Katherine Webster was diagnosed with a grade four glioblastoma in March 2020 when she was 47 years old. She underwent surgery, before receiving radiotherapy and chemotherapy treatment at Addenbrooke’s Hospital, and is now in remission.
Glioblastoma is a fast-growing, aggressive type of brain tumour – 25% of patients survive more than one year, and only 5% of patients survive more than five years.*
Katherine is coming up to the fifth anniversary of her diagnosis. She suffers from some memory loss and has had physiotherapy to help with the rehabilitation of her right-hand side, but otherwise describes herself as doing “remarkably well.”
She said: “I’m not sure what the secret is as to why I am still here. I was told that I had months to live, not years. Almost five years on from receiving that cancer diagnosis, I try to make the most of life - I live every day as if it’s my last.”
Katherine, who used to row competitively, winning medals at the British masters before her diagnosis, says she was determined to get back out on the water. With the support of her family and friends at Chesterton Rowing Club, Katherine now rows every week.
She said: “Rowing is a big passion, so the thought of returning to the river got me through radiotherapy and chemotherapy. After receiving such a shocking prognosis, it is now such a joy for me being out on the river. I can’t believe I’m potentially one of these so-called cancer super-survivors.”
In March, when Katherine marks five years since her diagnosis she will be invited to take part in the Rosalind study, an international trial aimed at understanding the biological factors behind long-term cancer survival.
The UK phase of the study is being co-ordinated by Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, with fourteen UK hospitals joining others around the world looking to identify the small percentage cancer patients who beat the odds and survive years after being diagnosed.
Consultant clinical oncologist at Addenbrooke’s and chief investigator, Dr Thankamma Ajithkumar, says the study is focusing on the three most aggressive and deadly cancers: advanced small-cell lung cancer, advanced pancreatic cancer and glioblastoma, a type of brain tumour.
Dr Ajithkumar said: “Rather than focusing on why cancer patients do not survive, this study seeks to understand what it is that makes them live. By investigating the biology of this elite group of super-survivors, the study aims to discover insights that could potentially benefit and improve outcomes for all patients.”
Researchers intend to gather tumour samples from over 1,000 consenting patients who are among the top three per cent in terms of cancer survival.
The samples will be analysed in Paris by Cure51, a French techbio company heading the study, supported by Sofinnova, with the aim of discovering novel therapeutic targets on which to base potentially transformative new treatments.
Dr Ajithkumar added, “We don’t want to just hear stories like Katherine’s – we want to learn from them.”
