ECU hematologist/oncologist Dr. Darla Liles has a framed version of this quilt, which illustrates how ITP works.[/caption]
The Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University took part in the study of a new drug recently approved by the FDA to treat a bleeding disorder.
Idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura, or ITP, is a rare disorder that results in a low number of platelets in the blood by creating antibodies that attack and destroy healthy platelets. Platelets are needed to help blood clot.
Symptoms of ITP include excessive bruising, bleeding from the gums or nose, blood in urine or stools and superficial bleeding into the skin that appears as a rash of reddish-purple spots, called petechiae.
ECU hematologist/oncologist Dr. Darla Liles, who directs the hematology/oncology division’s clinical trials office, said patients with unmanageable ITP have historically had limited medical options available to help them treat their conditions, including spleen removal or prescription medications that often cause severe side effects.
“Compared to breast cancer and lung cancer, ITP is relatively uncommon. But it definitely impacts our healthcare dollars because the people who have it are in the clinic very frequently and in the hospital more often,” Liles said. “So when we can take these diseases that have a high health care burden and make them just chronic illnesses where you can see them in the clinic only every few months, it’s a huge impact.”
This is why Liles spearheaded ECU’s involvement in the study of a new drug, fostamatinib, that looked at the drug’s effects on patients who had already exhausted other common treatment options but still had ITP.
ECU was one of only 53 sites throughout the United States and Europe to take part in the study, which included a total of 123 patients. More than two years later, ECU patient Raynelle Phipps is one of three patients in the United States – and one of 42 globally – still responding to the treatment.
‘In and out of the hospital’
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ECU patient Raynelle Phipps had positive results from a trial drug that was recently approved by the FDA to treat ITP.[/caption]
Phipps, a 41-year-old mother and teacher from Macclesfield, was diagnosed with the disorder in her 30s.
“About 10 years ago, I went to the emergency room because I had this rash on my leg and thought I was having an allergic reaction. That’s when the doctor told me I had ITP, because I had this petechiae blood coming out of my legs,” Phipps said. “I had no other symptoms, so it was really scary because I had never heard of ITP before.”
When medication alone could not treat her ITP, Phipps underwent a splenectomy, which was still not enough.
“I was in and out of the hospital, and missing days from school. I was being admitted for months at a time, because it seemed like whatever medicine they gave me, my body wouldn’t respond to it,” said Phipps, whose husband, Carl, took on a second job to help their family compensate for the increased medical expenses.
“I would get on a new medication, then a couple months later my body would deteriorate and I would start bleeding again,” she added. “I felt like I would never get well, that this would be my whole life – going in and out of the hospital.”
‘A sense of freedom’
Two years after agreeing to take part in the trial – a decision she attributes to “having nothing to lose” – Phipps says she is symptom free. Instead of having multiple appointments each week with Liles, she only visits every couple of months as a condition of the trial.
Her platelet levels have remained high, and her husband is back to working only one job.
What Phipps says is even better is being around more often for her children and students.
This year, she was named the Teacher of the Year at Princeville Elementary School.
“I’m very thankful that I was chosen to be part of this study, because since we tried it, things have been great,” Phipps said. “I’m just happier in general and I finally have a sense of freedom back.”
While Liles said she misses seeing the always bubbly Phipps as often as she used to, she is thrilled that she was able to have such a positive response to the drug.
She says this is only one of the many outcomes that exemplify why ECU is working to increase the number of clinical trials it makes available to patients in eastern North Carolina.
“Anytime we have a successful trial, it means that we’ll be able to get other studies available to us in a lot of different diseases,” Liles said. “It really gets your name and reputation out there, and makes you one of the leaders in new and innovative therapies.”
SERVING THE COMMUNITY
Volunteers honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
For some it may be a day off from work, but for hundreds of East Carolina University students, faculty and staff, Martin Luther King Jr. Day will be a day of service.
The university’s Leadership and Service-Learning office has planned a day of volunteer opportunities in observance of the Jan. 18 holiday, starting with a 9 a.m. breakfast at the Ledonia Wright Cultural Center and closing with a reflection activity at 3:30 p.m. in Mendenhall Student Center Room 244.
