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Tag: patient story

  • photo of Celeste Olinger standing with others for lung cancer advocacy

    Patient Spotlight: Celeste Olinger Denver, Colorado, USA

    We interviewed long-term ALK survivor, Celeste Olinger, about her somewhat unusual cancer journey, her life, and her new normal since her diagnosis that still keeps her grounded and allows her to thrive.

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  • Patient Spotlight: Creating families after cancer

    Interviews with ALK Positive Members: Receiving a stage IV lung cancer diagnosis comes with a lot of decisions. If you are in your reproductive years (like many of our ALK-positive patients) but haven’t started one yet, there is one more big decision to make. Do you opt to start a family regardless? And if so,…

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  • Living your best life with lung cancer, a personal story

    Taking Control of My Legacy By Erika Hlavacek On September 29, 2017, I was diagnosed with Stage IV ALK Positive NSCLC. I was a 42 year old mom, former airline pilot, with a 9 year old daughter and a 7 year old son. I was physically in the best shape of my life and a…

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  • Patient Spotlight: Courtney Bloodworth & Leslie Trahan

    EDITORS NOTE: Sadly, Courtney Bloodworth passed away on April 21, 2023. She was a young wife and mother of two little boys. Her impact on our ALK+ community lives on along with her cherished memory.    Andy Trahan passed away on June 19, 2020.  He was Leslie’s husband and the father of 3 children.  He and…

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  • Patient Spotlight: Kirk Smith, Athens, GA

    Patient and lung cancer advocate Kirk Smith from Athens, GA talks to us about living (and thriving) with stage 4 lung cancer. Read on for an interview packed full of positive messages and advice from a long-term survivor. Can you share a little about your journey with lung cancer? My late grandfather used to tell…

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  • Case Study: successful re-use of Brigatinib after Lorlatinib

    Case study: Successful re-use of Brigatinib after Lorlatinib The patient in this case study was diagnosed with ALK-positive lung cancer in 2005 and had disease progression on several occasions.  Chemotherapy and radiation were used to treat the first two local progressions to the brain and spinal cord.  In 2012, the patient was prescribed Crizotinib for…

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  • Care Partner Spotlight: Leslie Ardron

    Can you share a little about Vicky’s story and her path so far? Vicky was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer in July 2017 at the age of 30. It took approximately 18 months for her to be diagnosed. She had persistent cough and breathlessness that antibiotics and inhalers did nothing for. She also had…

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  • Patient Spotlight: Bill Schuette

    Can you share a little about your journey with lung cancer?    In 2007, at age 59, I found myself sitting in a hospital cubicle at Cleveland Clinic with my wife and three adult children who had traveled from across the country to support me. The doctor’s words: “Bill, you have adenocarcinoma non-small cell lung…

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  • Lessons Learned

    Cancer can rock your world at any age, especially if the one diagnosed is a spouse or close family member. While new targeted therapies have brought the hope of a good quality of life for a longer period of time with terminal cancer, the disease can take its toll on everyone involved. This article highlights…

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  • How to support a loved one diagnosed with cancer

    Few things in life are as devastating as a cancer diagnosis and many who are subjected to such a difficult experience go through a range of emotions as the things they could once do are slowly stripped away. Those responsible for caring for someone undergoing cancer treatment or palliative care for a terminal diagnosis need…

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  • Patient Spotlight: Jodi Garst Parker

    EDITORS NOTE: Sadly, Jodi Garst Parker passed away on May 8, 2021. She was a wife, mother, stepmother and grandmother.  Jodi was a nurse, and she used that knowledge to help others in our ALK + community    Can you tell us a few things about yourself? I’m Jodi Garst Parker, from Idaho Falls, Idaho. I’ve…

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  • Patient and Care Partner Spotlight: Living with hope

    Living with hope means different things to different people. Hope can come from any source and can take any form. Improved longevity and quality of life always seem to take center stage as sources of hope among our members, but so does spending precious time with family and loved ones. And then, there’s finding hope…

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