Chemotherapy: 963 Real Stories
963 stories match chemotherapy. 777 of them mention surgery.
Stage III HR-Positive Breast Cancer: Christine’s Survivor Story
Christine was 31 when she noticed a visible divot and a large, hard, immovable lump in her breast. Imaging and biopsy confirmed stage 3 triple-positive breast cancer. MRI measured the tumor at nearly 8 cm and showed at least 2 involved lymph nodes, with 4…
Read this storyStage II HR-Positive Breast Cancer: Kelsey’s Patient Story
Kelsey was 27 when she felt a slightly tender breast lump in May 2023. Her primary care doctor initially thought it might be a cyst, but ultrasound and mammogram showed something more serious: Stage IIB estrogen-positive breast cancer. The diagnosis was…
Read this storyStage II HR-Positive Invasive Ductal Carcinoma: LaShae’s Patient Story
LaShae, a PhD student in cancer prevention research, first noticed a small movable breast lump but pushed it aside while trying to keep up with graduate school and powerlifting. By late 2023, the lump had grown and become painful, so she finally brought it up…
Read this storyStage IV HR-Positive Invasive Ductal Carcinoma: Samantha’s Patient Story
Samantha was 22 when a breast lump, initially treated as an infection, was confirmed as cancer. Further imaging found a small rib lesion that shrank with chemotherapy, showing that the disease had already spread and making the diagnosis stage 4. She received…
Read this storyColorectal Cancer: Crystal’s Survivor Story
Crystal was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2022 after years of symptoms that were easy to explain away, including persistent urinary tract infections and later severe abdominal pain. Imaging showed a mass, and a needle biopsy confirmed that the tumor was…
Read this storyBreast Cancer: Lourdes’s Survivor Story
Lourdes del Río’s breast cancer was found after a suspicious mammogram led to additional imaging. A sonogram also raised concern, and the radiologist told her there was a malignancy. Two tumors were biopsied: one was thought likely benign and the other likely…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Albita’s Patient Story
Albita was diagnosed with Stage IV colon cancer in January 2024 after years of symptoms she had attributed to stress, IBS, or constipation. A colonoscopy found the primary tumor, and scans showed about 3 liver metastases, making the cancer Stage IV. Her team…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Michelle’s Patient Story
Michelle was a 40-year-old 5th-grade teacher when Stage IV colorectal cancer was diagnosed in 2017. For years, she had chronic constipation and bloating, but those symptoms were explained away as medication effects or other issues. Severe pain eventually sent…
Read this storyBlood Cancer: Harjeet’s Survivor Story
Harjeet Kaur was 32 when she was diagnosed with Stage IV subcutaneous panniculitis-like T-cell lymphoma, a rare blood cancer complicated by HLH. Treatment moved quickly because the disease was advanced. She received 12 rounds of chemotherapy and, after…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Kasey’s Patient Story
Kasey was 36 when years of abdominal cramping, mucus in her stool, and later heavy rectal bleeding led to her first colonoscopy in February 2024. She expected an explanation such as hemorrhoids or a fissure, but the gastroenterologist found a large colon mass…
Read this storyStage III Colorectal Adenocarcinoma: Chloe’s Survivor Story
Chloe’s Stage III colon cancer was found in early 2024 after symptoms that kept getting worse. She had bloating and stomach problems, then weight loss, fatigue, lack of appetite, and abdominal swelling. Because she already had anemia, some symptoms were first…
Read this storyStage III Colorectal Cancer: Chloe’s Survivor Story
Chloe was 26 and living in the UK when weeks of stomach symptoms were repeatedly treated as gastroenteritis. She had weight loss, poor appetite, vomiting, dehydration, swelling, and worsening abdominal pain, but early tests did not explain what was happening…
Read this storyStage II Colorectal Cancer: Kristin’s Survivor Story
Kristin had lived with IBS-like digestive problems for years, but in March 2021 her symptoms changed. Bloating, constipation, and right-sided abdominal pain became more intense, then returned with fever, sweating, nausea, vomiting, and pain worse than…
Read this storyStage III Colorectal Cancer: Mark’s Survivor Story
Mark was 35 when cramping episodes in 2020 led him toward a Stage IIIB colon cancer diagnosis. At first, doctors thought the pain might be appendicitis, but Mark felt that explanation did not fit what was happening in his body. He kept pushing for more…
Read this storyStage III Colorectal Cancer: Heather’s Survivor Story
Heather Russell was 35 when months of blood in her stool and thinner stools led to a colonoscopy on her birthday in March 2020. A local clinician had previously suggested hemorrhoids, and Heather delayed the procedure even as symptoms worsened. Her younger…
Read this storyStage III Colorectal Cancer: Courtney’s Survivor Story
Courtney Vigars was 27 when she noticed blood in her stool while preparing for her wedding in 2019. She initially attributed it to stress, and a clinician suggested hemorrhoids, but the bleeding continued and became heavier. A colonoscopy found a rectal mass…
Read this storyStage III Colorectal Cancer: Mark’s Survivor Story
Mark was 35 when repeated severe right-sided cramps pushed him to seek answers. An emergency-room visit ruled out appendicitis, but he still felt something was wrong and followed up with a gastroenterologist. A colonoscopy found a mass on the right side of…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Bill’s Patient Story
Bill was diagnosed with Stage IV colon cancer just before his 44th birthday. He had noticed blood in his stool for several weeks but initially dismissed it. His wife Lisa, a nurse, urged him to get a colonoscopy. The test found a cancerous tumor in his colon…
Read this storyStage IV ROS1 Lung Adenocarcinoma: Luna’s Patient Story
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…
Read this storyStage IV HER2-Positive Breast Cancer: Stephani’s Survivor Story
Stephani St. Cyr felt a long lump under her right arm while watching a movie at home. Her primary doctor suspected a cyst but referred her to a specialist. The breast cancer doctor immediately suspected cancer, and biopsy confirmed it. Further tests showed…
Read this storyStage IV KRAS Colorectal Cancer: Bill’s Patient Story
Bill was diagnosed with Stage IV colon cancer at 44 after blood in his stool led to a colonoscopy in May 2020. The cancer had already spread to his liver. At Mayo Clinic, his team planned 6 rounds of chemotherapy near home, followed by combined laparoscopic…
Read this storyStage IV HER2-Positive Breast Cancer: Anne’s Patient Story
Anne Keane was diagnosed in 2016 after pain in her sternum led to testing that found HER2-positive breast cancer already involving her bones and liver. She was a young mother, and learning that the disease was metastatic and incurable was devastating. At 42…
Read this storyStage IV KRAS Lung Cancer: Rosemary’s Patient Story
Rosemary Conway was 60 when she was diagnosed with lung cancer in August 2017 after developing a raspy voice and coughing up a small amount of blood. She had never smoked and was an active runner. In September, surgeons removed the lower lobe of her left lung…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Shannin’s Patient Story
Shannin was 26 when months of severe abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting turned into a Stage IV colon cancer diagnosis. Her symptoms were first dismissed as food intolerance, but she knew something was wrong and kept seeking medical opinions. An urgent care…
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