In July 2019 Poonpun incidentally discovered a hard lump in her abdomen. A CT scan revealed a mass approximately 7-8 cm in diameter, which was later identified as leiomyosarcoma of the large intestine—a rare cancer most commonly found in the limbs or the smooth muscle of the uterus, affecting only one in several million people. It is even less frequent and originates from the gastrointestinal tract.
Sarcoma is a disease that few people are familiar with. If detected early, the primary treatment is surgery, as there are currently no known medications that can cure this type of cancer.
Over the past five years of battling sarcoma, Poonpun has undergone a total of five surgeries and two rounds of chemotherapy. In the latter year, the disease spread significantly, leading to attempts to use various targeted therapies, including immunotherapy. Some medications provided temporary results, while others proved less effective. This prompted Poonpun to establish a fund for Advanced Sarcoma Research at Siriraj to foster hope for new treatment approaches in the future, develop foundational knowledge, and enhance the essential components of research to continue helping other sarcoma patients.
