Stage 4 Lung Cancer Survivor Story: Keytruda, Chemo, and Faith

In October of 2018, I was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer. I had a 9 x 6 x 4 mm tumor in my upper right lobe, a seed in all my lymph nodes in my chest, 1 at the base of my spine, 1 in a muscle in my left thigh, and 1.5 on my liver.

By the grace of God, my mutation was PDL-1, and I was a candidate for Keytruda.

Initial treatment and response

My first treatment was in November 2018. Keytruda was shrinking the cancer in my lung and cleared all the seeds from the rest of my body.

In August 2019, a CT scan showed the cancer had metastasized into 2 lymph nodes in my right underarm and my left groin. At the same time, a new type of cancer showed up in my left breast.

On October 21, 2019, I had a lumpectomy and also 12 lymph nodes removed from my right armpit.

My treatments with Keytruda lasted 19 months, and then I was switched to chemo drugs because the cancer mutated into something that did not respond to Keytruda.

Radiation and remission

The last treatment I had was in November 2022, 4 years after my first treatment. The tumor was down to 1.2 cm and they gave me a 90-95% chance of radiation taking it out, so in early January 2023, I had 5 radiation treatments. Then in April 2023, the CT scan showed that God blessed me with a miracle, leaving me cancer-free.

Looking ahead: scans and outlook

I'm scheduled for a CT scan on November 10, 2025. I do get a bit anxious about a week before scans, but a few years back I stopped going online to read the scan results because I didn't understand them anyway. :-) For some reason, they always scheduled a scan on a Friday morning and an appointment with my oncologist on the following Monday morning. This time, my scan is on a Monday, and my appointment with my oncologist is the following day.

I always tell others who are diagnosed with cancer to maintain a positive attitude, stay strong, keep your faith, and ask God for help.