Mark Carico

In November of 2003, I was diagnosed with anaplastic astrocytoma in my right temproal lobe. I underwent surgery the day after Thanksgiving. After a bit of recovery, I went to check out MD Anderson and see what they had to say about post-surgical treatment (yes, my wife and I were looking for the silver bullet). This started out as the worst trip of my life, as MD Anderson informed me that my surgeon had left 60% of the tumor behind and that my next action should be picking out the color of casket I would like to be buried in. Since we were in Houston, my wife and I were fortunate to be able to visit Dr. Burzynski as we had heard and read much about his treatment for brain cancer. According to Dr. Burzynski, the MRI after surgery showed a small tumor spot in what remained of my right temporal lobe, not the extensive tumor that MD Anderson claimed just one day before!
After doing some soul searching, we decided to make a commitment to Dr. Burzynski and his treatment and signed up to begin infusion in January of 2004.

I do personally credit the antineoplaston treatment, along with Christian spiritual healing, as the key to my current success in treating my anaplastic astrocytoma. I have not, and don't plan on, going through radiation treatments or chemotherapy. I started and remain on a host of other ancillary treatments (holistic and naturopathic in nature - primarily designed to build my immune system and warrant off free radical cellular damage). I went through about 9 months of the IV treatment and was taken off when the measurable tumor was defined as stable (both by the Burzynski clinic as well as my local oncologist). Unfortunately, the one tumor site demonstrated hypermetabolic activity two months after I came off of the IV treatment, which caused me to opt for a second surgery (since the tumor was in an operable position). I opted for a surgical solution rather than going back on the antineoplaston treatment primarily because the tumor was in an operable position.

Since I have not had any recurrence of AA is a testimony to the power of the Burzynski treatment. Since the tumor that was stil visible on my initial post surgical MRI was hypometabolic, it made sense that the antineoplaston treatment was not able to get into the tumor and kill it off. But now, I am living life deficit free. If I followed the desires of the oncologists at MD Anderson and UCSF, I would have a host of deficits as they were planning to irradiate portions of my parietal lobe, which do not appear to have any associated AA. It is true that I have confounded the results of any one treatment by combining many in an attempt to stay alive and functioning for my family! But I know that the Burzynski treatment was the cornerstone that put my life back on track.

If there is any other information that you would like, please feel free to contact by e-mail at mark_carico@hotmail.com.

Take care,

Mark Carico