From Dementia Care to Cancer Journey: Sophie's Story of Resilience

Sophie was diagnosed at just 24 with Stage IV lung cancer after experiencing unexplained symptoms

I'm Sophie, and I'm 28 years old. I adore animals and spending time with my gorgeous cats and naughty dog. I used to work with people living with dementia, putting on activities like dances which were so much fun and it was really moving and rewarding work.

When I received my diagnosis in July 2021, it was Stage IV EGFR+ lung cancer. I was feeling fine at the time, working and doing things as normal. I just had a crackle in my chest when I would lie down at night, so I went to the GP about that and had an X-ray. I could overhear them saying "Oh she's got lung collapse" and I thought "Well they can't be talking about me, that can't be possible." You know, I'm walking, talking, I felt fine. It took another couple of months for them to do tests and figure out what was going on. I was told it could be tuberculosis or they were testing for autoimmune diseases. I didn't hear the word cancer until the day of the diagnosis.

I'm so glad I found the EGFR group because I found a community of people who were thinking the same thing I was - that I wanted to look past the prognosis, past the statistics that you see for lung cancer, and just to live my life even with it. A friend made me aware of the Finch app which helps me everyday with breathing exercises and noting down a daily joy.

"I'm really lucky because my gran taught me when I was just little how to knit and how to garden, and those things bring me so much joy and help my anxiety and keep me out of mischief."