How Immunotherapy Saved Terry’s Life

Mere days before Christmas in 2014, Terry Weiss was diagnosed with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) after experiencing a cough that would not subside. After three years of chemotherapy treatment, her cancer began to grow again. It was then that her oncologist suggested Terry enroll in an immunotherapy clinical trial. 

“Except for my lungs, I was pretty healthy,” the greater-Philadelphia-area resident recalled. “The clinical trial was a combination of durvalumab (IMFINZI®) and tremelimumab-actl (IMJUDO®).” 

I am still here, that is the bottom line.

Terry Weiss, lung cancer survivor

After being stable on this treatment for five-and-a-half years, Terry stepped back from this regimen in July of 2023. However, she still monitors for cancer by getting scanned. In June of 2024, for the first time, her radiologist did not tell Terry the precise size of the cancer tumors. The radiologist merely said that they had stabilized. Terry has since gone back to living her normal life and continues to see her oncologist regularly but has not needed to engage in any further treatment. 

However, Terry’s cancer journey also had moments of frustration, including some advice that did not align with her outlook. 

“When I was diagnosed, people would say ‘Have a positive attitude,’ like you could just turn that on,” Terry said. “I am more of a realist, more analytical. It is something we just have to go through and tackle.” 

Terry has wondered why she has been so lucky after her successful treatment. Since ceasing immunotherapy treatment, her lung cancer has neither spread nor grown. Terry says if that were to change, she would then go back to her original oncologist at the University of Pennsylvania. At present, Terry said that she is overall in very good health. 

“I go to the gym all the time. I think my digestive system has gotten better,” Terry stated.

While her nurse practitioner told her that the fact she moves around a lot has been helpful, Terry’s initial oncologist gave her a more tangible reason: the combination of immunotherapy drugs had saved her life. CRI is grateful for Terry sharing her story about immunotherapy’s life-saving properties and its potential to create a world immune to cancer.