Understanding Lung Cancer
- Actress Kate Micucci, a lung cancer survivor, kicked off 2026 skiing in Idaho with her husband, sharing joyful moments on Instagram.
- Micucci previously battle early-stage lung cancer, which was discovered unexpectedly, as she has never smoked, and she underwent surgery soon after. She continues to embrace life, showcasing her art and enjoying simple pleasures like drawing for others.
- Treating lung cancer depends on the cancer’s location and how advanced it is. Treatment options include surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, targeted therapy, or a combination of any of these treatments.
- You can find more survivor stories in SurvivorNetTV’s Music and Art: Reflecting On Your Journey, an episode from our original series SN & You that shares cancer survivors’ stories about the importance of music and art during their cancer journey.
- Check out SurvivorNet’s overview on lung cancer HERE.
Micucci, 44, took to Instagram this week to share a recap of sweet moments from her time on the slopes at Brundage Mountain Ski Resort, high in the mountains of central Idaho near McCall, which she describes as a “gem” of a place.
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Relaxing music—a mix from Eben Vogel’s song Snow Falling—accompanied the video clips, showing Micucci gliding effortlessly through the trails, equipped with giggles, smiles, and a clear appreciation of the surrounding beauty.
Fans praised Micucci’s post as” fun, freeing and peaceful,” while wishing her a wonderful 2026.
Micucci also recapped her mountain getaway wearing a colorful blue sweater showing two characters snowboarding and skiing.
“This sweater I drew is perfect for the occasion!” she captioned the post, showing her standing in the snow by a lake.
“That’s the sweater that gives all season!” one of her fans commented. Another wrote, “You are the cutest person ever.”
A third fan chimed in, “OMGsh the stuff you do is amazing and beautiful.”
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We’re so happy to see Micucci embracing her artistry and finding joy in every aspect of her life—especially after battling lung cancer, a disease she caught in its early stages and treated it quickly. The diagnosis came as a complete surprise since the actress had never smoked. While smoking is the leading cause of the disease, lung cancer can still develop in people who have never used tobacco.
The resilient comedian even shared a quiet video of herself offering one of her drawings for a piano player at Bistro 45, a restaurant in McCall, Idaho.
“I did a quick sketch of this wonderful piano player. Thanks to Jamie who played great standards while we ate at @bistro.45mccall. You made our meal extra fun!” Micucci said of the footage.
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Kate Micucci’s Lung Cancer Journey
In December 2023, Micucci shared on TikTok that she had been diagnosed with lung cancer, even though she has never smoked—a primary risk factor for the disease.
“I’ve never smoked a cigarette in my life, so it was a surprise,” Micucci said in the video clip.
@katiemicucci Very surreal to wake up and find Good Morning America had done a story on my lung cancer diagnosis. I had surgery last week. Thanks to early detection and incredible doctors, I am now cancer free! Thank you Will Reeves and GMA for raising lung cancer awareness. #lungcancer #solucky #earlydetection #goodmorningamerica #lungcancerawareness
She expresses gratitude that her cancer was discovered early, a fortunate outcome since lung cancer’s mild symptoms often make early detection, which is when treatment is most effective, very challenging.
Micucci underwent surgery for treatment the same month she revealed her diagnosis.
More Resources On Lung Cancer
- Lung Cancer in Smokers vs. Non-Smokers
- 87% of Eligible People Skipped Lung Cancer Screening, Analysis Finds; Knowing the Importance of Lung Cancer Screenings
- Combining Therapies What Does It Mean For Lung Cancer Patients?
- A New Development in the Fight Against Lung Cancer: Explaining the Liquid Biopsy
- Can You Get Lung Cancer From Your Basement? Non-Smoking Woman’s Stage Four Lung Cancer Caused By Radon, An Invisible Gas
- Coffee & Lung Cancer? A New Respectable Study Finds Some Association, Don’t Stop the Starbucks Just Yet
@katiemicucci An update on what I’ve been up to. 🫁 #sicktok #hospital #imokay #solucky #sendinglove
Understanding Lung Cancer & Advancements In Treatment
Lung cancer forms when cancer cells develop in the tissues of the lung. It is the second most common form of cancer and the leading cause of cancer deaths in both men and women in the U.S., SurvivorNet experts say. It’s “completely asymptomatic,” thoracic surgeon-in-chief at Temple University Health System Dr. Joseph Friedberg told SurvivorNet in an earlier interview.
“It causes no issues until it has spread somewhere. So, if it spreads to the bones, it may cause pain. If it spreads to the brain, it may cause something not subtle, like a seizure,” Dr. Friedberg explains.
WATCH: Detecting lung cancer in the absence of symptoms.
Scans such as X-rays can help doctors determine if a shadow appears, which can prompt further testing for lung cancer.
Lung cancer often doesn’t cause symptoms until it has already spread outside the lungs, according to SurvivorNet’s experts.
Some people with lung cancer may experience symptoms such as:
- A cough that doesn’t go away, that gets worse, or that brings up bloody phlegm
- Shortness of breath
- Fatigue
- Chest pain
- Hoarse voice
- Appetite loss
- Weight loss
If you are experiencing these kinds of symptoms consistently, contact your doctor for further tests.
Diagnosing lung cancer and determining treatment
As for treatment, surgery is not the only way to treat this disease. When it comes to lung cancer, it can be particularly tricky to treat because symptoms tend to show once the cancer has reached later stages and metastasized or spread to other organs.
