Immunotherapy trial halves size of woman's incurable tonsil tumour

Jeanette Joyce said she had not had any side-effects on the trial and can eat anything including a "nice juicy steak"

A woman with "incurable" mouth cancer has said seeing her tonsil tumour half in size as the result of a clinical trial was a cause for celebration.

Jeanette Joyce said she joined a trial at The Christie in Manchester in 2022 because she "had nothing to lose".

She said it had been "a 100% positive experience" and she had "not experienced any side-effects".

Consultant oncologist Dr Robert Metcalf said it was "early days" but the trial was on "the right trajectory".

The tumour on her left tonsil is the second Mrs Joyce has had to deal with, having previously been treated for an unrelated cancer on her right tonsil in May 2021.

The 64-year-old, from Northwich in Cheshire, underwent 33 doses of radiotherapy and two cycles of chemotherapy for her first cancer and was given the all-clear in July 2021.

However, during a check-up a year later, a doctor at The Christie noticed a thickening on one side in her throat and staff carried out a biopsy.

'Completely floored'

Mrs Joyce was then told the cancer was now in the other tonsil and was not curable.

She was also told it was in three other places in her palate and palliative care was her only option.

"I was so shocked, stunned and in disbelief," she said.

"It felt like I was having an out-of-body experience when I was being told they couldn't do anything more for me.

She added that she felt like she was "staring into my own coffin" and had "even started planning the music for my funeral".

However, she did not accept her fate and asked to be referred to a clinical trial which she started in December 2022.

Jeanette Joyce (above, with husband Dave) said she "hasn't looked back" since being on the trial

The treatment involves having an immunotherapy drug intravenously every six weeks, which helps the immune system recognise cancer and kill it, and an injection of a protein into her leg every three weeks.

"The clinical trial was the only thing left for me, so I thought, why not give it a go?" she said.

"I had nothing to lose.

"When I was told it was incurable, I was completely floored, but I've always been incredibly positive, and the trial means the tumour is shrinking."

She said she had "not experienced any side-effects and I'm able to live life to the full".

"I can even eat anything I like, and that includes tucking into a nice juicy steak."

Dr Robert Metcalf said she was "doing very well" and was on "the right trajectory, so something's working".

He said the trial, which involved 150 patients, had "shown some promising results with half the patients responding well".

"It's still early days, but we're hopeful this drug combination could become a standard treatment for some patients with head and neck cancer in the future," he added.

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