Mum - 62 y/o - potential EFGR NSCL cancer with multiple brain metastases
I think we’re in quite an unusual situation. My mum has advanced melanoma, but has also had EFGR positive lung cancer (resected in 2023). As far as we knew, this was in remission and the melanoma was controlled (spreading locally in her leg but not elsewhere).
In March, she started experiencing extreme fatigue, and her condition deteriorated very fast. She was admitted to hospital where they found significant brain swelling and 12 lesions. She stabilised (on high dose steroids) and came home.
Her wonderful oncology team couldn’t determine conclusively whether they were melanoma or lung cancer metastases - so opted to treat for melanoma with immunotherapy. This meant reducing her steroid dose quickly, and she deteriorated very fast again after the first treatment.
She’s now at home on a palliative care basis. Her condition is not good - she can eat and drink, but has lost essentially all function. Her doctors agreed to prescribe osimertinib (Tagrisso) given the diagnostic uncertainty, and she’s now on day 2 of taking this.
We’re realistic about the situation, but would be really helpful to know if anyone has experience of tagrisso working with an advanced disease (assuming of course that this is the lung cancer). We just don’t know what to expect and whether we should be holding onto any hope :( any thoughts or experience very welcome.