Georgia resident Stan Thain is using a device that looks like a helmet in his 19-month battle against brain cancer.
The Optune system spends 18 hours of the day sending electrical waves across the upper part of the 58-year-old's brain, where the tumors are located, according to MyFoxAtlanta.com. The device then targets cancer cells that divide much quicker than normal cells and tries to put these cells into a "sleep mode."
"What that translates into for a patient, is that their glioblastoma cells are more likely to grow and divide slower. And it causes many of the glioblastoma cells to die," said Dr. Erin Dunbar, neuro-oncologist at Peidmont's Brain Tumor Center, where Thain is being treated.
Thain said he first noticed something was wrong when he began experiencing problems with his vision 19 months ago, MyFoxAtlanta.com reported. He would then go to Piedmont Atlanta's Neuro Intensive Care Unit, where he was diagnosed with glioblastoma and told that he had between a year and a year and a half to live even with surgery, radiation and chemotherapy.
Glioblastoma is the most aggressive type of brain tumor out there, and the cancer currently exists in two areas of Thain's brain.
"This is an unbelievably tender topic to talk about with our patients because when someone is diagnosed with a glioblastoma, it is a tremendous left turn in their life. They have been told they have a highly aggressive, incurable tumor that will undoubtedly shorten their life, barring a miracle," Dunbar said, adding that the treatment plan is then to help the patient accomplish his/her goals, Fox News reported.
Thain wanted to keep fighting, which led to his use of the Optune system. He doesn't mind the looks he gets while wearing the device, as he believes it is making things better.
"The fact that I think it may be doing good, I'm willing to let it work," he said.
Thain knows his cancer doesn't have a cure, but he hopes that the system helps people become healthier in the future, MyFoxAtlanta.com reported.
"The last few days I've felt the best I've felt so far," Thain said. "So positive, positive, positive."
