Radiation: 614 Real Stories
614 stories match radiation. 511 of them mention surgery.
Stage IV EGFR Lung Cancer: Kelsey’s Patient Story
Kelsey was 36, a mother of 4, and working as a SoulCycle manager when severe back pain began changing her life. At first, she blamed work, commuting, aging, or a pulled muscle. Then she collapsed while coaching baseball and later had to crawl to the bathroom…
Read this storyTriple-Negative Breast Cancer: Marina’s Survivor Story
Marina was 31 and had just qualified for the Boston Marathon when she noticed a daily ache in her breast. Her mother had survived breast cancer twice and was known to carry a BRCA1 mutation, so Marina already understood that breast cancer could run in her…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Kalei’s Patient Story
Kalei first noticed bowel changes that seemed small: going more often, mucus or tissue in the stool, stomach pain, sharp pains, rectal bleeding, and then blood clots. Doctors initially reassured her because her blood work was normal, she was not anemic, and…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: David’s Survivor Story
David Lyon was 26 when occasional blood in his stool was followed by sharp abdominal pain so severe he could not stand up straight. A colonoscopy in June 2021 showed Stage IV colorectal cancer that had spread to his liver and several lymph nodes near his…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Joe’s Patient Story
Joe never had blood in his stool. His warning signs were fatigue, loss of appetite, feeling generally off, and then severe shoulder, back, stomach, and liver-area pain. Because he worked long hours in the restaurant industry, the fatigue was easy to explain…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Alyssa’s Patient Story
Alyssa Kelly was 38 and pregnant in early 2021 when abdominal discomfort, weight loss and a concerning ultrasound finding led to an MRI. The news came by phone: Stage IV colon cancer. The main tumor was the size of a softball and pressed on her uterus…
Read this storyStage III EGFR Lung Cancer: Roxanne’s Patient Story
Roxanne was 43, a single mother, and a special needs teacher when lung cancer was found almost by accident. She had gone to her gynecologist for abdominal pain that felt like an ovarian cyst. A CT scan did show a cyst, but it also caught part of her right…
Read this storyStage IV Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Natalie’s Patient Story
Natalie was diagnosed with Stage IV non-small cell lung cancer at 33. By the time her story reached the transplant stage, her cancer had progressed despite 2 clinical trials and 2 different chemotherapies. Her lung function had declined badly; she described…
Read this storyStage IV HER2-Positive Breast Cancer: Christina’s Patient Story
Christina spent months feeling that something was wrong. In January 2024, she felt as if she had a cold, with swelling around her neck and head. The problem worsened, and she repeatedly told her doctor she felt seriously ill. She later learned that the…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Mike’s Patient Story
Mike Ray was 39 when he faced colon cancer that had spread to his liver. He also learned he had Lynch syndrome, a hereditary condition that raises the risk of several cancers. Many centers could only offer palliative care because his cancer was metastatic and…
Read this storyStage IV EGFR Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Maggie’s Patient Story
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…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Sydney’s Patient Story
Sydney had years of constipation, bloating, and pain before anyone found the cause. She thought it might be IBS and tried diet changes, including gluten-free and dairy-free eating. Doctors repeatedly told her she was too young for colon cancer. In mid-2020…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Natasha’s Patient Story
Natasha McCants had her first screening colonoscopy in February 2023 at age 45 after a suspicious Cologuard test. The initial biopsy did not show cancer, but her gastroenterologist trusted what he had seen and sent her to surgery. Two months later, a…
Read this storyStage IV ALK Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Clara’s Patient Story
Clara was living with Stage IV lung cancer when a difficult stretch of treatment nearly made her stop. She had already completed 7 rounds of chemotherapy and 10 rounds of radiation. During the summer, she also received immunotherapy, and August scans brought…
Read this storyTriple-Negative Breast Cancer: Jacqueline’s Patient Story
Jacqueline Bennett first noticed a breast lump months before diagnosis, but several doctors dismissed it as mastitis. In June 2017, shortly after learning she was pregnant again, a new OB/GYN sent her for ultrasound and biopsy. The biopsy confirmed breast…
Read this storyStage IV ROS1 Lung Cancer: Phil’s Patient Story
Phil was an active 60-year-old looking toward retirement when a cough would not go away. At first, doctors treated it like a sinus infection or pneumonia. A CT scan was read as not cancer, and the start of COVID delayed further evaluation. After an 8-month…
Read this storyStage III Colorectal Cancer: John’s Survivor Story
John Murray was 51 when an at-home colorectal cancer screening test came back negative. Over the following years, he had bleeding and pain that he assumed were hemorrhoids. By February 2025, at age 56, he finally scheduled a colonoscopy. The test and…
Read this storyStage III HER2-Positive Breast Cancer: Caroline’s Patient Story
Caroline McNally was 30 when a lump under her arm and breast changed quickly enough to make her push for urgent evaluation. Within 3 days, the skin around the lump looked grey and bruised, and she knew it was more than something harmless. Her gynecologist…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Joe’s Patient Story
Joe Carr's diagnosis came quickly after several weeks of fatigue and loss of appetite. One night, severe stomach pain sent him to the emergency department. A CT scan showed that his liver was covered with lesions, leading to a colonoscopy and colon surgery to…
Read this storyStage IV Small Cell Lung Cancer: Jennifer’s Survivor Story
Jennifer Robertson was 46 when she was diagnosed with Stage IV small cell lung cancer in fall 2024. The diagnosis came after severe hip pain revealed a broken hip bone, and a bone marrow biopsy showed the fracture was caused by cancer. PET imaging found a…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Cora’s Patient Story
Cora was preparing to start private practice as a therapist when colorectal cancer changed her life. Before diagnosis, fatigue was the first major clue. She was sleeping instead of eating, losing weight unintentionally, and repeatedly being evaluated for…
Read this storyStage II Triple-Negative Breast Cancer: Chase’s Survivor Story
Chase Johnson was 36 when her dog, Cato, helped draw attention to a breast lump. In 2021, after Cato repeatedly acted anxious around her and pressed his snout against the side of her breast, Chase checked the area and found the lump that led to a Stage IIB…
Read this storyStage II Invasive Lobular Carcinoma: Tamra’s Patient Story
Tamra, a registered nurse and care coordinator in Cleveland, was diagnosed with Stage II invasive lobular breast cancer on September 24, 2024, after her yearly mammogram. She did not have the usual warning signs such as a lump, breast thickening, or dimpling…
Read this storyColorectal Cancer: Maria’s Patient Story
Maria was 27 when she shared a cancer history that began in infancy. She had Wilms tumor, a kidney cancer, at 15 months old. Her treatment included radiation under anesthesia, and feeding problems led to a G-tube that stayed in place for 12 years. She later…
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