Doctor Fights Cancer With Miracle Treatment
LOS ANGELES (CBS) — As an emergency physician, Dr. Michael Weitz is used to taking care of patients. But little did he know, he would become a patient himself, and the diagnosis would be dire.
Doctors said he had six to eight months to live.
"The hardest thing that we had to do was to tell our kids," Weitz said. "That was heart-wrenching, How do you tell your kids that you have lung cancer and you may not be around for very long. It's just, the worst thing i went through."
Weitz never smoked a day in his life and was always conscious about his health. Yet, he was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer.
He immediately went through chemotherapy and radiation and had his left lung removed. However, his chances of survival were still less than 15 percent.
Weitz's condition was stable after treatment, but a year and a half ago, the cancer spread to his bones, his brains and his chest. He was running out of options.
His mom heard about a clinical trial that, in some patients, had become a miracle.
The experimental treatment affects about four percent of lung cancer patients. After Weitz's tissue was tested, he found out he was one of the lucky few.
On recent scans, Weitz's cancer is gone. He said he knows he is not cured, but he cherishes every day.
He said he could not have gotten through this battle without his wife.
"I can't imagine what she's had to go through, through these last few years," Weitz said. "It's just an amazing tribute to Janice. She's just my everything, she is my everything."
To find out how to get tested for the experimental treatment, visit Lung Cancer Foundation of America.
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