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Grahame's story: Precision-Panc clinical trials YouTube Transcript

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Not all cancers are the same. Precision medicine is about tailoring treatments to an individual’s cancer. Precision-Panc Clinical Trials are delivered through the NHS and match people with pancreatic cancer to the trial most likely to work for them.

Grahame Priest took part in the Precision-Panc trial after he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He was treated at University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust. This is his story of taking part in research.

Grahame Priest talking:

"My cancer came out of the blue, and you can't think straight when you get that diagnosis, it's just complete and utter fear.

"I got to see a consultant at the start and she recommended I start a course of treatment, but it was stage four pancreatic cancer that I had, and I had tumours, I had three the size of satsumas in my liver. Well, I decided to take part in a Precision-Panc clinical trial for more than one reason actually, but generally speaking the treatments which they're pushing you towards, or suggesting that you take, are the ones that they think are going to give you the best possible outcome, and sometimes these are going to be really cutting edge, so you got an opportunity to get there right at the front of the wave of the latest thinking. Why would you not want to do that?

"You get the best quality treatment regardless of whether or not you're on a trial, but because you're being observed, because there's a whole facet of your treatment in particular that they want to monitor, it is fair to say that there's a degree more intensiveness about that. Any problems coming down the line, they're going to get picked up a little bit quicker perhaps, and any problems that I have with my treatment, I can get that addressed maybe a little bit quicker, because you do have a little bit more in terms of appointments that you need to go to. Negative aspect, and there is a negative aspect, you've got to go along to hospital and do one or two more appointments in a month perhaps than you otherwise would do. What I did with my wife, when we went to hospital was to try and make the visits not about cancer. You can't do anything about the visit to the hospital being about that, but we'd try and arrange to meet friends, we'd go out for lunch, or we'd go out for dinner, but whatever we would always try and make that day not about cancer, because actually your life shouldn't be about cancer, you shouldn't let it overwhelm you because that just degrades the quality of your life.

"The experience of being part of a trial is that you're aware that you're a component in a team that is not just there seeking a healthier outcome for you, but also is trying to accumulate what's happening to you for the record, and that information then goes on to help the next wave of people coming forward and every time you do that process, every time you engage in that process, that's another step forward in the war against cancer.

"I have no doubt that I wouldn't be alive now if I hadn't been on that trial. I mean I've still got cancer, I always will have cancer, and it's almost certainly going to carry me off the face of the planet earlier than I would like, but I didn't think that I would have the quality of life that I have now, and I didn't know how much life that I would have, but I wasn't expecting this, and that's down to these people. The people at Precision-Panc, ah they're bloody marvelous, absolutely bloody marvelous, and for other people when they're offered the chance to go on a trial, yeah I'd seriously think about it, I really would, yeah."

In memory of Grahame Priest who passed away in January 2020. 

With heartfelt thanks to Grahame and his wife Rachel, for their help in making this film, and Dr Helen Winter for her support. 

For further information please talk to your consultant, or visit bepartofresearch.nihr.ac.uk