Access to cancer clinical trials is expanding across the Avera footprint. That means patients do not have to travel as far to get their treatment. While Sioux Falls and Aberdeen patients have had access to trials for a number of years, Mitchell has been a recent addition.
Earlier this year Jay Wempe found out that he had colon cancer.
“I had just had a colonoscopy four years ago so I was not expecting anything there, they did the colonoscopy and said ‘yeah, pretty sure you have cancer,’” said Wempe.
After confirmation of cancer, he had surgery.
“They were able to resect all of what the eye could see, and then he came to us after he had healed from surgery to discuss possible treatment so that nothing would come back,” said CNP at the Avera Cancer Institute in Mitchell, Chris Gant.
Clinical Trials for Colon Cancer
That included enrolling in a treatment clinical trial that looks at his circulating tumor DNA.
“When they did his circulating tumor DNA he was positive, so that makes him a higher risk of reoccurrence of disease, so he was randomized to a different arm of the clinical trial in which he was offered standard of care chemotherapy, or standard of care plus an additional drug,” said Gant.
Mitchell recently joined as one of the Avera Cancer Institute locations that now offers clinical trials. For Jay, this means he can get all of his treatment done right here in town where he lives, rather than traveling to Sioux Falls.
Cancer Care Close to Home
“Doing it here in Mitchell is great, we love it, the staff here in Mitchell is amazing to work with, if I have issues, I call in and they get it addressed right away for me because it’s right here in our hometown,” said Wempe.
Plus, he can meet with his oncologist via telemedicine.
“His doctor is Dr. Heidi McKean out of Sioux Falls, she is a specialist in GI cancer and she is very involved in his care. We see her via the telemedicine about every other treatment, sometimes he will see one of our nurse practitioners, just like they would in Sioux Falls,” said Gant. “It’s been amazing because you can be treated in Mitchell but be treated with any of the specialist in Sioux Falls.”
It’s care like this that makes all the difference when you’re on a cancer journey.
“To add that two and a half hour travel is just so tiring, for me, the chemo hits me pretty hard that day, and I actually fall asleep pretty early throughout the treatment, and I sleep about 20 hours out of the next 24,” said Wempe.
“It just expands our access completely, our goal is that they can come, get care close to home but be able to have the same opportunities for excellent treatment and the exact same experience only close to home,” said Gant.
As part of the treatment trial, Jay does chemotherapy every other week for six months. Access to clinical trials are offered at all six Avera Cancer Institute locations including Sioux Falls, Aberdeen, Pierre, Mitchell and Yankton, SD, and Marshall, MN.
Learn more about clinical trials at Avera.
