Survival: A Medical Memoir
From Drug Discovery To Clinical Cancer Trials
by Lorne J. Brandes, MD

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This is the amazing true story of medical research, far outside the box, that led to the discovery of a novel antihistamine (DPPE) that helped chemotherapy drugs cure laboratory mice of cancer while protecting the bone marrow. The book chronicles an inventor's passion to move DPPE from the laboratory to the clinic; the unprecedented facilitation of its development and approval for human use by university and government bureaucrats; the decision of a U.S. pharmaceutical giant that stopped DPPE in its tracks after it was declared inactive at an early time-point in a major breast cancer trial, only to show a marked survival advantage in a follow-up analysis 18 months later; and its dramatic rescue by a small Canadian biotech company that, with a combination of luck, venture capital and the FDA’s blessing, took it back into a final trial needed for its approval. Intertwined with the human drama are the politics and science behind the story, including an unanticipated research finding with implications that shook the public, drug companies and regulatory agencies.

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"Dr. Brandes' book is a good read...It is a story that was worthwhile writing to have researchers understand that many endeavours do not end successfully. This is true, especially in the realm of drug development. I believe the book deserves to be published to remind researchers, physicians, other health care professionals and even a regulator like me, that the road to a successful drug is paved with pitfalls, despite all good intentions, and that while many active substances never 'make it', much new knowledge can be acquired along the way." Agnes V. Klein, MD, Director, Centre for Evaluation of Radiopharmaceuticals and Biotherapeutics, Health Canada "Doctor Brandes’ long-held lofty goal, to find a cure for cancer, embarked him on a personal, almost single-handed odyssey conventionally requiring teams of diverse experts to achieve what he has accomplished. An oncologist, he improbably designed a modified structure of an existing drug that he proposed would enhance the effects of chemotherapy while decreasing side effects. Subsequently, he successfully penetrated the often insurmountable maze of regulations and requirements, a tour de force that led to the generation of early, highly promising results in humans." Frank LaBella, PhD, Professor Emeritus, Department of Pharmacology, University of Manitoba

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Lorne Brandes received his MD (cum laude) from the University of Western Ontario in 1968, and his Fellowship in Internal Medicine from the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. Following his internship and first year of residency at Western, he was privileged to spend 1970-71 with chemotherapy pioneers, Drs. David Galton and Eve Wiltshaw, at the Royal Marsden Hospital (London). He then completed his training in hematology/oncology at the University of Manitoba under Dr. Lyonel Israels, one of Canada’s foremost hematologists and medical researchers. Dr. Brandes joined the Faculty of Medicine at U. of M. in 1975, where he rose through the ranks to become a tenured professor in the Department of Medicine and the Section of Hematology/Oncology at CancerCare Manitoba (previously known as the Manitoba Cancer Treatment and Research Foundation). In addition to his oncology practice, he conducted laboratory research that resulted in a drug discovery that he took into human clinical cancer trials. Over the years, he treated most types of cancer, but subsequently limited his practice to breast and prostate cancer. Until his retirement in September, 2015, he greatly enjoyed teaching the art and science of oncology to the many students and post-graduate physicians who rotated through his clinics. An avid reader and lover of the arts, he plays classical piano and keeps up to date on medical science. From 2007 to 2012, he wrote health blogs for CTV.ca. He and his wife, Jill, have two children and four grandchildren, all in Winnipeg.

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Lorne J. Brandes, MD