Interview of Patient 4
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Diagnosis of Stage III cancer with nodal involvement
DR LOVE: The final patient I met with also received her treatment as part of a clinical research trial.
PATIENT 4: I went on the internet, so I pretty much knew what to expect. But they just explained to me that it was cancer. They said they got it all. They were going to have to send it to the lab to find out what stage.
But the nodule definitely was cancer. And then, when I went back a week later, they said that the lab report came back that it was Stage III. They found evidence in two lymph nodes. But they had removed the lymph nodes and the nodule and the upper left portion of my lung. So, they said I had cancer and they were pretty confident that they got all of it.
DR LOVE: And at what point did they bring up the possibility of your seeing a medical oncologist and receiving chemotherapy?
PATIENT 4: Immediately. At that visit, they told me, which I already knew. And they called it sort of like an insurance policy, even though it was no guarantee, of course, because it may come back. But I was referred to the thoracic oncologist, Dr Wakelee. And I saw her probably another week after that.
DR LOVE: What was your state of mind in this initial phase when you first found out about this?
PATIENT 4: Actually, having been told that I might be IIIB and finding out that I was IIIA, I was pretty happy. I was relieved that they got it all, because I thought I was just going to have chemo. And I was pretty happy. And I really had a lot of confidence in the physicians.
DR LOVE: Can you talk a little bit about the information you received when you met with Dr Wakelee?
PATIENT 4: Well, they told me that I would be getting – the chemo medicine
was cisplatin and then they asked me if I wanted to be in the clinical study, as well. And so they went over that. It was a very – I took that home with me and read it. It was about 30 pages.
