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Kristin Thought She Was Burned Out; It Was Stage 4 Ovarian Cancer
Kristin L., Ovarian Cancer (High-Grade Serous Carcinoma), Stage 4 (Metastatic) Symptoms: Fatigue, bloating, shortness of breath, increased frequency of urination, chest pains, bleeding for 30 days straight, steady pain on left side Treatments: Chemotherapy (paclitaxel, carboplatin, gemcitabine, doxorubicin), surgery (debulking surgery with HIPEC), monoclonal antibody (bevacizumab), clinical trial (mirvetuximab soravtansine and a PARP inhibitor)
Antibody-Drug Conjugates (ADCs), bevacizumab (Avastin), carboplatin, Chemotherapy, Clinical Trials, Debulking, doxorubicin (Adriamycin), gemcitabine (Gemzar), High-Grade Serous Ovarian Cancer, HIPEC (Hyperthermic Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy), Immunotherapy, Metastatic High-Grade Serous Ovarian Cancer, mirvetuximab soravtansine (Elahere), Monoclonal Antibody, Ovarian Cancer, paclitaxel (Abraxane, Taxol), PARP Inhibitor, Patient Stories, Surgery, Treatments -
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“I Have a Good Quality of Life for a Stage 4 Cancer Patient”: Summer Farmen’s ALK-Positive Lung Cancer Story
Summer Farmen, Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC), Stage 4 (Metastatic), ALK+ Symptoms: Persistent cough that was initially treated as pneumonia, collapsed right lung, pleural effusion Treatment: Targeted therapy
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JJ Was 27 and Thought He’d Beaten Colorectal Cancer. Six Weeks Later, He Learned It Had Spread.
JJ S., Colorectal Cancer, Stage 4 (Metastatic) Symptoms: Throbbing in the abdomen that he thought was a pulled muscle, indigestion, not wanting to eat, appearance of blood in stool, rapid and unexplained weight loss (four or five pounds a week), skin turning gray, sleeping 12 to 14 hours a night Treatments: Surgery (resection of tumor),…
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Diagnosed with Myxoid Liposarcoma After Doctors Called Her Lump a Lipoma
Kat G., Low-Grade Myxoid Liposarcoma Symptoms: Night sweats, appearance of a painless, golf ball-sized lump on inner right thigh Treatments: Radiation therapy including through a clinical trial, surgery (upcoming limb salvage surgery)
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A Routine Physical Found Craig’s Stage 4 Prostate Cancer Before Any Symptoms Showed
Craig N., Prostate Cancer, Stage 4 (Metastatic), Gleason 9 Symptoms: None; caught elevated PSA at routine physical Treatments: Surgery (robotic-assisted radical prostatectomy), chemotherapy (docetaxel), hormone therapies (leuprolide and enzalutamide), radiation therapy, targeted therapies (abiraterone with prednisone, lutetium Lu 177 vipivotide tetraxetan), clinical trial (antibody-drug conjugate), monoclonal antibody (denosumab) (planned)
abiraterone (Zytiga), Antibody-Drug Conjugates (ADCs), Chemotherapy, denosumab (Xgeva), docetaxel (Taxotere), enzalutamide (Xtandi), Hormone Therapies, leuprolide (Lupron), lutetium Lu 177 vipivotide tetraxetan (Pluvicto), Metastatic Prostate Cancer, Monoclonal Antibody, Patient Stories, prednisone, Prostate Cancer, Prostatectomy (radical), Radiation Therapy, Robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy (RALP), Steroid, Surgery, Targeted Therapy, Treatments -
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Meg’s Stage 4 Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma Story: I Said Yes to Bispecific Antibodies
Meg L., Follicular Lymphoma, Stage 4 Symptoms: Lower back pain, general feeling of unwellness Treatments: Clinical trial (bispecific antibody and immunotherapy)
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Stage 4 Pancreatic Cancer, Rare Mutations, and a Miracle: Barbara’s Story
Barbara C., Pancreatic Cancer (Adenosquamous Carcinoma), Stage 4 (Metastatic) Symptoms: Diminished energy levels, extreme back and abdominal pain Treatments: Chemotherapy (oxaliplatin, capecitabine), ablation therapy, monoclonal antibody (pembrolizumab)
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“I See This As a Chronic Disease, Not a Death Sentence”: Michelle’s HER2+ Stage 4 Breast Cancer Story
Michelle M., Breast Cancer, Stage 4 (Metastatic), HER2+ Symptoms: Bloody discharge from the nipple, appearance of a golf-ball-sized lump in the armpit Treatments: Chemotherapy (including through the HER2CLIMB clinical trial), surgeries (mastectomy, reconstruction, awake craniotomy), monoclonal antibody (trastuzumab), radiation therapy (Gamma Knife radiosurgery)
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“I’m Going to Beat This”: Rich’s Stage 4 Pancreatic Cancer Experience
Rich N., Pancreatic Cancer, Stage 4 (Metastatic) Symptoms: Week-long stomach pain and constipation Treatments: Chemotherapy (FOLFIRINOX), targeted radiation therapy
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Kelsey’s Stage 4 EGFR+ and ALK+ Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Story
Kelsey D., Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer, Stage 4 (Metastatic), EGFR exon 19 deletion, ALK+ Symptoms: Severe back pain, falling due to collapsed spinal vertebrae Treatments: Radiation therapy, targeted therapy (tyrosine kinase inhibitor, osimertinib), surgery (spinal fusion surgery), chemotherapy (through a clinical trial)
