you feel very hopeful x
Hi All,
I didnt see the program but i have signed consent for my tissue samples to be used and have also signed up for a clinical trials study, At least maybe something positive will come out of this horrible time…
I have recently been diagnosed with invasive lobular breast cancer and am going into hospital on monday for wide local excision and sentinal node biopsy, then i believe radiotherapy will follow.
Any research into this disease that could possibly help others in the situation that we are in now has to be good