Five-year survival with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer on atezolizumab

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

Metastatic Site: bilateral lungs, cervical lymph nodes

Five years after diagnosis with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer, he was alive and well on maintenance atezolizumab with no further documented progression after the 2020–2021 rechallenge, reaching 60 months overall survival and about 44 months progression-free survival.

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Stage IIIA NSCLC: recurrence-free after surgery, adjuvant chemotherapy, and one atezolizumab dose

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

Biomarkers: PD-L1 expression 20% by 22C3 assay

She remained free of lung-cancer recurrence for more than 1 year after surgery and adjuvant cisplatin/vinorelbine; atezolizumab was stopped after 1 dose because of severe immune-related toxicities that improved with steroid and immunoglobulin treatment.

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Treatment-related lung injury during therapy for Stage IV squamous lung cancer

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

A 63-year-old man with Stage IV squamous lung cancer developed interstitial lung disease soon after starting chemotherapy and immunotherapy, with respiratory findings improving after steroid treatment.

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Stage IV pulmonary mucoepidermoid carcinoma with an ALK fusion responding to targeted therapy

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

Biomarkers: EML4-ALK fusion; PD-L1 <1%

Metastatic Site: liver

By December 2023, oral ALK-targeted therapy was ongoing with a partial response, improved symptoms, weight gain, and marked shrinkage of lung and metastatic disease.

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Stage IVA lung adenocarcinoma with solitary brain metastasis: pCR after brain surgery, chemoradiation, immunotherapy, and lobectomy

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

Biomarkers: PD-L1 75%; negative for driver gene mutations and translocations

Metastatic Site: brain

As of May 2024, he had no recurrence after brain metastasis resection and radiation, carboplatin/pemetrexed/atezolizumab, robot-assisted right upper lobectomy with pathologic complete response, and 13 cycles of maintenance atezolizumab.

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Stage 4 lung adenocarcinoma: complete response on immunotherapy combination

Patient Info: Anonymized, Male | Stage IV

Biomarkers: No targetable mutation found. Tissue showed TP53/ARID1A; liquid biopsy added KEAP1, and SMARCA4. PD-L1 not evaluable.

Metastatic Site: bilateral lung nodules, left adrenal gland

As of May 2024, metastatic lung adenocarcinoma had a complete radiologic response lasting more than 14 months on pembrolizumab maintenance, and a new PET-avid lung nodule was benign inflammation rather than cancer.

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Small cell lung cancer with SIADH that progressed after an initial response to treatment

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

Metastatic Site: liver

The cancer progressed with disseminated liver metastases, and she died from liver failure in February 2021.

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Stage 4 lung cancer stable on durvalumab immunotherapy

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

Metastatic Site: brain, pancreas, liver

Stage IV small cell lung cancer remained stable after durvalumab, platinum chemotherapy, radiation, and 1 year of durvalumab monotherapy; severe right sternoclavicular joint arthritis resolved after infliximab, and immunotherapy was suspended for 1 year.

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Stage 4 lung adenocarcinoma: brain surgery followed by immunotherapy response

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

Biomarkers: PD-L1-positive; EGFR wild-type/no mutation; ALK rearrangement not detected; TTF-1-positive; Napsin A-positive

Metastatic Site: brain

As of March 2024, after 31 cycles of zimberelimab, the lung lesion had shown partial response, brain metastasis had not recurred, and the patient had 24-month progression-free and intracranial recurrence-free survival with normal quality of life.

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Eye complication (corneal irritation) as a rare side effect of nivolumab immunotherapy

Patient Info: Anonymized, Female

One year after nivolumab was stopped, there was no progression of the lung cancer or secondary lesions, and she remained under surveillance.

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Stage III squamous lung cancer complicated by a fatal postoperative bronchopleural fistula

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

He developed a postoperative bronchopleural fistula with pulmonary infection and worsening respiratory failure, and died on December 2, 2020.

