@tinae, welcome! You've found a good group.

I strongly relate to your story. I'm one of our family's genealogists, so I know we have no history of lung cancer or almost any kind of cancer at all. So, my wife of 6 months and I were shocked when I received my diagnosis in 2018. I was Stage 2b at the time. I had chemo (Carboplatin and Pemextered) and radiation.

Two years later, it metastasized to my brain. I had surgery to remove the cyst that was 3/4 the size of a golf ball and a few rounds of radiation. I have the EGFR Exon 19 mutation, so started Tagrisso in December 2020. I'm still taking an 80mg pill daily.

The FLAURA2 study last Fall showed that the combination of Tagrisso and platinum-based chemo like Carboplatin is even more effective than Tagrisso alone. At that time, it was only approved for Stage 3b and higher, but by now, it's been shown to be effective for earlier stages, as well.

Early on, I had diarrhea, and my fingernails would split very easily. The diarrhea faded away within a few months, and now I take 10mg of Biotin daily to strengthen my nails. I'm still working full-time as a NASA rocket scientist, walk between 3 and 5 miles a day, and am trying to exercise more to rebuild the muscles I lost in the first 2 years after the brain surgery. Since it's spring, I'm still putting in the vegetable garden and planting more flowers and trees around our property. Yah, most of the time I don't feel like I have cancer. My Nephrologist laughs every time I tell him I still plan to liver forever, or die trying.

Sounds like you have a great attitude, which is a big part of surviving and thriving! Let us know when you find out which type of EGFR mutation. I believe Tagrisso is only prescribed for 2 of them, but I'm still learning.