Bkoffman
MY BLOGS
-
BRIAN KOFFMAN'S AWESOME TRANSPLANT AND CLL ADVENTURE: LEARNING FROM AND ABOUT CANCER
http://bkoffman.blogspot.com/
I HAVE A NEED TO LAUGH, AN UNWILLINGNESS TO ACCEPT THE IMPOSSIBLE, AND A NASTY LEUKEMIA (CLL). BY HAVING A TRANSPLANT EARLY, I WAS HOPING TO SAY "I USED TO HAVE LEUKEMIA" LOOKS LIKE I AM STILL HOPING, THIS TIME IN A CLINICAL TRIAL. BUT THE TELLING OF THE JOURNEY HAS BECOME A JOURNEY ITSELF FOR THIS DOCTOR TURNED PATIENT. I AM DOING MORE TEACHING ON CLL IN PARTICULAR AND OTHER CANCERS IN GENERAL. AFTER ALL, WE ARE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER. EMAIL ME AT [email protected]
LATEST ARTICLES ( 357 )
-
ASH 2013: Dr. Neil Kay on Why We Need a CLL (chronic Lymphocytic Leukemic) Exper...
Dr. Neil Kay is Professor of Medicine at Mayo Clinic and also is fellow Canadian who had dedicated his career to helping those of us with CLL through research... Read more
Posted on 03 May 2014 COMMUNITY, HEALTH -
ASH 2013: Dr. Furman: Idelalisib in Fragile CLL (Chronic LymphocyticLeukemia)...
I am going to be busy posting several videos from ASH 2013 because some of the new data that I will be discussing from ASCO 2014, May 30-June 3 in Chicago will... Read more
Posted on 30 April 2014 COMMUNITY, HEALTH -
Another CLL (Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia) Patient Dies Disease Free from...
I lost another friend to CLL: a kind and powerful woman who so loved her life filled with friends and strong family support and love. She was an important and... Read more
Posted on 26 April 2014 COMMUNITY, HEALTH -
My Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL): More Good News
I still have CLL, but less of it.It's in remission and it's actively retreating, but I still have residual disease.Today I learned that my flow cytometry... Read more
Posted on 21 April 2014 COMMUNITY, HEALTH -
CLL (chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia) Treatment Internationally: We Can't Always Ge...
Below is an article from the Brampton Guardian.This unfortunate CLL patient can't even get bendamustine and rituximab in Ontario, Canada, let alone ibrutinib... Read more
Posted on 16 April 2014 COMMUNITY, HEALTH -
Personal Update on My CLL (Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia): The Good News
It's been a while since I posted on my personal medical news.Today in Columbus, it was all good. CBC was happily and boringly normal. My Hgb still shows that I... Read more
Posted on 15 April 2014 COMMUNITY, HEALTH -
ASH 2013: Dr. Claire Dearden Discusses CLL Treatment in the Elderly
One of the nicest doctors in the world of CLL is the English hematologist or should I say haemotologist, Dr. Claire Dearden of the Royal Marsden in London.At AS... Read more
Posted on 12 April 2014 COMMUNITY, HEALTH -
ASH 2013: Dr. Jeff Sharman Discusses FCR Versus BR in Front Line CLL
In this interview, Dr. Jeff Sharman gives us some understanding of the important trial data presented at ASH 2013 that compares FCR (fludarabine,... Read more
Posted on 15 March 2014 COMMUNITY, HEALTH -
The Good Cancer
Here is a post I wrote in response to a spirited discussion in a CLL forum on the topic of how we patients are informed about our diagnosis and the unnecessary... Read more
Posted on 15 March 2014 COMMUNITY, HEALTH -
Pils, Pills and More Pills: A Follow-up
Seems as if my last post on too many pills struck a nerve.According to some of the feedback that I received, I am way out of my league with my complaints about... Read more
Posted on 13 March 2014 COMMUNITY, HEALTH -
Pills, Pills and More Pills: A Serious and Sometimes Humorous Look at Adherence
I have blogged extensively on the serious problem with adherence with oral cancer medications in past posts. Check out my interviews from ASH 2013 if you haven'... Read more
Posted on 11 March 2014 COMMUNITY, HEALTH -
The Sad and Untimely Death of My Dear Friend Dragana: "Dying for Your Principles...
2011 in WalesDragana is wearing the red skirtIf tragedy is suffering without meaning, then I am trying to give meaning to the untimely death of this beautiful... Read more
Posted on 09 March 2014 COMMUNITY, HEALTH -
ASH 2013: Dr Jeff Sharman Discusses the Ideal Design of Phase 3 Trials with Nove...
As a patient, it is easy to be critical of study design.Case in point: The phase 3 trial of rituximab (R) plus idelalisib (I) versus rituximab plus placebo... Read more
Posted on 28 February 2014 COMMUNITY, HEALTH -
ASH 2013: Jan Geissler & Giora Sharf Part 2 on Adherence, the High Cost of Cance...
In the second part of my interviews from ASH 2013 with two smart patient advocates in the CML world, Jan Geissler and Giora Sharf reveal the results of their... Read more
Posted on 17 February 2014 COMMUNITY, HEALTH -
YEAH! Ibrutinib (Imbruvica) is Approved for CLL
No matter who we are or where we are in our lives with CLL, today is a great day.Ibrutinib was approved as mono-therapy for CLL patients who have had at least... Read more
Posted on 13 February 2014 COMMUNITY, HEALTH -
ASH 2013: Giora Sharf and Jan Geissler Discuss Mediation Adherence Or “Drugs...
I am introducing a new subject, namely the importance of taking our medications as prescribed.What we call this simple behavior has been undergoing some... Read more
Posted on 07 February 2014 COMMUNITY, HEALTH -
ASH 2013: Dr. Jennifer Brown Discusses the New Data on Obinutuzumab (GA-101 Or...
At ASH 2013, there was much to celebrate for those us with CLL.This interview was recorded immediately after Dr. Jennifer Brown of Dana Farber had moderated an... Read more
Posted on 04 February 2014 COMMUNITY, HEALTH -
Dosing of Ibrutinib and Other Oral Agents
"Poison is in everything, and no thing is without poison. The dosage makes it either a poison or a remedy."PARACELSUSRecently there has been some discussions... Read more
Posted on 23 January 2014 COMMUNITY, HEALTH -
iwCLL 2013: Dr. Byrd Discusses If and When to Stop and the Long Term Use of...
In this last part of my interview with Dr. Byrd from iwCLL 2013 in Koln, Germany, he speculates on the issues of long term risks of using ibrutinib, and the... Read more
Posted on 19 January 2014 COMMUNITY, HEALTH -
The News About Ibrutinib from My Infusion Chair, The Resonate Trial, and Lancet...
Yesterday, I was at the infusion center for my IVig and got back one of the most normal lab results since my diagnosis. No anemia, normal neutrophils and... Read more
Posted on 12 January 2014 COMMUNITY, HEALTH