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Stage III squamous lung cancer with a postoperative bronchopleural fistula successfully repaired

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

After bronchoscopic repair of a postoperative bronchopleural fistula, he was followed for more than 1 year with CT every 3 months and no lung-cancer recurrence.

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Stage III squamous lung cancer with a postoperative bronchopleural fistula that resolved with treatment

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

The postoperative bronchopleural fistula resolved after anti-infective treatment, and serial CT scans showed no lung-cancer recurrence during ongoing follow-up.

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Stage III lung adenocarcinoma with a postoperative bronchopleural fistula and no recurrence

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

Biomarkers: EGFR, ALK, KRAS, RET and ROS1 negative

After treatment of a postoperative bronchopleural fistula, she was followed for more than 1 year with CT every 3 months and no lung-cancer recurrence.

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SMARCA4-deficient undifferentiated lung cancer with pleural disease and later spinal metastasis

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

Biomarkers: BRCA1 p.S1796 variant; TP53 p.; tumor mutational burden 12.6

Metastatic Site: spine

After chemotherapy and one cycle of nivolumab, a new 4.5 cm spinal metastasis caused cord compression and required surgery; further outpatient treatment was planned.

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BRAF V600E lung adenocarcinoma with a response lasting more than 5 years on dabrafenib and trametinib

Patient Info: Anonymized, female, Under 40 | Stage IV

Biomarkers: BRAF ; PD-L1 TPS 100%

Metastatic Site: pleura

More than 5 years after her initial presentation, dabrafenib plus trametinib remained effective with no trend toward tumor progression.

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Stage IV BRAF-mutated lung adenocarcinoma responding to second-line chemo-immunotherapy

Patient Info: Anonymized, female, Under 40 | Stage IV

Biomarkers: BRAF exon 15 p.T599dup; PD-L1 5%

Metastatic Site: pleura, pericardium

After progression on BRAF/MEK-targeted therapy, second-line chemo-immunotherapy produced a partial response that was still ongoing after about 1 year of second-line treatment.

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Stage II lung adenocarcinoma with severe atezolizumab-related myocarditis after surgery

Patient Info: Anonymized, female, 40s | Stage II

Biomarkers: PD-L1 TPS 50%

More than 1 year after atezolizumab was discontinued, there was no recurrence of the lung cancer.

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Metastatic lung cancer responding to pembrolizumab despite multiple immune-related side effects

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

Metastatic Site: right adrenal gland

Later PET/CT showed no FDG uptake in the primary lung lesion or the right adrenal metastasis after pembrolizumab had been stopped for toxicity.

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Stage III squamous lung cancer controlled during treatment while a second pancreatic cancer developed

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

Biomarkers: KRAS exon 2 mutation

She died in March 2022. Her Stage III lung cancer had remained controlled for about 18 months, while a separate pancreatic cancer developed and progressed.

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Small cell lung cancer with dermatomyositis improving after chemo-immunotherapy

Patient Info: Anonymized, male, 70+

After treatment began, muscle enzymes fell and his strength, skin symptoms, and overall condition improved.

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Small cell lung cancer with dermatomyositis and fatal immune-related toxicity

Patient Info: Anonymized, male, 50s

He died 3 weeks after starting treatment after developing severe skin toxicity thought to be a fatal immune-related adverse event, with possible infection and sepsis.

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

Patient Info: Tim Monds, Male, 50s | Stage IV

Biomarkers: High PD-L1 expression

Metastatic Site: Other lung lobes / lung nodules

As of March 2024, Tim Monds was identified as a Stage IV lung cancer survivor involved in discussion of the PaCES early palliative-care project and broader lung cancer advocacy.

EGFR-mutated Stage III lung cancer became undetectable during erlotinib plus dendritic-cell vaccination

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

Biomarkers: EGFR mutation; ALK-negative; PD-L1 <1%

CT showed no detectable lung cancer by day 321, and the disappearance was maintained for at least 587 days without recurrence or metastasis.

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