By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2025-03-31 12:21:42 | Updated at 2025-04-02 02:43:52
1 day ago
A Utah grandmother given just six months to live after she was diagnosed with an aggressive lung cancer has confounded doctors by seemingly beating the disease.
Dukhi Hong, 84, was devastated when she was diagnosed with small cell lung cancer in 2019.
Medics told her the rare cancer had spread to her brain and her family braced themselves to say their goodbyes.
However, last week she defied all expectations to receive her 100th immunotherapy dose.
'It feels like a dream,' the Korea-born patient told News19 from the Salt Lake City hospital where she has been receiving treatment for the last six years.
The senior has further astounded doctors after her latest lung scan came back cancer-free.
'We certainly don't understand everything,' Dr. Stephan Kendall said, explaining that it could be the grandmother's immune system which has helped her respond so effectively to the drugs.
'I've never had a patient receive 100 doses of any kind of treatment, honestly.'
Utah grandmother Dukhi Hong (center), who was given just six months to live after she was diagnosed with an aggressive lung cancer, has confounded doctors by 'beating' the disease
While the outlook is promising, Hong is not completely in the clear year as small lung cell cancer can reoccur and is harder to treat second time around.
The scan also revealed some cancer in the brain, although at an early stage.
'She's doing really well,' Dr. Kendall said.
Hong was first diagnosed with cancer after she was hospitalized following a seizure.
'Our whole world crashed,' her daughter, Mitzi Maughan, told KTVX.
But Hong has always been a survivor, managing to make a whole new life for herself in the US after emigrating from Korea while seven months pregnant in 1965.
Seven years after her arrival, she became a single mom to her four children.
'It was tough, but somehow, I just lived on,' she explained. 'I didn't know how to speak English. I had just learned the ABCs.'
Her resilience has stood in her good stead for the tough fight against her cancer, which includes monthly immunotherapy treatments.
Hong, 84, was devastated when she was diagnosed with small cell lung cancer in 2019
She began an intensive course of immunotherapy administered every three to four weeks which has proven extremely effective
Her latest scans showed that there is no cancer in her lungs and only minimal cancer in her brain
While the sessions used to cause her family anxiety, they have learned to live with their new reality and now use it as an occasion to spend time with the beloved matriarch.
Her 100th dose was marked with a huge celebration featuring cake and balloons.
'She's our hero,' Maughan added.
Lung cancer kills more than 127,000 in the US each year, figures show.
Smoking is the most common cause of lung cancer, accounting for more than 70 percent of cases, according to health experts.
However, even people who have never smoked can also develop the disease, which mainly affects older people. More than four out of 10 people diagnosed are over 75.
There are two main forms of the disease — non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and small-cell lung cancer (SCLC).
The former accounts for eight in ten cases and is a less aggressive form of the disease.
Whereas the latter, small-cell lung cancer, is very aggressive and usually spreads faster. The survival rate tends to be lower for SCLC.
Hong arrived in the US while seven months pregnant in 1965 and set up a new life for herself
Lung cancer kills more than 127,000 in the US each year, figures show
The main warning signs of lung cancer can include having a persistent cough, such as one that doesn't go away after three weeks, or a long-standing cough which gets worse.
Breathlessness is another common sign, as well as recurrent or lingering chest infections.
Aches and pains when breathing or coughing, pain in your shoulder, or coughing up blood are also signs to watch out for.
