Cancer patient in remission after 'amazing' outcome of targeted trial

Mount Gambier resident Ben Whitehead in remission after surprise cancer trial results Tue 16 Jun 2026 at 9:02am In short: Ben Whitehead is now in remission from a rare strain of lymphoma, with a second clinical trial showing positive results. He was initially given three months to live and was unable to continue with an initial clinical trial after new cancer cells developed. What's next? Mr Whitehead will travel to Melbourne once a month to continue receiving the new treatment. Ben Whitehead has not stopped smiling since finding out he has entered remission for stage four peripheral T-cell lymphoma. The Mount Gambier man had been travelling to Melbourne regularly to take part in clinical trials to treat the cancer, but did not expect to enter remission so soon. "I was going up for the next round of the goo and I had another round of scans and the doctor has just looked at me and he dropped the F-bomb," he said. "He said, 'You're in remission, mate'." Mr Whitehead is the only known person with this type of specific cancer in Australia. "They can take the genetic sequencing of the cancers now. They can run it through databases," he said. Mr Whitehead, who has shared his cancer journey on social media, said doctors used these results to tailor drugs for different cancers. "I was basically on death row and then you have been given a second chance,"he said. "I just want to spread awareness of what I have been through and that it is OK to ask for a second opinion." Conceding he had "never read a book", Mr Whitehead now plans to write about his experience and use of humour to get through the difficult times. "I've always been a practical joker. On my first drug trial, I wandered in with a fake rat's tail, just for some giggles," he said, highlighting the fact he was a lab rat. He said the first to learn of his remission were his children. "It was a hard moment because I was sitting in the waiting room where there are people who probably just heard their worst news. That was a surreal moment," he said. Second trial a lifesaver After Mr Whitehead was unable to continue with treatment at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre because new cancer cells developed, his doctor suggested another clinical trial through Monash University. He started the second trial in January not knowing if the treatment would be effective. "It was such an unknown because the cancer that I've got … there's not really someone else with it," he said. "That's the hard thing with it. You're walking in blind and you're hoping that it's going to do something. "[The treatment is] a targeted therapy, not an immunotherapy. It targets the protein that the cancer grows on by linking itself to it, making it unavailable for the cancer to use, starving it." Mr Whitehead said his cancer treatment had not only been an emotional journey, but was financially difficult. "You build a nest egg because you might want a holiday or save for the car. That got consumed pretty quickly,"he said. "I basically lived in Melbourne for six months." A long journey His journey with cancer has had many twists and turns after he noticed his health change significantly in October 2025. "In a matter of weeks, I went from someone that could run 130 kilometres a week down to someone that struggled to mow a lawn," he previously told the ABC. Following an ambulance trip to the hospital at Mount Gambier, preliminary testing discovered he had cancer and was given three months to live. Mr Whitehead has thanked the doctors and wider medical teams for helping him through this journey. "There has been some pretty crazy things there when it comes to the health system, bad and good, but we got a result and there's no point dwelling on the past," he said. "It is amazing it has come to this. A huge thank you to all who have got me here." Mr Whitehead will travel to Melbourne once a month to continue receiving the new treatment. An emotional rollercoaster While the news has been overwhelmingly positive, Mr Whitehead still acknowledged how tough the journey had been for him and his loved ones. "The pain is indescribable. I have never experienced anything like it,"he said. "I had to inject myself with a drug that promoted blood growth and the pain that came from that resonated, basically, from inside your bones [outward]. "For those that were unfortunate enough to see me in those pain states, it affected them more than it did me. "Sitting in a hospital bed for as long as I did, it was the first time that I really sat there and listened to myself. I realised that I do actually like myself. "That was such a weird moment, knowing that I'm not a bad guy. I actually don't mind being me." But for now, it is time to celebrate. "I'm just going to enjoy things for a while," Mr Whitehead said.