Stage IV ROS1 Lung Adenocarcinoma: Luna's Patient Story
This lung cancer diagnosis at a glance
- Stage at diagnosis
- Stage IV
- Subtype
- Adenocarcinoma
- Biomarkers
- ROS1 rearrangement; EGFR negative; ALK negative
- Sex
- Female
- Spread to
- liver; bones
- Treatment
- chemotherapy, antiangiogenic therapy and targeted therapy
- Outcome
- Responding Well
Treatment course, step by step
- After December 2012 diagnosis, liver biopsy was tested for EGFR and ALK and was negative
- Started traditional 3-drug chemotherapy including carboplatin and Avastin; the third drug was not clearly identified
- After 2 rounds, follow-up imaging showed progression
- Additional testing found a ROS1 rearrangement after an initial lab discrepancy was corrected
- Started crizotinib oral targeted therapy
- Crizotinib shrank tumors, normalized other marker testing within weeks, and controlled cancer for almost 12 years as of March 2025.
What happened, in summary
Luna Okada was 54 when she was diagnosed in December 2012 with Stage IV lung adenocarcinoma. She had just returned from climbing Machu Picchu and had no cough or shortness of breath. Two days after the trip, severe abdominal pain brought her to the emergency room, where imaging showed a small lung tumor but extensive disease in the liver and many bones. At first, doctors did not know the cancer’s origin. A liver biopsy later supported lung cancer, and early biomarker testing was negative for EGFR and ALK, the main actionable markers being used at that time. Because no target was initially found, Luna started a 3-drug chemotherapy regimen that included carboplatin and Avastin. After 2 rounds, scans showed progression. Her oncologist then recommended testing for a newly described alteration that was rare in lung adenocarcinoma. After an initial lab discrepancy was resolved, testing confirmed a ROS1 rearrangement. Luna started crizotinib, an oral targeted therapy. The response was strong: tumors shrank, related marker testing normalized within weeks, and the medicine continued to control her cancer. As of March 2025, Luna had been stable for almost 12 years on crizotinib, living with metastatic lung cancer while managing side effects, scans, insurance tasks, and daily medication routines.
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.