r/LungCancerSupport

Last year, I was here posting about my cancer diagnosis. Mine was NSCLC in my left upper lobe with pleural metastasis, which made me Stage 4.

I actually caught it relatively early because I had my yearly chest X-ray. However, because I was only in my 30s, everyone initially thought it was an infection. Fast-forward, and it turned out to be lung cancer with an EGFR exon 19 deletion mutation.

I underwent immunotherapy and radiation, and I’m now on Tagrisso (osimertinib). It’s been about 6 months since I achieved remission, but I’m still continuing Tagrisso.

My oncologist is now recommending that I have the remaining/residual nodule surgically removed. I’m trying to learn from others who have been in a similar situation.
Part of me is worried that if we remove the residual nodule and the cancer progresses again somewhere else afterward, then was the surgery really worth it? I’m also wondering whether removing it could potentially reduce the chance of future progression, or if it’s better to continue monitoring it while staying on Tagrisso.

Has anyone here with EGFR-mutated Stage 4 NSCLC had surgery or another form of local treatment for a residual nodule after responding well to Tagrisso?
I’d really appreciate hearing about your experiences, especially what your doctors recommended and how things turned out. Thank you! ❤️

Each month, Oncogene Cancer Research and the Young Lung Cancer Initiative come together to share Stories of Hope featuring people living long-term with Stage IV or extensive-stage lung cancer.
We know that what qualifies as “long-term survivorship” can look very different depending on the type of lung cancer, available treatments, mutations, and individual circumstances. Our goal is to show the many different ways people are living beyond the statistics.
We’re looking for people who may be interested in being featured in an upcoming post, or who may know someone we should reach out to.
Any age, any country, and any type of lung cancer is welcome. You just need to be living with or beyond a Stage IV or extensive-stage diagnosis. You do not have to have been Stage IV or extensive-stage at your initial diagnosis.
If you’re interested, we would ask for:
•    Your name
•    Lung cancer type
•    Mutation/biomarker, if applicable
•    Month and year of diagnosis
•    Country
•    A photo you’re comfortable having us share
•    A short quote of your choice about your experience, hope, survivorship, or anything you’d like others facing lung cancer to hear
We’ll always ask permission before anything is shared.
I’ve included an example of one of our previous Stories of Hope posts so you can see what the feature looks like.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DbTuj\_kEfDS/?igsh=MnM4bG5zYmI1NW9v

If this sounds like you, please comment, message me, or email bianca@ylci.org. And if you know a long-term survivor whose story could bring hope to others, please tag them or send this their way. 🤍

Thank you!!