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Woman Survives Stage IV Breast Cancer Recurrence to Brain, Gives Birth to Second Child
Diagnosed with Stage II breast cancer at 29, Maralee Lellio later faced terminal Stage IV disease that spread to her brain. After aggressive treatment including a PARP inhibitor matched to her BRCA-1 positive cancer, she achieved two years cancer-free, paused medication and conceived naturally. @CBSNews reported she gave birth in July 2024 and continues scans while scheduled for a hysterectomy.
May 10, 8:00 AM·2m read1 source
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Maralee Lellio was diagnosed with Stage II breast cancer at age 29. Her oncologist recommended chemotherapy and surgery. Lellio and her husband froze embryos before she began chemotherapy. She underwent a double mastectomy and was declared cancer-free in September 2019.
Once cancer-free, the couple started IVF with the goal of giving their firstborn daughter, then 2, a sibling. Headaches and dizziness began after she finished treatment. In summer 2020, an MRI revealed a very large brain tumor.
Lellio's initial breast cancer had recurred as Stage IV breast cancer that had spread to her brain. Only about 1 in 3 patients with Stage IV breast cancer survive more than five years, according to the National Breast Cancer Foundation. Stage IV breast cancer is considered incurable.
Lellio underwent a craniotomy, but the disease grew back larger than before. She transferred her care to the Cleveland Clinic and began receiving radiation. The radiation treatment caused seizures and left her unable to walk.
Lellio's Cleveland Clinic oncologist retired in spring 2021. Her care was transferred to Dr. Halle Moore. Lellio had her first meeting with Dr. Halle Moore in July 2021. Scans showed radiation had shrunk Lellio's brain tumor down to almost nothing.
Dr. Halle Moore put Lellio on a PARP inhibitor medication. Lellio's cancer was BRCA-1 positive. Lellio remained on the PARP inhibitor for two years. She remained free of any evidence of active cancer during that time, Dr.
