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Anyone out there living with stage 4 lung cancer?

Lung Cancer | Last Active: 16 hours ago | Replies (146)
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@merpreb

Biomarker testing is a way to look for genes, proteins, and other substances (called biomarkers or tumor markers) that can provide information about cancer. Each person's cancer has a unique pattern of biomarkers. Some biomarkers affect how certain cancer treatments work.

The biomarkers you are tested for will depend on the stage of your non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Some common biomarkers you may hear about are ALK, BRAF, EGFR, HER2, KRAS, MET exon 14 skipping, NTRK, RET, and ROS1, or proteins such as PD-L1.1

Here is a great site to look at: https://www.lungevity.org/noonemissed

I don't have a science background so I can't explain this any more than what I have described. Each person's genetic makeup is different and so will your cancer be. Even if you have the biomarker and the same type of lung cancer you might be treated in a different way because your biomarker will be different. So it's important to be tested and give yourself the best chances you can for survival and wellness.

My cancer is unusual and so far my treatments haven't called for using my Braf marker and TP53. But at least it's in my record in case it's needed in the future. I still don't know how they have affected my cancer or what could be used in the future.

Does anyone else know what their marker (s) is and how it affects their cancer and treatment?

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Replies to "Biomarker testing is a way to look for genes, proteins, and other substances (called biomarkers or..."
sfwendie | @sfwendie | Nov 5, 2021

(Stage 4 Adenocarcinoma, papillary) The usual answer I get from my doctors is the "it depends." On so many variables that are still being discovered. I have a FOXA1 and a.familial POT that are not understood in lung cancer. For a while there I felt like an orphan: everybody else has a targeted gene; why not me?

The reality is that yes, we know more...but there's much more in the undiscovered country of our genomes. DNA may make us more vulnerable but you have to take your personal history into account, like your job or your food or where you're living. And...AND...your DNA may be perfect but you are still at risk. So I always return to the "get as healthy as you can for as long as you can." Talk to your nutritionist if your program has one. Cheers & good luck, Wendy

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