“Are you saying you won’t receive chemotherapy and will quietly turn a blind eye?” – Comedy.com

“You should not give up on treatment because of advanced cancer. According to various data, patients with advanced stomach cancer who receive chemotherapy survive an average of 11 months longer, and live an average of 5 months longer than patients who do not receive treatment. Some cancer patients can live longer. Even in advanced cancer cases, 5 to 10% of cancer cells disappear after receiving chemotherapy. If you give up, or are swayed by irresponsible advice from people around you or information on the Internet, and resort to folk remedies… .”

5-10% of advanced cancers can be cured through chemotherapy

Daeyoung Jang, Chairman of the Korean Anticancer Therapy Research Association (Professor of Hematology and Oncology, Hallym University Sacred Heart Hospital), emphasized, “Scientific treatment is the best for patients diagnosed with advanced cancer, and clinical trials can be of great help in helping these patients fight cancer.” . The guidelines of the U.S. National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) also state that “participation in well-designed clinical trials is important.”

However, cancer is still scary to everyone. It is the number one cause of death in Korea, claiming approximately 80,000 lives each year, and one in three people must deal with cancer at least once in their lifetime. The Chinese character cancer (癌) is a name given to a disease that causes the affected area to harden like a rock, but many people think of it as ‘cancer (癌) = dark cancer (暗)’. Patients diagnosed with advanced cancer, formerly called terminal cancer, assume that anticancer drugs are the last painful memory they leave behind before they close their eyes in the darkness.

Chairman Jang said, “In the past, anticancer drugs had many side effects, so this was a big problem, but that is not the case anymore,” and added, “Even patients with advanced cancer have more advantages than disadvantages if they consult in depth with their doctor and receive appropriate anticancer treatment.” He added, “In particular, participation in clinical trials can prolong life and reduce suffering while alleviating the financial burden.”

-Are there still patients who are afraid of cancer clinical trials? Aren’t there many patients who struggle to participate in clinical trials even though they are not for them?

“The reality is that many patients still think negatively about clinical trials. Some doctors are also hesitant to recommend clinical trials to their patients. Of course, there are patients who read media reports and insist on being allowed to participate in clinical trials that are not for them without even looking deeply into the content. That’s why it’s important to talk and discuss with your doctor.”

“If you ask questions in an organized manner, the doctor will explain well.”

-Is it realistically possible to consult with a busy doctor at a hospital in Korea?

“When a patient asks about a treatment, it is a doctor’s natural job to explain it in an easy-to-understand manner. It is natural for patients to ask, and there is absolutely no reason to feel sorry. Of course, if the patient takes up too much time asking nonsensical questions, the doctor will feel burdened by the patients in the waiting room. It is a good idea to organize the questions you need to ask in advance. Few doctors would avoid patients talking about their side effects or asking questions about new drugs. If your doctor does this, he recommends switching to another doctor. “The same goes for treating patients like famous doctors at large hospitals and turning a deaf ear to their voices.”

-Are there many patients requesting participation in clinical trials?

“It has increased compared to before. However, these days, anticancer drugs often target only specific cancers, so they are often not applicable. Even though the attending physician has provided sufficient explanation, there are cases in which patients leave, saying they will undergo clinical trials at another hospital. However, because the clinical trial guidelines are applied the same way, it is likely that they will not be able to undergo clinical trials and will only suffer more.”

-Some people try to extend their lives meaningfully by participating in clinical trials, but the reality is that some people view chemotherapy itself negatively.

“Isn’t this happening because of the illusions created by movies and dramas? Cancer patients cannot leave this world quietly and without pain. One of the goals of chemotherapy is to reduce pain caused by cancer. These days, many drugs have narrowed targets, so side effects have been reduced significantly. Some people claim that they are receiving alternative treatment because they suffered greatly from chemotherapy, but it is more likely that the pain is caused by cancer. Moreover, in the past, when receiving cancer treatment, the family budget was shaken, but now patients only pay 5% of the treatment cost and do not pay even that if they participate in a clinical trial, so the financial burden has been greatly reduced.”

-I heard that there are many people, especially among elderly patients, who decide to end their lives quietly rather than painfully prolonging their lives through chemotherapy… .

“It’s reality. The problem is that there are quite a few patients who are on their deathbed, breathing heavily in pain, and regretting the thought, ‘Why didn’t I receive chemotherapy at that time?’ It may be better to receive chemotherapy before your condition worsens. If the side effects are strong or if the results are not good after 2 or 3 months, you can find another method. “For cancer patients in certain fields, including lung cancer, when anticancer drugs do not work, they are switching to other new drugs to reduce pain and extend their lives.”

“Don’t be fooled by false information.”

Chairman Jang served as a full-time physician at Asan Medical Center in Seoul and is currently treating digestive cancer and blood cancer at the Department of Hematology and Oncology at Hallym University Sacred Heart Hospital. He trained at Fred Hutchins Hospital in Seattle and Weill Cornell Cancer Hospital in New York. He is serving as the president of the Korean Society for Chemotherapy (KCSG) and is also the president of the Korean Association of Clinical Trial Centers. He served as the 12th president of KCSG and was evaluated as having won national projects and government service projects and established a foundation for RWE (Real World Evidence) through a comprehensive domestic investigation of stomach cancer and breast cancer. He also served as the 13th president.

-I see many people who do not receive chemotherapy and receive the wrong treatment.

“Yes. A representative example is the ‘dog roundworm scandal’ that swirled nationally a few years ago. The patient who was said to have improved dramatically for a while after taking dog roundworm medication participated in a clinical trial for immunosuppressants, and it seems much more likely that this was thanks to that. Patients and their guardians often lose their hearing while fighting cancer and are swayed by all kinds of information, so they need to think more rationally. If dog roundworms are really good for your health, wouldn’t doctors who stay up all night researching them to find a good treatment recommend them first? If it’s so good for patients, why isn’t it used in the US or Europe? A patient who has terminal liver cancer and is said to have been cured only by eating a vegetarian diet must accurately determine whether he actually had advanced liver cancer. There is a high possibility that the red-colored results from ultrasound treatment were misunderstood as signs that the cancer had spread. The likelihood of being exposed to information you want to believe on the Internet is increasing, and as a result, all kinds of nonsense information tempts patients with hearing loss. “There is no ‘groundbreaking food’ that surpasses a home-cooked meal made with fresh ingredients by a loving family.”

-Do you expect that the day of conquering cancer will soon come with the development of artificial intelligence (AI)?

“I wish so, but I don’t think so. This is because cancer is a disease related to aging. It is different from AIDS, where you only need to catch a specific virus. But there is no need to feel gloomy. Even now, 70% of people diagnosed with cancer are completely cured. This is thanks to early diagnosis and early treatment. The results of anticancer treatment are also getting better. If a patient receives proper treatment, the likelihood of a complete cure continues to increase. What is important is maintaining trust with the doctor and thinking rationally. If you want to undergo a clinical trial for a new drug because the current medication is not working for you, you should ask your doctor. If you want to know information in advance, the Korean Anticancer Therapy Association website (www.kcsg.org).”