Amazing scans show how cancer patient's 70 lethal tumours disappeared - PHOTO

With around 70 tumours throughout his body, doctors admitted they had almost run out of treatment options.But incredibly Mr Brooks, 47, is now in ‘complete remission’ after he became the first person outside the US to receive a new tumour-busting drug.These pictures show how far the Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma had spread, with almost every area of his body showing clusters of tumours.But the second scan taken after only a few weeks on the US drug Brentuximab Vedotin shows an amazing improvement.All the tumours have been eradicated. The only dark spots visible on the scan show the normal functioning of his kidneys and bladder.The clinical trial at The Christie Hospital in Manchester has been so successful that the drug has been made routinely available to other sufferers.Now NHS patients with the same rare form of Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma can get the drug through the Cancer Drugs Fund.Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma is a cancer which involves the lymph nodes, with the NHS treating around 1,500 new cases a year. Mr Brooks, an engine repair technician from Bolton, said: ‘I don’t think I would be here today without  that drug.‘My specialist was so excited when he saw the results that he showed me them straight away. I had 60 or 70 tumours and they had gone.’He had a rare form of Non-Hodgkin’s called Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma. Brentuximab Vedotin targets this strain of the disease and can put patients into ‘complete remission’ when there would otherwise be few treatment options available.Mr Brooks was diagnosed in 2001 and at first responded well to treatment, but in 2008 the cancer returned. He had a stem cell transplant, but once again the cancer returned and spread ferociously.Given only weeks to live, he volunteered to take part in the clinical trial. ‘I knew I needed something pretty radical in order to survive,’ he said.He began to show improvements within 24 hours of starting the drug and consultants at The Christie, the largest specialist cancer centre in Europe, were amazed when they looked at his scans.After only 12 weeks of treatment they found his body was clear of tumours and now believe he is in ‘complete remission’.His doctor, Dr Adam Gibb, a clinical research fellow in lymphoma at The Christie, said: ‘The drug can be administered rapidly and has few side effects.'This is probably the most impressive set of scans I’ve seen. Ian was really up against it. He is in remission and we are increasingly confident about him.’Professor John Radford, research and development director at The Christie, said: ‘Stories such as this illustrate the value of clinical trials. Individual patients can benefit and the knowledge we acquire allows us to move on to the next stage in developing the treatments of tomorrow. ‘I hope that more patients will ask their doctors about clinical trial opportunities.’Mr Brooks went on to have a bone marrow transplant. This week he was discharged from his treatment at The Christie.He said: ‘I can’t thank the NHS and the hospital enough. They gave me back my life.’(dailymail.co.uk)ANN.Az