While on a business trip in South Carolina during the summer of 2018, Curtis woke in the middle of the night with severe epigastric pain. He immediately found himself at the local hospital emergency room undergoing a series of tests that ultimately revealed he had cancer – non-Hodgkins lymphoma.
In August 2020, Curtis was back in the hospital after his doctor found lymphoma was progressing in his lungs. With standard chemotherapy options historically not effective, it was time for him to seek other therapy options. Determined to find an alternative treatment, Curtis’ doctor suggested BostonGene conduct genomic testing. The results showed a very high expression of CD30, which is atypical for his type of lymphoma as well as unusual immune changes in his tumor. Based on this rare finding, Brentuximab, an antibody-drug conjugate medication that selectively targets tumor cells expressing the CD30 antigen, was added to a ‘cocktail’ of immune agents that Curtis received. In December 2020, after only four months of treatment, Curtis’ scans showed no evidence of a tumor.
“A cancer diagnosis changes your perspective on what is important in life. Cancer leads to a total paradigm shift of priorities in life. If my doctor had not recommended BostonGene’s test, or we didn’t learn any new information on my cancer, I would not be here right now spending time with my family and friends. I feel very blessed that this is the way it worked out,” says Curtis.