snigdha Posted October 24, 2018 Share Posted October 24, 2018 Hello, My mother is recently diagnosed with Stage IV Adenocarcinoma, Positive to EGFR Exon 19 deletion mutation test. She has a primary tumor in left lung, which metastasized to several locations including: spinal cord (three small lobes) , left arm (one) and left leg (one) and neck (one). Her oncologist prescribed Tagrisso - 80 mg, once a day. She has been on medication since 8 days. She is also a Type 2 diabetic patient, so she has Diabetes medication, pain medication and some calcium medication. Her oncologist said that she is a non-smoker, he anticipates that Tagrisso response will be good. If anyone is on Tagrisso, can you please let me know if she has to watch out for any specific side effects or if she has to follow any specific diet. We do not have any family history of Cancer, my mom is a very active person and she always is on a healthy diet. I do not understand how she has lung cancer or the associated mutation. Any information and prayers would be very helpful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steff Posted October 24, 2018 Share Posted October 24, 2018 Welcome, I am very sorry to hear about your mom's diagnosis. My mom has NSCLC adenocarcinoma too. She does not test positive for EGFR, but has a high level of PD-L1, so she is taking Keytruda (immunotherapy). I am not very familiar with EGFR or Tagrisso. What I do know is that EGFR mutation is commonly found in female non-smokers. So, your mom fits the bill, unfortunately. You don't have to be a smoker or former smoker or have it run in your family to get lung cancer. If you have lungs, you can get lung cancer. But, that doesn't make the diagnosis any easier. I have heard that lots of people respond well to the various targeted therapies available for EGFR mutation, Tagrisso included. Hopefully you will hear from some of the EGFR positive folks soon. A few years ago, a stage IV diagnosis was a death sentence. Today it doesn't have to be. That doesn't mean the road is an easy one, but many people are living full lives with advanced stage lung cancer, my mom included. Take Care, Steff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BridgetO Posted October 24, 2018 Share Posted October 24, 2018 Hi Snigdha and welcome. I'm sorry to hear about your mom's diagnosis. I'm not well-informed about Tagrisso and I don't have anything to add to what Steff said. I just wanted to sy hello and welcome/ Bridget O Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snigdha Posted October 26, 2018 Author Share Posted October 26, 2018 Dear Steff, Thank you for the information and positive attitude. Yes, all this came as a shock to our whole family, but yes we are staying positive and hoping for the best. We are gathering all the information we can about the treatment, including side effects. I wish your mom good health. This group is very resourceful and encouraging. Thank you folks. Regards, Snigdha Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snigdha Posted October 26, 2018 Author Share Posted October 26, 2018 Dear Bridget, Thank you. Nice to be here. Regards, Snigdha Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LexieCat Posted October 26, 2018 Share Posted October 26, 2018 Hi, and welcome. Sorry about your mom's illness, but hopefully she will respond well to the Tagrisso. As far as side effects or diet go, those would be good questions for the oncologist and the pharmacist. Hopefully her endocrinologist, or whoever is treating her for the diabetes, is in the loop, too, just in case there are concerns related to that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurel Posted October 26, 2018 Share Posted October 26, 2018 Sending soft hugs and prayers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snigdha Posted October 30, 2018 Author Share Posted October 30, 2018 Dear Lexie and Laurel, thank you for your response. Fortunately, my mom has pain relief after she started the medication. At this point, we are not sure if the pain relief is because of pain medication (over the counter meds prescribed by her oncologist) or because of Tagrisso. But we are thankful that she has some relief. As far as side effects go, she does not have many till date. It's been 14 days since she started on Tagrisso and her doctor will see her in one month to track progress. We hope everything goes well. Thank you again folks for your support. Regards, Snigdha Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurel Posted October 30, 2018 Share Posted October 30, 2018 Wonderful news! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lms23 Posted February 20, 2019 Share Posted February 20, 2019 Hello Snigdha, My father was diagnosed with lung cancer in July, 2012. He took Tarceva, then Iressa and then Tagrisso. He took Tagrisso for the last ten months. Unfortunately he passed away 2 weeks ago after being in hospital since December 23rd. From 2012 until the end of last year he has lived well, has travelled a lot and had no collateral damages. Tagrisso was really good for him. I'd like to tell you that during his hospital admission he had some heart issues. Doctors say this may be caused by Tagrisso. My father hasn't done heart exams after starting with Tagrisso. I don't know if the exams could have made him live more. Maybe would be good if you talk to a cardiologist. I'm sending you positive vibes, I hope your mom continues without pain. I think she will have many years of hapiness, as my father did. And you will have a lot of time to tell her how much you love her. Please contact me whenever you want. Best wishes! Lms Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.