Severe Melioidosis During Chemotherapy for Metastatic Breast Cancer

Patient Info: Anonymized, Female, 50s | Stage IV

A 58-year-old woman with metastatic breast cancer developed life-threatening melioidosis and severe low blood counts after her sixth chemotherapy cycle, requiring intensive infection treatment.

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Stage IV HER2-Positive Breast Cancer: Kathleen's Patient Story

Patient Info: Kathleen McEvoy-Schufreider, female, 60s | Stage IV

Biomarkers: HER2-positive

Metastatic Site: liver, bones

Kathleen continued long-term treatment for metastatic breast cancer, including infusions every 3 weeks after resuming the PATINA regimen outside the trial.

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Breast cancer history: T9 osteonecrosis mimicking spinal metastasis

Patient Info: Anonymized, Female, 50s

Biomarkers: ER status not explicitly reported; prior tamoxifen use reported

As of June 2025, the T9 lesion that had raised concern for spinal metastasis was confirmed as osteonecrosis, and eight-month follow-up showed no evidence of recurrence or new pain episodes.

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Stage IV HER2-Positive Breast Cancer: Jennifer's Survivor Story

Patient Info: Jennifer Masters, Female, 60s | Stage IV

Biomarkers: HER2-positive

Metastatic Site: Chest wall/skin near surgery incision; lymph nodes

As of May 2025, Jennifer had no reported recurrence for several years after Stage IV HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer responded completely to clinical-trial treatment with T-DM1 and neratinib; she continued annual Cleveland Clinic visits and remained active with family and volunteering.

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Metastatic male breast cancer: complete metabolic response after restarting anastrozole, leuprolide, abemaciclib, zoledronic acid, and radiation

Patient Info: Anonymized, Male, 60s | Stage IV

Biomarkers: ER >95%; PR >95%; HER2/neu-negative; Ki-67 30%; PIK3CA exon 21 pathogenic variant; BRCA1 not mutated; BRCA2 not mutated

Metastatic Site: bone (vertebral bodies T2-T6, L1, and L5)

As of May 2025, after restarting endocrine and targeted therapy and receiving palliative radiation, the last two PET scans showed complete metabolic response without disease progression, and brain MRI showed no metastasis.

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Stage III HR-Positive Invasive Lobular Carcinoma: Tanya's Patient Story

Patient Info: Tanya, Female, 40s | Stage III

Biomarkers: ER-positive; PR-positive; HER2-negative; grade 1

As of May 2025, Tanya was recovering from chest wall surgery, ALT flap repair, and a later skin graft after developing angiosarcoma in her radiated reconstructed breast years after Stage IIIA ILC treatment.

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Stage II BRCA2 Invasive Ductal Carcinoma: Onjalai's Survivor Story

Patient Info: Onjalai Brown, Female, Under 40 | Stage II

Biomarkers: Patient-specific biomarker/genetic result not reported; family history suggests BRCA2 mutation

After lumpectomy, 20 rounds of chemotherapy and 36 rounds of radiation for Stage II invasive ductal carcinoma with lymph-node involvement, Onjalai had been cancer-free for 3 years as of May 2025.

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Metastatic ER-positive pleomorphic lobular breast cancer: psoas metastasis and stable disease on eribulin

Patient Info: Anonymized, Female, 70+ | Stage IV

Biomarkers: Primary and chest-wall recurrence were ER/PR positive, HER2 negative. Later psoas metastasis was ER positive, PR/HER2 negative.

Metastatic Site: skin of left chest wall; bone; left psoas muscle;…

As of May 2025, one year after diagnosis of malignant psoas syndrome from breast cancer metastasis, she remained on outpatient treatment with eribulin and had stable disease.

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Ductal Carcinoma In Situ Treated With Mastectomy Using Vein-Mapping Guidance

Patient Info: Anonymized, Female, 60s

A 68-year-old woman with extensive ductal carcinoma in situ underwent mastectomy using a vein-visualization technique intended to reduce vascular injury during surgery.

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Extensive Ductal Carcinoma In Situ Removed With Vein-Based Surgical Mapping

Patient Info: Anonymized, Female, 40s

A 41-year-old woman with extensive ductal carcinoma in situ had the lesion mapped against superficial breast veins to guide surgical removal.

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Luminal A Breast Cancer Treated With Endocrine Therapy Before Partial Mastectomy

Patient Info: Anonymized, Female, 50s

Biomarkers: luminal A

A 56-year-old woman with luminal A invasive ductal breast cancer had marked tumor shrinkage after 3 months of endocrine therapy before partial mastectomy.

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Stage IA invasive lobular breast cancer with ipsilateral marginal zone lymphoma: no recurrence after surgery and radiation

Patient Info: Anonymized, Female, 70+ | Stage I

Biomarkers: Breast cancer was ER-positive, PR-negative, HER2-negative. Separate marginal zone lymphoma showed CD20/Bcl-2 markers

As of May 2025, five-month follow-up imaging showed no recurrence of the right breast invasive lobular carcinoma and no clinical recurrence of the ipsilateral marginal zone lymphoma.