There are two main types of lung cancer, which doctors group together based on how they act and how they’re treated:
- Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is the most common type and makes up about 85% of cases.
- Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is less common, but it tends to grow faster than NSCLC and is treated very differently.
Smoking is the main risk factor for lung cancer although non-smokers, like Stossel, can still get the disease. Medical oncologist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Dr. Ronald Natale explains to SurvivorNet that oral medicines are available to help lung cancer patients who don’t smoke.
“Among patients who are nonsmokers, or former very light smokers, we identify a mutation that we can target with pills in about 60% to 70% of them,” Dr. Natale said.
WATCH: Lung Cancer in Smokers vs. Non-Smokers
Treatment options for lung cancer depend on the type of lung cancer you’re diagnosed with. Surgery has been the go-to treatment for early-stage lung cancer. Surgery is sometimes combined with chemotherapy before or after surgery. However, immunotherapy and targeted therapy are becoming more important players when it comes to lung cancer treatment.
RELATED: Understanding How Immunotherapy Works
Immunotherapy uses your own immune system to recognize and target cancer cells. Doctors can use internal mechanisms like the body’s proteins, white blood cells, tissues, and organs, or external mechanisms by synthesizing molecules in the lab.
“Using a patient’s own immune cells is a very complex way to treat a cancer,” says Dr. Steven Rosenberg, Chief of Surgery at the National Cancer Institute and a pioneer in immunotherapy research and treatment.
Generally, targeted and immunotherapies can include one of the following forms:
- Small molecules: These can enter cells effortlessly, so they are utilized for intracellular targeting.
- Monoclonal antibodies: These are proteins synthesized in the lab. Some of these monoclonal antibodies are made to mark cancer cells to be recognized by the immune system and destroyed, others can stop cancer cells from growing or cause them to self-destruct. These antibodies can also be loaded with toxic drugs to directly project them into cancer cells. This last form is called an antibody-drug conjugate and there have been many new advancements with this type of therapy.
When using immunotherapy for early-stage lung cancer checkpoint inhibitors are usually part of the treatment.
The treatment works like this:
- Checkpoints are proteins on the surface of T-cells, a type of immune cell. T-cells attack harmful substances such as bacteria, viruses, and cancer cells. PD-1 is an example of a checkpoint.
- Lung cancer cells have their own protein, PD-L1, that activates PD-1 and tells the T cell to ignore them. You can think of PD-L1 as a cloak that hides the cancer cell from the immune system.
- The interaction between PD-1 and PD-L1 is like a switch that shuts off the immune response.
- Immunotherapy drugs called PD-1 and PD-L1 inhibitors flip the switch. They block these proteins to switch the immune response back on so that your immune system can kill the cancer cells.
RELATED: What Is PD-L1 Testing In Lung Cancer And Why Does It Matter?
PD-1, referred to as programmed cell death 1, is a protein that is found on the outer surface of cells in your immune system. PD-L1, referred to as programmed cell death ligand, is on the outer layer of some normal blood cells, as well as some cancer cells. When PD-1 binds to PD-L1, this puts the brakes on the immune system and can prevent immune cells from attacking and killing cells. Normally, this acts as a braking mechanism to prevent our immune systems from becoming overactive and going somewhat haywire by attacking our normal cells. Cancer cells can take over or override this innate mechanism, preventing cancer cells from dying.
Meanwhile, several immunotherapy drugs have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) over the last few years to improve the prognosis for patients.
- Nivolumab (brand name Opdivo) can be combined with chemotherapy to shrink the cancer before surgery.
- Atezolizumab (brand name Tecentriq) may be used after surgery and with chemotherapy to destroy any cancer cells left behind.
- Pembrolizumab (Keytruda) or cemiplimab (brand name Libtayo) might be the first treatment you get if you aren’t a good candidate for surgery, radiation, or chemotherapy, or if the cancer has spread.
- Durvalumab (brand name Imfinzi) can control the cancer’s growth after you’ve had chemotherapy plus radiation.
When using targeted therapy drugs, they work by identifying specific markers on tumor cells. These markers allow doctors to target specific cancers with drugs or other treatments designed to attack them. Targeted therapy can also minimize side effects, increase efficacy, and improve survival rates.
Currently, researchers have successfully produced many non-small cell lung cancer-targeted drugs that are specific for changes in genes and proteins found within cancer cells. They include drugs that target:
- Blood vessel growth (also known as the angiogenesis process)
- KRAS gene mutations
- EGFR mutations
- ALK gene mutations
- ROS1 gene mutations
- BRAF gene mutations
One example of a targeted therapy drug designed to target the EGFR mutation is osimertinib (brand name Tagrisso). This drug has been approved for early-stage NSCLC with EGFR mutations, and a new study revealed how well it can help patients.
The study from lead author Roy Herbst, deputy director and chief of medical oncology at Yale Cancer Center and Smilow Cancer Hospital, showed that the risk of death was cut in half for patients with non-small cell lung cancer that can be removed with surgery and have the EGFR mutation.
This new data shows that Tagrisso can help extend and improve the lives of patients living with the disease. Although lung cancer tends to return after being treated, these new treatment options give hope to patients fighting to keep the cancer at bay.
Contributing: SurvivorNet Staff
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