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World Lung Cancer Day is observed annually on Aug. 1 to raise awareness, promote early detection and support those affected by the world's leading cause of cancer-related death.

INTEGRIS Health is proud to share the inspiring story of an Oklahoma woman currently battling the disease with grace, determination and newfound hope.

The holidays are typically filled with chatter, laughter and bonding with family and friends. However, for 77-year-old Helen Cleary, her Thanksgiving in 2025 was filled with questions surrounding her health.

Cleary was a very active woman, volunteering in her church, tending to her gardens and delivering meals through Meals on Wheels. She never smoked, but she lived with people who smoked regularly. Throughout 2025, she noticed her breathing was becoming more labored while doing more menial tasks, like walking from her car to her church. Finally, on the Monday after Thanksgiving, she visited her primary care doctor in Midwest City, where she got the shocking news that she had lung cancer.

“I was never admitted to the hospital other than having my sons,” she remembers. “My family and I were shocked because I thought I was in pretty good health.”

Cleary was referred to INTEGRIS Health Cancer Institute, where she met Nathaniel Moulton, M.D., Clay Reed, M.D., and Tyler Gutschenritter, M.D. They officially diagnosed her with stage four lung cancer, which had unfortunately spread to her bones and her brain. Her specific mutation of lung cancer is known as an EGFR (epidermal growth factor receptor) mutation, one of the more common mutations seen in patients who have never smoked.

“Anyone with lungs can get lung cancer even if they lack a smoking history,” Reed says. “Fortunately, there have been significant advances in lung cancer care in recent years that dramatically improve outcomes for patients like Helen.”

At the beginning of her journey, Cleary had a drainage tube administered due to fluid building up in her lungs. On her fourth drainage treatment, she was hospitalized due to complications from her metastatic lung cancer. Her care team was able to give her an oral medication that targets her specific mutation for her lung cancer.

“Thankfully, with the ability to provide personalized cancer treatment for Helen, we were able to give a targeted therapy for her EGFR-mutated lung cancer that is not only much more effective against her lung cancer but is also significantly better tolerated than traditional chemotherapy,” Reed notes. “She improved so much that her lung drainage tube was no longer necessary and was removed. These treatments allow patients to live better, live longer and often return to doing the things in life that they want to do.”

During this time, she leaned on her sons, who drove her to appointments and would lend moral support as she navigated this new normal. Additionally, she credits her INTEGRIS Health care team for getting her back on her feet.

“I credit INTEGRIS Health for saving my life,” she says. “I’m just so thankful that I went to the hospital that day. I credit [my care team] with my recovery and being able to live a life that I can still enjoy.”

While Cleary isn’t quite cancer free, she is hopeful. Initially, she believed the diagnosis was a death sentence, but as she turned to her parish and her family, she began to gain a new perspective. Now, Cleary is taking life day-by-day, managing her cancer, following doctor’s orders and staying active, like attending the baby shower to celebrate her great-grandbaby who will arrive in September.

“Cancer is not a diagnosis of the end,” she shares. “I felt like that at first, but there’s still hope.”

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the U.S., according to the American Cancer Society. However, this number continues to drop as early detection and treatment methods advance. Talk to your primary care provider about whether a lung cancer screening is right for you. If you have any questions, contact our pulmonary navigators at 405-951-8531. A simple conversation today could make all the difference tomorrow.