Stage IV EGFR Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Bill's Patient Story
This lung cancer diagnosis at a glance
- Stage at diagnosis
- Stage IV
- Subtype
- Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer
- Biomarkers
- EGFR exon 21 mutation
- Sex
- Male
- Spread to
- Spine; brain; hips/bone
- Treatment
- surgery, radiation, targeted therapy and a clinical trial
- Outcome
- Setback / Progression
Treatment course, step by step
- Spinal collapse was treated with kyphoplasty, but the bone cement failed after surgery
- Radiation and spinal fusion followed
- Biomarker testing found an EGFR exon 21 mutation
- Started osimertinib and improved quickly
- Later testing showed brain and spine metastases shrinking but the lung mass growing quickly
- He then moved to clinical-trial treatment
- Clinical-trial drug name is not reported.
What happened, in summary
Bill was an active Park City skier, runner, and mountain biker when back pain after shoveling snow turned out to be much more than a pulled muscle. The pain lasted for months, and physical therapy did not help. Before a scheduled MRI, he became unable to walk and went to the emergency room. There he learned that lung cancer had spread widely, including through his spine, into his brain, and down to his hips. His spine had been badly damaged by cancer. A kyphoplasty was attempted, but the bone cement failed in post-op. Bill then had radiation and spinal fusion. While this was happening, his wife, Sloan, pushed for biomarker testing. The result showed an EGFR exon 21 mutation, which opened the door to targeted therapy. After starting osimertinib, Bill felt a major change within about 1 month. He went from thinking he was near the end to regaining function and hope. Later testing showed the brain and spine metastases shrinking, but the lung mass was growing quickly. Bill then entered a clinical trial. His story is best framed as Stage IV EGFR-mutated lung cancer with progression requiring a new treatment approach, alongside strong advocacy for radon awareness and clinical-trial research.
Where this story comes from
This is a lay summary of an account first published by Lung Cancer Research Foundation. Read the original in full
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.