Yup it's good news indeed.
MommyT and a bunch of other people that are rooting for me.
ashcon ,
Brighty ,
DaveNitsche ,
CentralAB ,
@WendyTea , Lianne_adminCCS and a pile of others that I know I missed.
MY LUNGS ARE THE CLEAREST THE ONCOLOGIST AS SEEN THEM SINCE WE STARTED THIS MESS TWO YEARS AGO. Still won't call it NED but scarring from radiation is healing. Potential spots are gone. Void is gone -- even the scar is gone. So I'm breaking out the shrimp and having a celebration feast. Next scan in 3 months. So I'm done with these folks till September. Summer to celebrate!
Now back to you
MommyT -- assuming it isn't brain mets and it doesn't sound like it, you are actually ahead of where I started. I was at 3B and after the PET scan jumped to 3C before I started treatment. Not because the cancer was spreading just that the PET scan found more of it. So I started with aggressive chemo/radiation with curative intent. And then went on one of the new immunotherapies -- durvalumab to bat cleanup and get anything that the chemo radiation didn't get. It didn't work for me but the genetic panel showed that the adenocarinoma was EGFR+ and that let me begin what is known as a TKI. That little baby makes the tumour visible to my immune system and my body cleans it up. So far so good. It won't work forever but there are so many new drugs in the pipe line that my hope is that by the time it stops working that there will be something else.
Yes The wait is excruciating once you know what is happening. But it takes time for the system to kick in and the good news is that NSCLC is not particularly fast growing. The complex calculations for the radiation treatment will take up to a day for the radiation oncologist to plan, they then have to be translated for the machine that will be used, targetting developed. There is lots and lots going on behind the scenes.
Don't stop advocating though. The engaged patient is the one that is listened to and treated well. Use the time to prepare for the side effects and the fatigue.
Stay in touch and any other questions I'm happy to help.
Angus