New cutting-edge cancer treatment brings hope to San Bernardino man

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. (KABC) -- For Jose Espinoza, peace has always been found in the quiet moments from tending to his garden, cherishing time with family, to dancing with his wife. But in 2022, a persistent pain in his back began to steal that peace away.

After multiple trips to doctors and emergency rooms, Espinoza still had no answers. It wasn't until his wife urged him to seek care at Loma Linda University Medical Center that he learned the cause.

"My wife said this isn't normal. Let's go to Loma Linda because they are the best," Espinoza recalled.

Following a series of tests, doctors delivered the devastating news.

"It was there that they found I had stage four cancer," he said. "It had already metastasized from my prostate to my bones."

Espinoza underwent six rounds of chemotherapy combined with hormonal therapy, a grueling regimen that proved effective. When his scans came back clear, he celebrated the milestone moment.

"I rang the bell with joy and wept with relief and happiness," he said.

But a year later, the cancer returned. This time, Espinoza's care team had a new option, a groundbreaking treatment known as Theranostics, a type of nuclear medicine that targets and destroys cancer cells with radiation.

Dr. Eric Peters, associate director for nuclear medicine at Loma Linda University Cancer Center, explained how the innovative approach works.

"It uses radioactive materials to both diagnose and, more recently, treat patients," Peters said. "We attach them to medications that we can put in the human body and we're able to see where tumors light up in your body and then we can switch it around put a more heavy hitting isotope on that medication and treat those very same targets."

After six sessions, Espinoza's results were remarkable.

"I think after the first dose, he had a drop in his PSA, the blood test for prostate cancer, and immediately we knew it was starting to work," Peters said. "There is no doubt this therapy saved him."

Espinoza credits his faith, family, and medical team for helping him through the fight of his life.

"God willing, I will continue to live for more years to come," he said.

Now, Espinoza is back in his garden, grateful for each day and for the simple joy of caring for his plants.