The long term outlook is unknown, but if one has a fatal disease issues of safety and side effects become less compelling. In a group of patients with advanced cancer with a life expectancy of under three months, treatment with this agent has in Phase II trials prolonged survival in 7 of 44 subjects for at least six months. Although details of the drug's action are unclear, it is taken up by the cancer cells and seems to produce cessation of multiplication and then cell death after binding to cell DNA and proteins. The drug differs from any other anticancer agent currently known. Pancreatic cancer is particularly dangerous because it is quite common, is usually detected late in its development, and is difficult to treat.
Surgery is extremely difficult or precluded in many cases due to the location of the pancreas.
A good drug such as this promises to be could be enormously beneficial to reduction in cancer death rates. Skin patches which emanate odours of vanilla and other scents may help reduce cravings for chocolate and other high fat confectionery. After a four week trial comparing vanilla patches, lemon patches or no patch, the weight loss in obese subjects was 2kg compared to very little in the control subjects. Intake of chocolate was halved. But there was no change in intake of other fatty foods, starches or alcohol.