Stage IV BRCA2 Breast Cancer: Lisa's Patient Story
This breast cancer diagnosis at a glance
- Stage at diagnosis
- Stage IV
- Biomarkers
- Inherited BRCA2 mutation
- Sex
- Female
- Spread to
- bone, liver
- Treatment
- surgery, hormone therapy and targeted therapy
- Outcome
- In Memory
Treatment course, step by step
- Lisa had surgery to remove her ovaries soon after diagnosis.
- Letrozole plus palbociclib controlled the cancer for more than 1 year, and she also had a double mastectomy.
- After the cancer progressed and later spread to her liver, she started olaparib in February 2018.
- By June 2018, 2 liver tumors were no longer active and a third showed about 50% less activity.
What happened, in summary
Lisa Quinn was 36 when she found a hard knot in her right breast after experiencing stabbing pain. Mammography, ultrasound, and biopsy confirmed breast cancer involving lymph nodes. MRI and PET imaging showed 7 tumors in the right breast and cancer in 5 bone sites, making the disease Stage IV. She had two young children, ages 6 and 3.
Within days, Lisa had surgery to remove her ovaries because estrogen was helping drive the cancer. She started letrozole and palbociclib, which controlled the disease for more than a year. During that period, she also had a double mastectomy. Genetic testing showed an inherited BRCA2 mutation.
After 15 months, a scan showed that a hip tumor was no longer responding. Lisa tried several other treatments, but the cancer later spread to her liver. In February 2018, she started olaparib. By June 2018, scans showed that 2 liver tumors were no longer active and a third showed about 50% less activity.
Living with metastatic cancer brought persistent worry about how much time she would have with her children. Lisa described depression after diagnosis but later focused on enjoying family life and connecting with other women with metastatic breast cancer. She also became an advocate for research funding. Lisa Quinn died on August 30, 2021.
Where this story comes from
This is a lay summary of an account first published by AACR. Read the original in full
How we source and attribute stories Accuracy and limitations
These are lay summaries of published cancer stories, for information only. No two cancers behave the same way, and nothing here predicts your own diagnosis or replaces advice from your oncology team. Read the full disclaimer