Crizotinib for Lung Cancer: 14 Real Stories

EGFR-mutated lung cancer responds after acquired ROS1 resistance

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

Biomarkers: EGFR L858R mutation; acquired ROS1 rearrangement

Metastatic Site: pleura

She remained on osimertinib plus crizotinib with a sustained clinical and radiologic response for more than 18 months.

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Stage IV EGFR-mutated lung cancer responds after targeted therapy intolerance

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

Biomarkers: EGFR L858R mutation; PIK3CA E545K mutation; acquired ROS1 rearrangement

Metastatic Site: pleura|pericardium|bone|lungs

Chemotherapy produced a partial response that remained sustained for 7 months at the latest follow-up.

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EGFR-mutant lung adenocarcinoma with acquired ROS1 rearrangement after EGFR-TKI resistance

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

Biomarkers: EGFR exon 19 deletion; acquired EGFR T790M; acquired EZR exon10-ROS1 exon34 rearrangement

Metastatic Site: bone (distal femur); contralateral lung;…

After fourth-line crizotinib for acquired EZR-ROS1 rearrangement, response evaluation on August 27, 2025 showed partial response, and September 2025 bone scan showed stable bone lesions.

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ROS1-rearranged Stage IV lung adenocarcinoma: sequential targeted therapy and 73-month survival

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

Biomarkers: CD74-ROS1 C6:R33 fusion; CTNNB1 p.Thr41Ala; APC p.Glu601fs; acquired ROS1 resistance mutation; mTOR p. mutation; FGFR3 gene amplification

Metastatic Site: contralateral lung nodules, brain, pleura

She died on October 6, 2024, after sequential crizotinib, lorlatinib, and cabozantinib for Stage IV ROS1-rearranged lung adenocarcinoma, with total overall survival of 73 months from diagnosis.

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ALK-rearranged lung adenocarcinoma: sustained partial response on reduced-dose crizotinib after renal cysts

Patient Info: Anonymized, Male, 50s | Stage III

Biomarkers: ALK gene translocation positive in >15% of tumor cells by FISH

As of June 2025, the lung cancer remained in partial response without progression on reduced-dose crizotinib, while crizotinib-associated renal cysts had markedly regressed.

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Stage IV ROS1 Lung Adenocarcinoma: Luna's Patient Story

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

Biomarkers: ROS1 rearrangement; EGFR negative; ALK negative

Metastatic Site: liver; bones

Luna had Stage IV ROS1-positive lung adenocarcinoma with liver and bone metastases. After progression on initial chemotherapy, crizotinib led to tumor shrinkage and controlled her cancer for almost 12 years as of March 2025.

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ROS1-Positive Stage III Lung Adenocarcinoma With Pathologic Complete Response

Patient Info: Anonymized, male, 40s | Stage III

Biomarkers: ROS1 fusion-positive

Surgery found no residual cancer cells or involved lymph nodes, and no recurrence was detected during 10 months of crizotinib treatment and follow-up.

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ROS1-Positive Stage III Pulmonary Sarcomatoid Carcinoma With Complete Pathologic Response

Patient Info: Anonymized, male, 60s | Stage III

Biomarkers: ROS1 rearrangement; TP53 mutation; PD-L1 TPS 0%

No recurrence was seen for more than 30 months after surgery following a complete pathologic response.

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ALK-positive lung cancer treated with alectinib throughout pregnancy

Patient Info: Anonymized, Female | Stage IV

Biomarkers: ALK rearrangement / fusion-positive

Metastatic Site: pleura; liver; bone; brain

Alectinib produced a complete radiologic response and maintained intracranial control through pregnancy. She delivered a healthy infant at 37 weeks, with normal development at 26 months.

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Living with Stage 4 Lung Cancer (Plus Radiation & My Follow Up!) | Amy’s Story (3 of 3)

Patient Info: Amy, Female | Stage IV

Biomarkers: MET amplification

Metastatic Site: Bone/femur and hips; adrenal gland

As of July 2022, Amy was 3.5 years after Stage IV squamous cell lung cancer diagnosis, not NED but stable for about 3 years on Crizotinib with ongoing imaging and local treatment to lung/adrenal sites.

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Stage IV MET Lung Squamous Cell Carcinoma: Amy's Patient Story

Patient Info: Amy, Female | Stage IV

Biomarkers: MET amplification

Metastatic Site: Bone/femur; lymph nodes; shoulder; adrenal glands;…

As of July 2022, Amy had a rapid and strong response to Crizotinib after MET amplification was found, with pain and lumps improving within about 2 weeks after Keytruda had failed.

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ROS1-positive lung adenocarcinoma presenting with cancer spread across the abdomen

Patient Info: Anonymized, Male, 50s | Stage Metastatic/Advanced

Biomarkers: ROS1 rearrangement-positive; high PD-L1 expression.

Metastatic Site: peritoneum and omentum; pleura

Crizotinib relieved his respiratory and abdominal symptoms, and six-month imaging showed no residual disease or progression while treatment continued.

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Stage IV ALK Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: James's Patient Story

Patient Info: James “Rocky” Lagno, Male | Stage IV

Biomarkers: ALK-positive

Metastatic Site: brain

After starting ceritinib through compassionate use, Rocky reported stable disease from the middle of 2013 with quality of life close to his pre-diagnosis level, while recognizing that he was not in remission or cancer-free.

Stage IV ALK Lung Adenocarcinoma: Amanda's Survivor Story

Patient Info: Amanda Nerstad, Under 40 | Stage IV

Biomarkers: ALK-positive

She achieved a complete metabolic response on alectinib and had shown no evidence of disease since November 2017 while continuing treatment.

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