Dr. Estelamari Rodriguez is a thoracic oncologist at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center. For more information about treatments and services for lung cancer, click here or visit the UHealth blog.
MEET WENDY REYES:
After a year of searching for answers, 37-year-old Wendy Reyes received a shocking diagnosis.
“You have lung cancer. I’ve been healthy my whole life,” says Wendy.
The nagging cough was a symptom of a rare type of lung cancer called RET fusion. Estelamari Rodriguez, M.D., M.P.H., a thoracic oncologist at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, says they’re seeing a rise in this genetic mutation in younger women who have never smoked.
“Pollution may play a role, radon may play a role. But we also feel that perhaps younger women may be more susceptible to things in the environment that are triggering genetic changes,” Dr. Rodriguez says.
Dr. Rodriguez says the good news is there are therapies available now that target these genetic mutations.
“You could diagnose each mutation for each patient, and then precisely offer a new drug for each patient based on that genetic abnormality,” says Dr. Rodriguez.
Sylvester, an NCI-designated cancer center, studied a new drug that specifically targets Wendy’s type of tumor.
“The drug that we tested in the ARROW trial, called pralsetinib, is an oral once-a-day medication that is an inhibitor of this genetic change,” Dr. Rodriguez says.
Patients did so well on the drug the U.S. Food and Drug Administration fast-tracked its approval.
Wendy takes the pill every day and says the difference is amazing.
“I was not able to even walk half a block without gasping for air. So now I can feel normally playing with my kids,” Wendy says.
How do you feel about Dr. Rodriguez and her team at Sylvester?” asks anchor Pam Giganti.
“I’m very grateful for her and her team. They care about you,” says Wendy.
FOCUSING ON YOU
Focusing on You: Innovations in Modern Medicine is a series of healthcare-related stories airing regularly on WPLG Local 10. For more stories like this one, visit YouTube channels for UHealth, the University of Miami Health System.
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