Stage IV Lung Cancer: Joanne's Patient Story
This lung cancer diagnosis at a glance
- Stage at diagnosis
- Stage IV
- Sex
- Female
- Spread to
- abdomen
- Treatment
- chemotherapy, radiation and immunotherapy
- Outcome
- Responding Well
Treatment course, step by step
- In 2005, Joanne received chemotherapy and radiation after seeking a second opinion at MSK, and the lung cancer went into remission.
- After the lung cancer returned and spread to her abdomen, she started pembrolizumab immunotherapy in 2013.
- More than 2 years after starting pembrolizumab, her tumor had shrunk by 81% while treatment continued.
What happened, in summary
Joanne Sabol was 65 when a lump in her neck led to imaging and a biopsy in July 2005. She was diagnosed with Stage IV lung cancer and was initially told that palliative care was her only option. Joanne sought a second opinion at Memorial Sloan Kettering, where she received chemotherapy and radiation. The treatment put her cancer into remission.
Six years later, while recovering from treatment for a separate breast cancer, a PET scan showed that her lung cancer had returned and spread to her abdomen. Surgery was not an option. In 2013, Joanne began pembrolizumab immunotherapy. She experienced significant muscle and joint pain, but the treatment produced a strong response. More than 2 years after starting pembrolizumab, her tumor had shrunk by 81%.
Joanne later learned that some lymph nodes might still contain cancer, but the finding was uncertain and her care team expected the broader response to immunotherapy to continue. Eleven years after her original diagnosis, she remained active, working and spending time with her 10 grandchildren. She described feeling fantastic and found meaning in supporting other families affected by cancer.
Where this story comes from
This is a lay summary of an account first published by Memorial Sloan Kettering. 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.