Grandfather-of-two Bob Munro was part of the MajesTEC-2 trial to test Teclistamab and for the first time since his blood cancer diagnosis, he is finally in remission
A dad who was diagnosed with blood cancer said he has taken around 100,000 tablets over a decade – but a recently-approved drug has completely changed his life.
Bob Munro’s myeloma diagnosis came in 2012 when he was just 52 – and by early 2021, he had exhausted all treatment avenues, suffered 10 fractures in two years and taken numerous tablets. However, since joining the MajesTEC-2 trial to test Teclistamab, a new treatment for myeloma, he is finally in remission for the first time since his diagnosis.
The patient spoke out after the country’s medicines regulator, NICE, lifted restrictions on who can get the new drug. Teclistamab was initially approved on the NHS back in July, but people who had already been treated with certain medications were not eligible. However, those restrictions have now been lifted, with more patients set to benefit from the drug, which Mr Munro described as a “miracle”.
According to the latest clinical trial data, patients’ overall response rate was 63 per cent to the drug, while the average remission time was 11.4 months, reported the Manchester Evening News. The drug has even allowed some people who had never fully responded to treatment up to that point to get their first complete remission.
Mr Munro, a grandfather-of-two from Windsor, said: “It’s been a minor miracle and I’m so pleased other patients will be able to benefit from this incredible drug. By 2021 I had exhausted all the approved myeloma drugs and I was suffering from catastrophic bone damage – 10 fractures including eight ribs and a collapsed vertebra in the previous two years.
“I joined the MajesTEC-2 trial and I’m currently two years eight months in remission. It has been my first ever complete remission in 12 years of continuous treatment. Since this complete remission, I’ve been well enough to cycle over 100 miles a week, launch a charity cycling event company and, most importantly, meet a second granddaughter I thought I would never see after my diagnosis in 2012.”
Looking back at the months before his cancer diagnosis, Mr Munro said he had several symptoms including stomach and chest infections he couldn’t recover from. But his concerns grew during a skiing trip when he caught pneumonia and was hospitalised.
An X-ray revealed he had lesions, or holes, all over his back – a tell-tale sign of myeloma. He said: “Looking back, I realise there were all sorts of symptoms there. But after I went skiing, I felt I was having a heart attack. It was actually a massive case of pneumonia. They sent me for an X-ray, and they realised my back was covered in lesions.”
Thankfully in 2022, he was able to receive Teclistamab through a clinical trial and is now in remission for the first time since his diagnosis. He added: “The only reason I am still alive is the advancement in research and development of new drugs over the past 10 years. I am living proof.”
Another patient who has benefited from the new drug is Kathryn Oddie, who was diagnosed with myeloma at the age of just 38. Despite receiving 11 rounds of treatment over two decades, the grandmother-of-two had never been in remission until she was offered Teclistamab through a trial in January 2021.
Three years on, the 62-year-old is still doing well and credits the “miracle” drug for allowing her to live her life. “It has been life-changing,” said the retired practice nurse, from Nottinghamshire. “It’s a miracle drug, to be honest. I had had 11 lines of therapy – daratumumab had worked for about 18 months to two years – but none of them had put me in remission.
“At the time, my local hospital said there was nothing else for me but luckily my consultant had worked with Dr Rakesh Popat in the trials unit at UCL a few years back so he wrote to him to see if there was anything that could help me. They rang me to say they had this new drug. I was the first to get teclistamab at UCL. Within six months or so it worked. Now I’m in remission and I can actually get on with my life.”
Caroline Donoghue, Senior Policy Officer at blood cancer charity Myeloma UK, said: “This is fantastic news and a hard-earned victory for all involved. Teclistamab is the first of a new class of drugs to be approved on the NHS in England and Wales and could be a lifeline for people who are close to running out of treatment options. Until we have a cure, it is absolutely vital that all myeloma patients are given as many options to tackle their cancer as possible – no matter where they are on their treatment journey.”
Myeloma is an incurable blood cancer that occurs in the bone marrow and currently affects more than 24,000 people in the UK. Teclistamab is the very first in a new class of drugs, known as a bispecific antibody, approved on the NHS in England and Wales..
Teclistamab’s pioneering mechanism of action helps the immune system to recognise and kill cancer cells by binding to both myeloma cells and to T cells. T cells are a type of white blood cell in our immune system. When the bispecific antibody brings them into close contact with the myeloma cells, they are able to destroy these cells. Now that the restrictions have been lifted, the drug is available to anyone who has received at least three rounds of treatment, whose cancer has progressed and who has previously received an immunomodulatory agent.
10 red-flag symptoms of myeloma
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Persistent or unexplained pain for more than four to six weeks, particularly in the back or ribs
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Easily broken bones or unexpected fractures
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Experiencing either frequent urination or minimal to no urination
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Frequent or hard-to-clear infections
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Swollen legs or abdomen
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Tiredness that doesn’t improve with rest (fatigue)
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Nosebleeds or unexplained bleeding or bruising
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Unexplained shortness of breath
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Unexplained weight loss
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Numbness in the feet, hands, or legs