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Triple-negative sebaceous carcinoma of the breast: no recurrence after multimodality treatment

Patient Info: Anonymized, Female, Under 40

Biomarkers: Triple-negative sebaceous breast carcinoma; EMA-positive; Ki-67 50-60%; inherited breast/ovarian cancer testing negative for pathogenic variants.

As of May 2025, after surgery, adjuvant chemotherapy, and radiation, she had 5 years of follow-up with no evidence of neoplastic recurrence.

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Triple-Negative Breast Cancer: Lauren's Survivor Story

Patient Info: Lauren Yerkes, Female, Under 40

Biomarkers: ER-negative; PR-negative; HER2-negative

As of May 2025, Lauren Yerkes was a triple-negative breast cancer survivor and founder of POST SWIM, a swimwear brand created from her post-mastectomy experience.

Breast Cancer: Honey's Survivor Story

Patient Info: Honey, Female

Honey completed surgical treatment for breast cancer with clear lymph nodes and margins. She declined radiation and chemotherapy, later stopped tamoxifen, and focused on recovery from surgical menopause symptoms and returning to art. No recurrence or metastatic disease was described.

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Stage IIIB ER/PR-positive breast cancer: emergency mastectomy for infected fungating tumor

Patient Info: Anonymized, Female, 70+ | Stage III

Biomarkers: ER >75%; PR >75%; HER2 0 / HER2-negative; grade 3 invasive ductal carcinoma

As of May 2025, management centered on anastrozole after emergency mastectomy, repeated debridements, wound care, and major postoperative complications; oncology follow-up had become inconsistent because of ongoing medical setbacks.

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Stage II HR-Positive Invasive Ductal Carcinoma: LaShae's Patient Story

Patient Info: LaShae, Female, Under 40 | Stage II

Biomarkers: ER-positive; comprehensive genetic panel negative

As of May 2025, LaShae had completed mastectomy for Stage IIB ER-positive breast cancer with 2 positive lymph nodes and was undergoing chemotherapy, with radiation and 5-10 years of hormone therapy planned.

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Recurrent breast cancer with pleural disease: capecitabine stopped after cardiac complications

Patient Info: Anonymized, Female, 50s | Stage IV

Metastatic Site: pleura

As of May 2025, she was living with recurrent breast cancer involving the pleura after stopping capecitabine because of major cardiac complications; cardiac symptoms were medically managed with stable NYHA class II dyspnea at 3-month follow-up.

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Stage I Breast Cancer: Krista's Patient Story

Patient Info: Krista, Female | Stage I

Biomarkers: ATM mutation; hormone receptor-positive; HER2-negative; Oncotype DX score 1

As of May 2025, Krista had undergone double mastectomy with flap reconstruction for Stage IA hormone receptor-positive, HER2-negative breast cancer and was taking tamoxifen with minimal early side effects.

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Stage IV HR-Positive Invasive Ductal Carcinoma: Samantha's Patient Story

Patient Info: Samantha, Female, Under 40 | Stage IV

Biomarkers: ER-positive; PR-positive; HER2-positive

Metastatic Site: Rib; spine; pelvis

After a mixed response on the radium trial, Samantha changed to anastrozole and abemaciclib. She described the newer hormone-targeted combination as easier to tolerate and working better while remaining in ongoing treatment.

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Stage III HR-Positive Breast Cancer: Christine's Survivor Story

Patient Info: Christine, Female, Under 40 | Stage III

Biomarkers: ER-positive; PR-positive; HER2-positive

Three years after diagnosis, Christine described herself in the survivorship stage and focused on the physical and emotional effects that continued after active treatment.

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Breast cancer first discovered after it had already spread to the spinal cord

Patient Info: Anonymized, Female, 40s | Stage IV

Biomarkers: Estrogen receptor-positive; progesterone receptor-negative; HER2 score 0

Metastatic Site: intramedullary spinal cord (D11-D12); bilateral…

Her paraplegia did not improve after spinal radiation, and she died from disease progression 3 months after the breast-cancer diagnosis.

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Stage II HR-Positive Breast Cancer: Kelsey's Patient Story

Patient Info: Kelsey, Female, Under 40 | Stage II

Biomarkers: ER-positive

As of May 2025, Kelsey had completed chemotherapy, double mastectomy with reconstruction, and 16 radiation sessions, and was continuing tamoxifen with Verzenio planned for 2 years plus Lupron ovarian-suppression shots.

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Early-stage triple-negative breast cancer with separate lung carcinoid and later CML

Patient Info: Anonymized, Female, 50s

Biomarkers: triple negative

As of May 2025, serial follow-up breast ultrasound examinations showed no evidence of breast cancer recurrence in either breast tissue or axillary lymph nodes.

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