I have scanned the posts and decided to jump in and offer my support as well-for what it is worth.
As a care giver for my wife KAY (a stage 4 metastatic lung cancer patient) I can only confirm the positive comments from our friend Linda Wortman and others...GET TO MAYO FOR SOME HELP!
OUR HISTORY:
In 2013-2014, my wife, Kay went through a similar dead-end cycle with a pulmonologist, a gastroenterologist and eventually after 15 months of no answers, coupled with an unnecessary nissen fundoplocation surgey, we packed up her medical records and sent them along with a letter to Mayo Clinic in Rochester.
Fortunately, (after a diagnosis within only 48 hours) we found dr. Cassivi who in May, 2015 removed a non small cell adnacarcinoma and 2/3 of her right lung using the VATS procedure that Linda mentioned.
The process at Mayo took only two weeks from the time we sent in Kay’s medical records!
Since we are closer to Jacksonville, Mayo agreed to moving my wife’s care there where we still get our follow-on care.
Since we are six hours from Jacksonville, Mayo’s oncologist dr. Yanyan Lou (Hematology/Oncology) is partnering with our local oncologist in South Carolina where KAY gets her immunotherapy every three weeks. She has been a stage 4 metastatic lung cancer patient for nearly 3 years now.
We travel annually (or as needed) to Jacksonville for confirmation of Kay’s progress.
IN SUMMARY
We can’t say enough positive comments about our care at Mayo.
One other suggestion...if your dr. Does a biopsy...please ask your dr. If a genomics study of it is warranted. That was our ultimate salvation, since that test disclosed that Kay’s mutation is a HERR2 mutation commonly found in breast cancer patients. From that test, Mayo’s doctors determined the correct therapy for that mutation...which stabilized the growth.
Best of luck! If I can be of service just drop me a note...