Stage 4: 492 Real Stories
492 stories match stage 4. 319 of them mention chemotherapy.
Stage IV RET Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Sara’s Patient Story
Sara Whitlock was 47 when she was diagnosed in 2010 with Stage IV lung cancer and told her chance of surviving 5 years was about 3%. She feared she would not see her daughters grow up. Her lung cancer was non-small cell lung cancer caused by a RET fusion, a…
Read this storyStage IV ALK Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: James’s Patient Story
James “Rocky” Lagno developed a persistent dry cough around Thanksgiving 2010. As his breathing worsened and he began coughing up blood, lung cancer became a concern. He was diagnosed with non-small cell lung cancer and went to Boston for intravenous…
Read this storyStage IV Breast Cancer: Janet’s Survivor Story
Janet Klein expected breast cancer might eventually affect her because both her mother and sister had been diagnosed. Careful mammogram surveillance helped catch her first breast cancer at Stage 1, before it had spread. There was no lymph-node involvement…
Read this storyStage IV Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Donna’s Patient Story
Donna Fernandez was 59 and active with her dogs when unexplained weight gain led her to a primary care visit. Her doctor felt a knot near her collarbone and arranged imaging. A PET scan and biopsy ultimately showed Stage IV nonsquamous non-small cell lung…
Read this storyStage IV Breast Cancer: Lori’s Patient Story
Lori Marx-Rubiner was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer when her son was 3 years old. Thirteen years later, she was still living with Stage IV disease and was on her fourth line of therapy after three previous treatments had stopped working. For Lori…
Read this storyStage IV EGFR Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Ginger’s Patient Story
Ginger Tam sought care for a persistent cough and learned that she had Stage IV non-small cell lung cancer. The diagnosis was devastating for the single mother, whose daughter was 8 at the time. She sought a second opinion at a research hospital and became…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Teri’s Patient Story
Teri Griege became an endurance athlete after running a marathon in 2002 and completed her first Ironman in 2008. While training for another Ironman in 2009, she developed symptoms that suggested colorectal cancer but initially ignored them. Two weeks after…
Read this storyStage IV HER2-Positive Breast Cancer: Kate’s Survivor Story
Kate Watson was 35, with 2 young daughters, when she learned she had Stage IV HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer. The cancer had already spread beyond the breast to lymph nodes in her chest and to spots in her spine, pelvis and one femur. The diagnosis…
Read this storyStage IV ALK Lung Adenocarcinoma: Amanda’s Survivor Story
At 38, a healthy and active mother of two was diagnosed with Stage IV lung adenocarcinoma in September 2016. The first warning signs were chest pressure and unusual shortness of breath while jogging. An initial hospital visit left uncertainty about the cause…
Read this storyStage IV Breast Cancer: Magnolia’s Survivor Story
Magnolia, from Colombia, was diagnosed with stage IV breast cancer after noticing a hard breast mass. Her menstrual periods had stopped at age 45, and the symptoms developed over several months before she sought medical care. The diagnosis left her…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Carole’s Survivor Story
Carole Motycka, a 44-year-old mother of 4, had no obvious cancer symptoms before an Easter hike in 2016 left her with severe back and shoulder pain. Tests showed Stage IV colorectal cancer that had spread to her liver. Doctors explained that her situation was…
Read this storyStage IV Lung Cancer: Cynthia’s Patient Story
Cynthia Hess had long dealt with neck problems, but this pain was different. Rest, pain medication and chiropractic care did not help. After a doctor visit and X-rays, she learned the cause was Stage IV lung cancer that had spread to her spine. The neck pain…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Anatole’s Survivor Story
Anatole Karpovs was a 37-year-old pediatrician when persistent bloody stools, bowel changes and abdominal pain led him to seek care in April 2013. Blood tests were normal, but scans showed a large tumor in the lower left colon. Colonoscopy and biopsy…
Read this storyStage IV EGFR Lung Cancer: Molly’s Patient Story
Molly Golbon was 39, a working mother and wife, when she learned that what seemed like bronchitis or pneumonia was actually Stage IV lung cancer. The diagnosis was especially shocking because she had never smoked and did not fit the stereotype she associated…
Read this storyStage IV Ovarian Cancer: Janelle’s Patient Story
Janelle Kister faced a Stage IV ovarian cancer diagnosis but chose to move quickly into treatment. She underwent surgery and chemotherapy, then received a stem cell transplant in 2001 as part of a Phase II clinical trial. Her recovery was long, but she was…
Read this storyStage IV Breast Cancer: Lindsey’s Patient Story
Lindsey Ballas was balancing work, family and cancer care after being diagnosed with Stage IV metastatic breast cancer. She owned a hair salon and wanted treatment to disrupt her life as little as possible. Her main goal was to keep life close to normal while…
Read this storyStage IV Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Patient Story
At age 50, this patient was diagnosed with Stage IV non-small cell lung cancer on August 5, 2015, only about 6 weeks after a persistent cough began. She had never smoked and had worked as a radiation therapist for more than 20 years, so she pushed for further…
Read this storyStage IV Ovarian Cancer: Diane’s Patient Story
Diane Sarver was diagnosed with Stage IV ovarian cancer in January 2010 after a physical therapist noticed fluid on the left side of her neck. She had none of the pelvic symptoms she associated with ovarian cancer and no known family history of cancer…
Read this storyStage IV Lung Cancer Patient Story
About 3 years after learning he had lung cancer, this Spanish blogger wrote a farewell post from a much harder point in the illness. Recent months had brought bone metastases, pneumonia, severe pain, feverish evenings, night sweats, low-oxygen episodes, and…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Adenocarcinoma: Darrell’s Survivor Story
Darrell Sawyer’s colorectal cancer journey began in November 2012, when what seemed like a short stomach flu did not go away. After a month of ongoing stomach upset, a colonoscopy found a tumor in his intestines so large that the procedure could not be…
Read this storyStage IV HER2-Positive Breast Cancer: Sarah’s Patient Story
Sarah was 37 when she was first diagnosed with breast cancer. Breast cancer had affected several women in her family: her grandmother was a 40-year survivor, her aunt a 20-year survivor, and her mother had also been diagnosed. Sarah said her family did not…
Read this storyStage IV Breast Cancer: Debora’s Patient Story
Debora, 65, lives in the United Kingdom and was diagnosed with Stage III breast cancer in 2017 after noticing a dimple across her left breast. The diagnosis brought anger, fear, sadness, numbness, and vulnerability. Her initial treatment plan included…
Read this storyStage IV Lung Cancer Patient Story
This Noxte update captured the uncertainty of living scan to scan with metastatic lung cancer. At the oncology visit, the patient’s doctor had preliminary CT information but was still waiting for the final radiology report. She had spoken with radiology about…
Read this storyStage IV Lung Cancer: Bill’s Patient Story
Bill Smith had no symptoms when a routine preoperative physical in 2010 led his doctor to order a chest X-ray and refer him to a lung specialist. He was diagnosed with Stage IV lung cancer. A full-body scan also found 2 tumors in his brain, and he had gamma…
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