Cancer breakthrough gives renewed hope
More people are surviving cancer than ever before but for some cancers - like brain and pancreatic - survival rates have hardly changed in a generation.
Now the fatal threat they present is being seriously challenged by doctors developing a therapy that could allow more patients to live.
Angels frontman Doc Neeson faced his aggressive cancer diagnosis head on.
"I've been sick with a brain tumour, my doctors told me not to come out tonight. But the show goes on," he once famously said during a concert.
But last year the legendary rocker lost his battle.
"You think about all the things: birthdays, Father's Days, Christmases, going forward without him being there," Neeson's son, Kieran, told 7 News.
"Not a good thought - I wouldn't wish that upon anybody."
Although more people are surviving cancer than ever before, some types like breast and prostate respond far better to surgery and chemotherapy.
"In terms of the worst, the toughest to treat would be pancreatic and brain," said Professor Phillip Hogg from the University of New South Wales.
In a world first, researchers have found a new way to target these hard-to-treat tumours.
"We've invented a molecule that targets that change, so it stops the tumours from metabolising glucose, which stops them from dividing and then they die," Hogg said.
Because cancer cells convert energy differently to healthy cells, this treatment could selectively target solid tumours with fewer side effects than current chemotherapies.
A step closer to the day when a diagnosis of brain or pancreatic cancer is no longer a death sentence, but a manageable condition.
The therapy is currently in clinical trials, giving much-needed hope and time to future sufferers and their families.
"Maybe write one more song, collaborate with another artists and you know kick a couple more goals and you know a few things off the bucket list," Kieran said.
The research that has helped develop these therapies has been funded by the NSW Cancer Council. If you'd like to donate to the NSW Cancer Council, you can visit www.gift.cancercouncil.com.au and support Daffodil Day by donating at www.daffodilday.com.au.
News break - August 26
