Stage IV ALK Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Shyreece's Patient Story
This lung cancer diagnosis at a glance
- Stage at diagnosis
- Stage IV
- Subtype
- Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer
- Biomarkers
- ALK rearrangement / ALK-positive
- Sex
- Female
- Spread to
- Brain
- Treatment
- chemotherapy, targeted therapy, a clinical trial and surveillance
- Outcome
- Living With Cancer
Treatment course, step by step
- Initial Stage IV lung cancer treatment included intensive carboplatin-containing chemotherapy, described as a 4-5 hour infusion
- April 18, 2014 CT showed no evidence of disease
- Later Stanford PET scan found 4-5 small brain tumors that CT scans had missed
- Ongoing treatment and clinical-trial options were being discussed
- Drug names were unclear and were not normalized.
What happened, in summary
Shyreece’s fourth video focuses on the lessons she learned as a Black woman living with Stage IV lung cancer and on the advocacy that grew from her experience. She described a frightening beginning: within about 2 weeks, she went from symptoms and hospital evaluation to a Stage IV lung cancer diagnosis. At first, she did not know about biomarkers or ALK-positive lung cancer. Doctors started an intensive chemotherapy approach that she remembered as a 4- to 5-hour infusion including “Carbo.” On April 18, 2014, a CT scan showed no evidence of disease. Later, after moving care across major centers, a PET scan at Stanford found 4 to 5 small brain tumors that had not been seen on CT scans. Over time, biomarker testing and education helped her understand that her cancer was ALK-rearranged / ALK-positive, opening different treatment options than the generic picture of lung cancer she had previously known. The current drug names and trial options in this video are not clear enough to list. As of March 2022, Shyreece was approaching major long-term scan milestones while still facing treatment decisions. She used her story to push for better outreach, biomarker testing, clinical-trial access, and more Black representation in research and lung cancer care.
Where this story comes from
This is a lay summary of an account first published by The Patient Story. 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