US man flew to Shanghai for sunvozertinib, approved in China but not the US, to treat his mother's lung cancer; he spent ~$10,000 on 26 boxes, 30+ followed.
Tags:Source: OT-Team(G), The Washington Post, 环球时报, 观察者网
An American man flew to China to obtain a cancer drug for his mother after learning it was already available there but not yet approved in the US. His story has since inspired at least 30 other American patients to follow a similar path.
An American computer engineer traveled to China to obtain a cancer drug for his mother, after learning that the treatment was already available there but had not yet been approved in the United States. Their story has since drawn attention to China's growing role in cancer drug development and the lengths families will go to find potentially life-saving treatments.
A Diagnosis That Changed Everything
The story began in late 2023, when Debbie Doppelt, a woman in her early 60s who runs a jewelry business in New York, was diagnosed with a form of non-small cell lung cancer after developing a mild but persistent cough. She had never smoked and had generally enjoyed good health.
She underwent chemotherapy, immunotherapy and surgery. Her condition remained stable for several months, but a follow-up scan in December 2024 delivered devastating news: the cancer had spread to her brain, where doctors found 10 tiny tumors.
At the time, a targeted therapy called amivantamab was available in the United States for patients with her type of genetic mutation. However, several doctors consulted by her son, Max Doppelt, warned that the drug could have significant side effects and might not effectively cross the blood-brain barrier to reach the tumors.
Max, who had been coordinating his mother's care since her diagnosis, also tried to get her enrolled in a clinical trial for an investigational drug. However, she was deemed ineligible because of minor scarring in her lungs.
One option after another had fallen through.
“Too Bad She's Not Chinese”
Then, an offhand remark opened up a new possibility.
At a lung cancer conference, a doctor told Max about sunvozertinib, a targeted therapy approved in China in 2023 for certain patients with non-small cell lung cancer. In the United States, the drug was still in the final stages of clinical trials and had not yet received marketing approval.
“Too bad she's not Chinese,” a doctor told her son Max Doppelt. “She could go to a pharmacy in China and buy it.”
The remark stayed with Max. His immediate reaction, he later recalled, was: “Why don't we just go to China?”
Within hours, Max and his mother had reached out to friends and relatives. One of them managed to obtain a small supply of sunvozertinib through a contact living in China.
After Debbie began taking the drug, her condition improved significantly.
Several months later, Max flew to Shanghai himself to secure more of the medication. He spent approximately US$10,000 on 26 boxes of the drug and packed them into his luggage to bring back to New York.
“Getting on that plane and bringing the medicine home felt like my life's mission,” he said.
Max believes the drug's effectiveness against brain tumors was particularly important to his mother's treatment. Without it, he feared she might not survive another year if she had to rely on other available treatments.
He also expressed deep gratitude to the Chinese pharmaceutical company behind the drug.
“I'm incredibly grateful for all the research and development work the Chinese company has done. It saved my mother's life,” he said.
More American Patients Are Following the Same Path
After the story spread, Max began receiving numerous inquiries from other Americans with advanced cancer.
He said no organization or doctor had formally directed patients to China to obtain the drug, but word had spread among those facing similarly difficult circumstances. According to his estimate, at least 30 American patients in comparable situations had followed his example and traveled to China in search of treatment.
Sunvozertinib is developed by Dizal, a pharmaceutical company headquartered in Shanghai. Its growing international profile reflects China's expanding role in cancer drug research and development.
Patients from the United States, Europe and other parts of the world are increasingly looking to China for access to advanced treatments. The country has become a major player in pharmaceutical research, with Chinese drug developers contributing a growing share of clinical trials worldwide.
Research suggests that China could account for as much as 46% of the world's drugs in clinical development in 2025. The country has also emerged as one of the global leaders in cutting-edge fields such as CAR-T cell therapy, which uses genetically modified immune cells to fight cancer.
International pharmaceutical companies are also conducting clinical trials in China and partnering with Chinese drug developers to advance new treatments.
When the Search for Treatment Crosses Borders
For Max and Debbie, the priority was simple: finding a treatment that could give a loved one more time.
Their experience highlights a challenge faced by patients around the world: a potentially life-changing drug may be available in one country while patients elsewhere are still waiting for regulatory approval or access through clinical trials.
Drug approvals and access requirements differ between countries, and traveling abroad to obtain medication can involve medical and legal complexities. Nevertheless, for patients facing life-threatening illnesses, the possibility of a new treatment can offer hope when other options appear exhausted.
Max's journey began with a doctor's passing remark and a family's determination to explore every possible avenue of treatment. It ultimately led him across the world in search of medicine for his mother.
Cancer does not recognize borders, and neither does the determination to find a treatment for someone you love. Stories like theirs remind us that behind every medical breakthrough are patients and families hoping for more time—and that the search for better treatments is a shared human endeavor.