Annie Siple is a 43-year-old woman who was first diagnosed with breast cancer and within a year spread to her liver. Although she hasn't been suffering, her condition is terminal. Siple is part of a small clinical trial for women with Stage IV breast cancer. Dr. Leisha Emens, an oncologist at Hopkins believes this experiment could "lay the groundwork for a vaccine to prevent brea
st cancer."Emens experiement involves training the immune system to attack cancer cells. There are 40,000 American women that die of breast cancer each year. Emens' study involves many injections, blood tests, and of course the uncertainty that it may not work. Even if the odds are against this experimental vaccine, it may give women the chance for a longer life.
When the vaccine Emens created was tested on mice it cured some, but there is no definite way to know whether or not it will work on humans. Emens first study began in 2004, and she is still enrolling more women in the program.
Siple is just one of Emens' terminally ill patients, and she has been patiently waiting for three months to find out if the vaccine is working.
Emens says, "The news isn't perfect, but it's not terrible."
The tumors in Siple's liver have grown, but no new ones had been formed. As Siple continues to wait for positive results, others also hope for a cure for the disease that kills so many loved ones.
4 comments:
Good example, Ariel, of chapter 7's typical blog post format.
I liked how you summarized the article and explain it in just 3 short paragraphs. It made it easier to read and allowed for it to be done in a short period of time.
I like how you added to picture to go along with the story. Like the headline...short and sweet.Interesting story.
I like the topic you chose. It's interesting and it's location is relatable because Johns Hopkins is close by. You could have mentioned the Dr's name at the beginning of the story to give the reader specifics and used more quotes but Good Job!
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