Marlene Foeckler’s cancer journey has been nothing short of harrowing. Diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 2015, doctors found that the disease was so advanced that lesions broke bones in her back and twisted her spine, requiring multiple surgeries. To treat her cancer, she was given a trial run of chemotherapy that sent her into septic shock, requiring six units of blood to strengthen her body. Then, she received a stem cell transplant and a platelet transfusion that did more harm than good. “I needed the platelets, but I had a terrible reaction to them,” she says. “When I needed platelets a second time, they didn’t even want to give them to me, because I had such a bad reaction.”
After a lot of trial and error, doctors decided to try CAR-T therapy, a cancer treatment being studied by Versiti Blood Research Institute investigators. CAR-T therapy involves removing a patient’s T cells, reenergizing them to fight cancer, and reinfusing them into the patient. “CAR-T is so sci-fi—they take your cells in the lab and reinfuse them,” Marlene says.
But it hasn’t been smooth sailing. “Now, I need monthly antibody infusions because my reprogrammed T cells that I received from CAR-T therapy are also killing off my B cells, which are an important part of the immune system,” she says. “I will need a bone marrow biopsy, and those results will tell my doctor how long the CAR-T should last for me.” But all hope is not lost: the doctor reassured Marlene that a new form of chemotherapy is available for her, should CAR-T fail.
Despite the bumps in the road to recovery, Marlene is grateful for the research advancements that have made CAR-T therapy possible for patients like her. “It was the CAR-T cell therapy that got me to where I am now. I feel better than I have in years,” she says. “It’s such a promising procedure. The new treatments and my strong faith have kept me going and helped me to keep a positive attitude.”
Cancer is full of its ups and downs, but Marlene hopes that by sharing her story, she will inspire others to continue fighting. “It’s been a journey … Everyone’s got their struggles; mine are just a little different than everybody else’s,” she says. “I’m just thankful that they have treatment. I feel like God’s left me here to encourage other people.”
Versiti is home to world-renowned blood health innovators.
Versiti Blood Research Institute and Medical Sciences Institute are located on the Milwaukee Regional Medical Center campus in Wauwatosa, Wisc. Their 40 investigators are internationally known blood health innovators whose work spans basic, translational and clinical research in a variety of areas, including: sickle cell disease, hemophilia, cellular therapy and many more.