Lung Cancer: 296 Real Stories
296 stories match lung cancer. 140 of them mention targeted therapy.
Stage II ALK Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Stephanie’s Survivor Story
Stephanie’s lung cancer story began with a mild cough in spring 2021. She thought it might be allergies or weather-related, but when it persisted, she mentioned it during a routine check-up. A chest X-ray showed a lung mass, and a CT scan showed a spiculated…
Read this storyStage II ALK Lung Adenocarcinoma: Stephanie’s Patient Story
Stephanie Williams developed a mild but persistent cough in spring 2021. At a yearly primary care visit, she asked for a chest X-ray. The image showed a cloudy area on her right side, and a same-day CT scan described a large spiculated mass that was highly…
Read this storyStage IV ALK Lung Adenocarcinoma: Shirley’s Patient Story
Shirley was 34, working as a translator in Southern California, when a persistent cough during the COVID-19 pandemic became something much more serious. She went through multiple rounds of antibiotics and testing, but the cough continued and severe back pain…
Read this storyStage IV ALK Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Patient Story
This anonymized patient reflected on more than 10.5 years of living with Stage IV non-small cell lung cancer. She was diagnosed in 2014 after a local clinic completed about 2 weeks of testing and told her she had Stage IV cancer. At first, her local doctor…
Read this storyStage IV ALK Lung Adenocarcinoma: Shirley’s Patient Story
Shirley was 34 when a cough and severe back pain were first treated as possible long COVID or pneumonia. Two bronchoscopies did not give answers. A wedge resection was then done to obtain tissue, and pathology showed adenocarcinoma. PET and MRI scans did not…
Read this storyLung Cancer: Jill’s Patient Story
Jill Feldman’s story is part patient experience and part education about lung cancer biomarkers. She was first diagnosed with lung cancer in 2009, when biomarker testing was still much more limited than it is today. Her cancer was initially Stage I, and…
Read this storyStage IV EGFR Lung Cancer: Leah’s Patient Story
Leah Phillips never smoked, so a Stage IV lung cancer diagnosis in December 2019 felt impossible. She was 43, with children ages 14, 13, and 9, and had been dealing with a persistent cough, unintentional weight loss, chest heaviness, and coughing up blood…
Read this storyStage IV ROS1 Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Ashley’s Survivor Story
Ashley was 35, active and raising 2 young children when she was diagnosed with Stage IV non-small cell lung adenocarcinoma with a ROS1 mutation. Her first major symptoms were sharp pain in her right abdomen and shoulder, severe shortness of breath and low…
Read this storyStage IV Lung Cancer: Natalie’s Patient Story
Natalie Brown was diagnosed with Stage IV lung cancer in June 2020 after about 6 months of testing, including X-rays, CT scans, PET scans and several biopsies. She had been dismissed at times because of her age and lack of smoking history. During one biopsy…
Read this storyStage IV ALK Lung Cancer: Amanda’s Patient Story
Amanda was diagnosed with Stage IV ALK-positive lung cancer 10 days after giving birth to twins. During pregnancy, she had a high heart rate, low energy and a cough that doctors attributed to pregnancy. After delivery, the cough did not go away. She went to…
Read this storyStage III Lung Cancer: Heidi’s Survivor Story
Heidi was diagnosed with Stage IIIA lung cancer in October 2018. She was a lifelong health educator and fitness trainer with no symptoms that made her think of lung cancer. Imaging for an ovarian cyst unexpectedly found a mass in the upper lobe of her left…
Read this storyStage IV EGFR Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Filipe’s Patient Story
Filipe was 36 when a headache and blurred vision led to a Stage IV lung cancer diagnosis. A brain MRI showed 7 brain metastases, including a 4 cm lesion at the back of his head. CT imaging and biopsy confirmed lung cancer as the primary. Liver lesions were…
Read this storyNon-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Donnita’s Survivor Story
Donnita was 68 when she was diagnosed with Stage IA2 non-small cell lung cancer, adenocarcinoma. Her story appears in a group lung cancer awareness video with other speakers; this summary focuses only on Donnita’s personal experience. Donnita had a…
Read this storyEGFR Lung Cancer: Jill’s Survivor Story
Jill Feldman was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2009 at age 39 after years of watching the disease affect her family. She lost 2 grandparents to lung cancer within weeks of each other, then her father died 3 months after his diagnosis at age 41. In her 20s…
Read this storyStage IV HER2-Positive Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Samantha’s Patient Story
Samantha was an active hiker and outdoor adventurer when a mild cough and chest pressure after a trip to India led to a Stage IV lung cancer diagnosis. She had never thought lung cancer was likely because she was a nonsmoker and very health-conscious. At…
Read this storyStage IV Lung Cancer: Ashley’s Patient Story
Ashley Smith was 35 when she was diagnosed with Stage IV lung cancer. Before the diagnosis, she was active, spent time outdoors with her young children, worked out with a trainer, and did not fit the image many people wrongly associate with lung cancer. Her…
Read this storyStage IV Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Ashley’s Survivor Story
Ashley Vasallo was 36 when she shared her story, 2 years after being diagnosed with Stage IV non-small cell lung cancer. Before diagnosis, she had trouble swallowing, shortness of breath, stabbing chest pain, fatigue, vomiting, full-body swelling, clubbed…
Read this storyLung Cancer: Pascal’s Survivor Story
Pascal, 62, learned he had lung cancer after going to his general practitioner for a lump in his neck. He was sent to the emergency department, where a chest X-ray did not show anything clear, but CT scan, PET scan, and biopsy confirmed lung cancer…
Read this storyStage IV Lung Cancer: Florence’s Patient Story
Florence was 40 and living in Nîmes when unusual fatigue, stomach pain, and shortness of breath led her to medical care. She was first diagnosed with pericarditis and treated in the hospital, but deeper testing found the cause: lung cancer. Telling her…
Read this storyStage IV ALK Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Lindsay’s Patient Story
Lindsay Wagner was 42 when side pain, chest discomfort, and a year-long cough led her to the ER. Doctors first suspected gallbladder disease, pneumonia, or ovarian cancer because a CA-125 test was elevated and imaging showed liver lesions. A liver biopsy…
Read this storyStage III Lung Adenocarcinoma: Payton’s Survivor Story
Payton Gibbs was 26 and pregnant when symptoms that seemed like reflux, sleep apnea, or infection eventually led to a lung cancer diagnosis. For months, she had thick mucus and phlegm after meals and on waking, acid reflux, wheezing, and episodes of waking up…
Read this storyStage II Lung Cancer: Att’s Patient Story
Att Callahan was 70 when months of coughing, followed by coughing up blood, led to testing and a Stage IIB lung cancer diagnosis. She did not smoke, was not overweight, and considered herself healthy, so the diagnosis was confusing and frightening. At MD…
Read this storyStage IV EGFR Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Leah’s Patient Story
Leah Phillips was diagnosed with Stage IV non-small cell lung cancer at age 43 in December 2019. Her first symptoms were a persistent dry cough, chest heaviness, shortness of breath, fatigue, weight loss, and later coughing up blood. Several visits were…
Read this storyStage IV Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Lenny’s Survivor Story
Lenny was diagnosed with Stage IV non-small cell lung cancer in November 2019. He had never smoked. His first warning signs were a change in his walking, pain in his right leg, and later coughing and wheezing that felt different from his usual mild asthma…
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