“I remember growing up and being excited to have another day off in January, but I wanted to understand why we get the day off and who we are remembering,” said Summer Saunders, one of the student leaders for the event.
“MLK Day of Service takes Dr. King’s vision and puts it into action,” said Jade Umberger, AmeriCorps VISTA with ECU’s Volunteer and Service-Learning Center. “Dr. King’s dream was to see every citizen working together to make the world a better place for all, and the best place to start is right here in Greenville.”
Eleven groups have signed up to participate, partnering with local organizations such as JOY Soup Kitchen, Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina, Rebuilding Together, Boys and Girls Club of Pitt County – Jarvis and Jack Minges units, Golden Living Center and Making Pitt Fit. Projects include packaging and sorting food, weeding and mulching, visiting retirement home residents and litter cleanup. Individual volunteers are also invited to participate, and there is room to accommodate up to 270 volunteers.
College of Business graduate student Don Philyaw removes tile at the Salvation Army’s Family Store.
“So often students are caught up in the ECU bubble, never wandering too far off campus, but MLK Day of Service gives the chance to explore and learn more about the Greenville community while giving a hand to those who need it. Dr. King’s legacy lives on in active citizens and volunteers who continue to work towards a world of beloved community,” Umberger added.
Student leader Roderick Hall said volunteering has helped give him perspective. “I’ve been volunteering since I entered high school. I thought I knew what it meant to dedicate my time to others, but my experience with service at ECU has continuously shown me just how wrong I was,” he said.
“Participating in the service opportunities offered by the university allows you to see how privileged you are in this society, while helping break down the preconceived notions you have about a particular group of students. Most importantly, service helps you figure out what your aspirations are in life, or understand why you’re pursuing the passion you have,” Hall said.
Khiana Wyatt, who will be volunteering with her sorority sisters from Zeta Phi Beta, said volunteering pushes students outside of their comfort zones.
“Dr. King said, ‘Everybody can be great … because anybody can serve. You don’t have to have a college degree to serve. You don’t have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love,’” quoted Wyatt.
“We want the students to learn why service is important. The reflection ceremony focuses on that and why students should continue to serve beyond this day and serve for reasons other than class credit,” she said. “Once they learn the importance of volunteer work some may actually go on and continue to serve others in their everyday lives, thus carrying on Dr. King’s legacy.”
Several other events are being held in conjunction with the holiday.
Greenville Utilities Commission, Pitt County and Suddenlink will sponsor the 19th annual Community Unity Breakfast at Harvey Hall in the ECU Murphy Center from 7:30-9 a.m. on Jan. 18. N.C. Senator Don Davis will be the guest speaker for this event.
The Ledonia Wright Cultural Center will host a speaker at 7 p.m. on Jan. 20 in celebration of Dr. King. Poet, educator and activist Sonia Sanchez, a prominent writer and speaker, was on the forefront of the Black Studies movement and taught the first course in the country on black women. The event is free, but tickets are required and can be picked up in Mendenhall Student Center.
Sister Sonia Sanchez, a prominent writer of the Black Arts movement, will speak at 7 p.m. on Jan. 20 at Wright Auditorium. (Contributed photo by Keppler Speakers.)
Sanchez has written more than 16 books including poetry, stories and plays, and has been featured on albums by such artists as Diana Ross and Talib Kweli. A contributing editor of Black Scholar and The Journal of African Studies, she is also the recipient of numerous honors and awards for her writing and service.
The week of MLK events will wrap up with a forum titled “What’s in a Name? Memorials and Historical Memory” at 7:30 p.m. on Jan. 26 in the Hendrix Theater. Gerald Prokopowicz, ECU professor of history, will moderate a discussion featuring Dr. Derek Alderman, head of the Department of Geography at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville; and Dr. Alfred Brophy, professor of law at the University of North Carolina School of Law. The forum is part of the Voyages of Discovery Lecture Series, and the 2015-2016 lectures are free and open to the public.
Individual signups for the MLK Day of Service are available at https://orgsync.com/79661/chapter. For additional information, contact Jade Umberger, AmeriCorps VISTA with ECU’s Leadership and Service-Learning office at 252-328-6432 or umbergerj15@ecu.edu.