Stumbling blocks to cancer research

Regarding John L. Marshall's Nov. 29 Outlook commentary, "Fighting a smarter war on cancer":

After my diagnosis of dermatofibroma sarcoma protuberans, an exceedingly rare and invasive skin cancer, I participated in a clinical trial. I'm thrilled that I did; being part of the search for a new treatment was rewarding and even exciting.

It was also unbelievably frustrating. My primary-care practice would not perform blood draws because it feared not being reimbursed. Surgeons misled me about their ability to submit the required tissue samples and berated me for considering an unproven treatment. Constant changes to my surgery date made adhering to the trial protocol nearly impossible.

Fortunately, the unruffled and persistent nurse coordinating the trial found a way around every obstacle. My dermatologist's office cheerfully rearranged schedules to take the necessary samples. And knowing that what I was doing could help others avoid the misery I was experiencing was powerful incentive to continue. But I'm no longer surprised that there's been so little progress in developing and evaluating effective cancer treatments.

Catherine Schum, McLean