New treatment options gave Johanna a second chance
Johanna Brag was 19 when she became seriously ill. For some time, she had been experiencing fatigue and dizziness, but when she finally sought medical care, tests revealed acute leukaemia.
What followed was an intense period of treatment, uncertainty and long stays in hospital.
“Everything changed in a very short space of time,” she says.
When standard treatment did not achieve the desired results, Johanna was referred for more advanced care. She was offered the opportunity to participate in a clinical trial and received CAR T-cell therapy at Queen Silvia Children’s Hospital.
The treatment was provided through the Paediatric Clinical Trials Unit, one of Sweden’s leading centres for clinical research involving children and young people. Here, multidisciplinary teams work closely with international research networks to provide access to new treatment options while helping to advance future healthcare.
For Johanna, the opportunity proved decisive.
“It felt like a chance, even though it was a difficult decision to make.”
CAR T-cell therapy uses a patient’s own immune cells, which are modified to recognise and attack cancer cells. After treatment, Johanna underwent several weeks of close follow-up.
The results were encouraging.
“They couldn’t find any cancer.”
Today, Johanna remains disease-free following treatment received as part of a clinical research study.
At Queen Silvia Children’s Hospital, highly specialised care, research and clinical trials work hand in hand, creating new opportunities for patients when established treatments are not enough.