Stage IV EGFR Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Maggie's Patient Story
This lung cancer diagnosis at a glance
- Stage at diagnosis
- Stage IV
- Subtype
- Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer
- Biomarkers
- EGFR mutation; MET amplification resistance mutation; MET overexpression
- Sex
- Female
- Spread to
- Brain
- Treatment
- targeted therapy, radiation, a clinical trial and chemotherapy
- Outcome
- Setback / Progression
Treatment course, step by step
- Blood biopsy found an EGFR mutation
- Started a daily EGFR-targeted pill in October 2021, avoiding initial chemotherapy
- December scans showed no evidence of disease in the brain or lungs
- After 9 months, growth in the upper right lung was treated with SBRT focused radiation
- Spring 2023 scans showed progression and a MET amplification resistance mutation
- Phase 2 clinical trial for EGFR/MET disease worked for about 9 months before progression
- More SBRT was given after trial removal
- Summer 2024 progression led to chemotherapy, which worked for a while
- January 2025 scans showed progression again
- Lymph-node testing showed MET amplification and EGFR, plus MET overexpression
- A new MET-focused drug plus another EGFR-focused drug became an option; specific drug names were not stated.
What happened, in summary
Maggie was 60 in 2021 and expected the year to be one of the best of her life. Instead, unusual symptoms led to a Stage IV lung cancer diagnosis. She first had an ocular migraine, then leg pain that turned out to be a partial blood clot. A CT scan showed concerning findings, and biopsy confirmed non-small cell lung adenocarcinoma. A brain MRI found metastases in her brain, even though she had never had lung symptoms. At first, Maggie assumed Stage IV cancer meant chemotherapy, hair loss, and very little time. Her oncologist changed that path by ordering a blood biopsy. The test found an EGFR mutation, allowing her to start a daily targeted therapy pill in October 2021 instead of initial chemotherapy. By December, scans showed no evidence of disease in her brain or lungs. After 9 months, cancer grew in the upper right lobe, and she had SBRT. In spring 2023, scans showed more progression and a MET amplification resistance mutation. A phase 2 clinical trial for EGFR patients with MET amplification worked for about 9 months, then the cancer progressed again. She had more SBRT, then chemotherapy after summer 2024 progression. January 2025 scans showed progression again, and further testing found MET overexpression. As of February 2026, Maggie had started a 5th line of treatment targeting both EGFR and MET changes.
Where this story comes from
This is a lay summary of an account first published by The Patient Story. 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.