28 August 2018 - Dr Rosalie Stephens turns up to work these days with hope. 

Three years ago, the Auckland oncologist was delivering the devastating news to many advanced melanoma patients that they would be dead within a year. Today, she doesn’t have to put a time limit on their life.

"Before, we were still helping people in a desperate situation," she says. "But actually having people coming back to your clinic and having a social chit chat: 'How's the family?' and 'What travel plans have you got' - that is so nice."

It's a far cry from 2015, when PHARMAC was refusing the fund the groundbreaking medicine Keytruda. It was only available to those lucky few who had thousands of dollars spare each month to save their lives. Rosalie, a Melanoma NZ trustee, was among doctors taking a stand.

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