Tag Archive for: bone cancer

Confusion to Clarity: Expert Explains the Importance of NSCLC Mutations

Confusion to Clarity: Expert Explains the Importance of NSCLC Mutations from Patient Empowerment Network on Vimeo.

What are some key lung cancer concepts that patients can learn about? Dr. Lecia Sequist explains lung cancer versus metastatic lung cancer and additional terms that can be helpful for patients to educate themselves about for empowered care.

Dr. Sequist is program director of Cancer Early Detection & Diagnostics at Massachusetts General Hospital and also The Landry Family Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School.

[ACT]IVATION TIP:

“…you’re not alone. The terms are confusing. A lot of people get lost in the terminology, the medical terminology. Don’t be afraid to ask questions or go to a website that is recommended, that’s been vetted by doctors to really have good quality information to help you understand what these terms mean.”

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See More from [ACT]IVATED NSCLC

Related Resources:

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What Do Lung Cancer Patients Need to Know to Build a Treatment Plan

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What Patients Are Candidates for Immunotherapy in Lung Cancer Care

What Steps Can BIPOC Lung Cancer Patients Take to Guard Against Care Disparities

What Steps Can BIPOC Lung Cancer Patients Take to Guard Against Care Disparities


Transcript:

Lisa Hatfield: 

Dr. Sequist, we know that cancer isn’t just one disease. There are different types of cancer and even within one type of cancer, there are many different mutations that can occur within those cancer cells. Can you speak to some of those mutations with non-small cell lung cancer?

Dr. Lecia Sequist: 

Yeah. Cancer is really complicated, and it gets confusing, for both doctors and patients. We usually call a cancer by the organ that it started in.  So if the cancer starts in the lung, it’s usually called lung cancer. And it gets confusing because if the cancer spreads to another part of the body, it’s still considered lung cancer. So if someone started with a cancer in their lung, but it’s spread to their bones, the doctors would usually call it metastatic lung cancer that went to the bones as opposed to, I think a lot of people think of that as, now I have bone cancer. And so it can be very confusing. In addition to the broad type of cancer, like lung cancer, there are subtypes and then there are genetic subtypes. So there’s a lot of terms that get thrown out. And sometimes learning that you have cancer and learning about it, it’s almost like learning a foreign language. There’s so many terms that you have to first learn what the terms mean.

So I think my activation tip for this question would be, you’re not alone. The terms are confusing. A lot of people get lost in the terminology, the medical terminology. Don’t be afraid to ask questions or go to a website that is recommended, that’s been vetted by doctors to really have good quality information to help you understand what these terms mean. There’s also a lot of misinformation on the websites, that’s why you have to go to a site that maybe your doctor or your patient network recommends to make sure you’re getting accurate information. But the terms can be confusing. But it’s important to understand what you’ve been diagnosed with, so you can understand what your options are. 


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What Is Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL)?

What is Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL)? from Patient Empowerment Network on Vimeo.

CLL stands for chronic lymphocytic leukemia, but what is it exactly? Watch to learn how CLL develops and hear from CLL expert Dr. Jennifer Woyach and patient Adrian.

See More from START HERE CLL

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Transcript:

CLL is a blood cancer called chronic lymphocytic leukemia, which originates in the bone marrow of patients. Genetic mutations in the blood become leukemic, multiply into CLL cells, and bring on the condition of CLL. CLL is counted as the most common adult leukemia type among countries in the Western world. For the most part, CLL impacts older adults at an average diagnosis of age 70 with slightly more men impacted compared to women with CLL.

Dr. Jennifer Woyach:

“CLL is an interesting disease because it’s one of the only cancers that does not require a biopsy of something for a diagnosis. So, we can, actually, make the diagnosis of CLL based on the peripheral blood.”

Adrian (CLL Survivor): “It happened as a bit of a shock to me, actually. I’ve been quite healthy quite well earlier that week. I’d gone walking in the mountains in Switzerland, but I collapsed one day on the way home from work, and was diagnosed with pneumonia. And during that illness, they realized that my immune system wasn’t working too well, and then my lymphocyte count was high, and I was diagnosed with CLL. I was put on watch and wait, which for some people can last a decade or more, but for me, it only lasted 15 months.”

Sometimes referred to as a “good” cancer among cancer types, many CLL patients stay in an active surveillance period of “watch and wait” for several years.