In 2016, Jeff Carpenter learned that he had both lung cancer and a brain tumor. Ten days later, doctors successfully removed his brain tumor, but told Jeff that because of his lung cancer he likely only had three to six months to live.
Jeff’s oncologist Dr. Ravi Salgia of City of Hope, gave Jeff the news that his latest PET scan showed no evidence of lung cancer in January 2019. Recently, Jeff and Dr. Salgia reflected on the journey they went through together—from their first meeting in Jeff’s hospital room after his brain surgery to the day he learned he is cancer-free.
“We hold hands to go through this journey together and you truly represent that miracle,” Dr. Salgia said. Their story is part of Every Patient Counts, Every Story Matters – an Amgen sponsorship with the non-profit organization StoryCorps to raise awareness about different types of cancer through the sharing of personal stories.
StoryCorps’ mission is to preserve and share humanity’s stories in order to build connections between people and create a more just and compassionate world. With permission, the conversations that StoryCorps facilitates and record are archived at the Library of Congress.
Amgen and StoryCorps have worked together for more than five years to bring together patients, caregivers, nurses, doctors, and others affected by cancer to reflect on their most poignant moments. Jeff and Dr. Salgia’s story is one of several recorded with City of Hope earlier this year.
November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month—a time when sharing and listening to inspirational stories can help support those in the lung cancer community and raise awareness about the impact of this disease.
Listen to an excerpt of the conversation between Jeff and his doctor below.
To hear more stories, visit Amgen’s Every Patient Counts, Every Story Matters playlist on YouTube and follow Amgen Oncology’s Twitter and LinkedIn channels to stay up to date on our latest.
