Jennifer Matthews: At age 58, Suzy Vogt never thought she would have so much time to spend alone. But three years ago, she lost her husband and soul mate to liver cancer.
Suzy Vogt: Oh, he was fun. He was just a riot to be with.
Jennifer Matthews: A few months ago, doctors diagnosed Suzy with the same cancer. Surgery wasn't an option.
Suzy Vogt: It was just amazing to me that we ended up with the same thing.
Jennifer Matthews: Doctor Ted Lawrence says patients like Suzy typically only live about six months.
Dr. Ted Lawrence: It really is a desperate situation if someone has a liver cancer that can't be removed.
Jennifer Matthews: But Doctor Lawrence wants to change that. He and fellow researchers are the only physicians in the world who offer a special form of chemo and radiation that could help patients live longer. Instead of going through the entire body, chemotherapy is injected into the arm and travels right into the liver artery at up to 400-times the normal dose. Before giving radiation, he uses a mathematical formula to divide the liver into 2,000 parts. Targeted beams hit the tumor from different angles at the highest safe dose.
Dr. Ted Lawrence: This is like one plus one equals three. You get more than the simple sum of the two treatments, because they work together.
Jennifer Matthews: Those on the combination treatment live an average of one and a half years longer than expected, precious time for patients like Suzy.
Suzy Vogt: Like anybody with cancer, I pray for a cure, and if not a cure, then you know, a few more years.
Jennifer Matthews: And that's exactly what Doctor Lawrence hopes to give her. This is Jennifer Matthews reporting.
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