Latest news with #ReynaSavage
Newsweek
24-05-2025
- Health
- Newsweek
It All Started With Shoulder Pain, Then Came My Shocking Diagnosis
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. It started with a dull ache in my right shoulder. At first, I chalked it up to bad posture or sleeping funny. Then came a strange popping sound when I rotated it. Within weeks, the pain crept into my shoulder blade and neck, persistent and disruptive—especially at night. After a few months later in October 2023, with no relief and worsening sleep, I visited a chiropractor. That is when the well-meaning theories began. "It's probably stress." "Sounds like a rotator cuff issue." "It's likely nothing serious." But, deep down, I knew something was wrong. My instincts were screaming. Two screenshots from the viral video showing Reyna Savage in hospital making a "peace sign." Two screenshots from the viral video showing Reyna Savage in hospital making a "peace sign." Instagram/@savagelatinalungs Still, the path to answers was long and winding. My chiropractor eventually referred me to an orthopedic doctor. X-rays showed nothing abnormal, so I was sent to physical therapy. But, instead of improving, the pain intensified—spreading into my mid-back and becoming unbearable at night. I finally insisted on seeing a neurologist. I remember telling him: "Something is really wrong." He agreed to order both an X-ray and an MRI. That MRI changed everything. There it was—a mass in my right lung. Two X-rays showing the mass on Savage's right lung. Two X-rays showing the mass on Savage's right lung. Instagram/@savagelatinalungs A chest CT followed. I held my breath through every scan, clinging to hope. But the results confirmed our fears: the mass was consistent with lung cancer. A biopsy soon after revealed the full picture—Stage IV non-small cell lung cancer, the second-most common form in America, already spread to my bones, adrenal gland, and lymph nodes from neck to abdomen. I'll never forget the words: "You have incurable Stage IV cancer. We can't cure it—only try to manage symptoms and slow the spread." The diagnosis shattered my world—but it also lit a fire in me to fight for my life and my family. All I could think about was my children, Dominic, then 6, and Olivia, 4, growing up without their mom; my husband, Marco, then 37, facing this alone. I was devastated—but I also knew I had to fight. Treatment was grueling. My cancer had invaded my bones, causing excruciating pain. My right lung was 50 percent filled with fluid. I underwent a pleurodesis to drain it—a painful procedure with a slow, difficult recovery. Surgery was off the table—the cancer had spread too far. But genetic testing revealed I had a protein located on the surface of cells that helps them grow called epidermal growth factor receptor mutation. This meant I could start targeted therapy—a daily pill that homes in on cancer cells called Osimertinib. Within weeks, the transformation was astounding. After six to eight weeks, scans showed remarkable improvement. I was cleared to start chemotherapy. It wasn't easy. My blood counts plummeted. There were setbacks. But just before my final round, a PET scan delivered the miracle I'd been praying for: I was cancer-free. I'll never forget ringing the bell. I didn't know at first that it symbolized the end of treatment. In my mind, it meant something bigger—health, wholeness, life. Every night before bed, I visualized myself at that bell, my husband and children beside me, clapping and cheering. That moment came true on December 27, 2024. Today, I feel stronger than ever—physically and emotionally. I listen to my body, I rest, and I protect my peace. I've learned the power of boundaries and the importance of prioritizing my health. Emotionally, I'm the happiest I've ever been. Every day feels like a gift. I'm not just surviving—I'm thriving. I've found purpose in sharing my story on Instagram @savagelatinalungs, in lifting others who are walking a similar path. Cancer changed everything. But it also gave me clarity, strength, and a voice I didn't know I had. Reyna Savage is a 35-year-old director in Project Management, who lives in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Daily Mail
14-05-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
Super fit non-smoker, 34, hit with incurable lung cancer...the only sign was a 'gym injury'
A fit and healthy mother of-two has revealed the early sign of lung cancer that put down to an exercise injury — 'aching' pain in her shoulder. Despite never smoking, Reyna Savage, from Michigan, was diagnosed with incurable cancer that had spread to her lymph nodes, kidneys and bones in April last year, aged just 34. Less than 10 per cent of those diagnosed at stage four of the disease live for longer than five years, studies suggest. But she never suspected lung problems when hit with the initial symptoms, which included 'no real shortness of breath'. In a video shared to her Instagram page she said: 'People often ask what type of pain do I feel before I was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer as a healthy non-smoker 34. 'It started out as shoulder pain, just felt like I had done something wrong, it was just this achy feeling and then it started to spread towards my neck.' The pain slowly began to change, including a 'popping sensation every time I rotated my shoulder'. 'It then moved to the centre of my back and then wrapped went all the way to the very centre of my chest. Lung cancer kills some 35,000 Brits each year, about four every hour. However, rates of the disease have declined some 9 per cent since 90s across the population as a whole 'Lastly, I was unable to sleep on my right side, it was completely unbearable. I could not for anything lay on my right side.' At the time, she didn't believe she was suffering from noticeable shortness of breath. However, looking back, she said there was a subtle change in her breathing. 'It felt like my body was gasping for air—just for a split second,' said Ms Savage, who has the non small cell type of the disease. 'I was in a lot of shoulder and back pain so I put it down to me not taking deep enough breaths. 'But I was not panting.' Ms Savage has since undergone intensive treatment including chemotherapy and other anti-cancer medications. According to scans taken in November last year, her cancer is undetectable. Experts have recently reported an alarming rise in non-smoking lung cancer. Earlier this year a landmark global study revealed that patients who have never smoked now account for a greater number of lung cancer cases than those with a history of smoking. The researchers found that non-smokers were likely to develop non-small cell lung cancer, like Ms Savage. The group of international scientists found the most dominant form of the disease is now adenocarcinoma — a type of non-small cell lung cancer that forms in the lining of the organs and is most commonly found in non-smokers. The experts behind the research, from China and France, believe increasing exposure to air pollution could be responsible. They estimated that around a third of the 600,000 adenocarcinoma cases diagnosed each year globally could be attributed to air pollution. The experts also noted that as per 2019 reports, 99 per cent of the global population live in areas where air quality doesn't meet World Health Organisation (WHO) standards. The researchers also found that non-smoking lung cancer was also more common in women. Non-small-cell lung cancer is the most common form, accounting for more than 87 per cent of cases. It can be one of three types: squamous cell carcinoma, adenocarcinoma or large-cell carcinoma. Small cell lung cancers, which start in specialised cells in the airways, mostly affect smokers, and spread quickly. Lung cancer is the third most common cancer in the UK with around 48,500 people diagnosed every year. Symptoms include a persistent cough, chest infections and aches in the chest or shoulder. About 70 per cent of cases are caused by smoking, while other risk factors can include exposure to radon gas, certain chemicals and a family history of lung cancer. Although lung cancer is rare in young people younger than 40, overall there are around 2,300 new cancer cases in young people in the UK every year, according to Cancer Research UK.
