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Mass found Suspected Stage 4 Esophageal Cancer squamous cell

Posted by tbkomparda @tbkomparda, Jan 17 5:21pm

Hello,
My Husband had a colonoscopy/endoscopy yesterday a mass the suspects esophageal cancer while we await biopsy results we have been referred to a medical oncologist who specializes in this type tomorrow his symptoms over the last 5 months have been anemia, weight loss and most recently a lot of belching he can swallow fine our hospital is NW Chicago who has a proton center as an Ovarian Cancer Survivor myself I a bit familiar with chemo but not with this type as I’m very scared would appreciate any info on treatment protocol and survivor stories thank you!

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Moderator
Colleen Young, Connect Director | @colleenyoung | Feb 3 2:43pm
In reply to @tbkomparda "Hello Don If I may ask were you put on a feeding tube when initially diagnosed..." + (show)
@tbkomparda

Hello Don
If I may ask were you put on a feeding tube when initially diagnosed due to swallowing difficulties my Husband presently can swallow eat fine but has discomfort in mid abdomen and excruciating we’re going thru NW Chicago an accredited cancer center we had the CT Scan over the weekend mass is 2.5 cm it’s been a whirlwind of tests pet scan in a couple of days, next week endoscopy with CT to stage in process of setting up radiology consult and oncology surgeon consult. Was the radiology tough? So glad you’re in remission with stage 4 gives us hope. Thank you Tammy

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Hi Tammy, I'm tagging @dsh33782 to make sure he sees your question about whether he was on a feeding tube or not as well as his experience with radiation.

How did the endoscopy go? Have you had the consults with radiology and oncology? What are next steps for you guys?

REPLY
Moderator
Colleen Young, Connect Director | @colleenyoung | Feb 3 2:45pm
In reply to @mlyles "Don, thank you for your reply. I am scheduled for an appointment today to go over..." + (show)
@mlyles

Don, thank you for your reply. I am scheduled for an appointment today to go over the biopsy results. I am encouraged by your results and ready to move forward on this thing. I’m in NW Oklahoma/SW Kansas and there are no large hospitals near. There are oncologists from Wichita that travel out here a few days a week so I’m not even sure yet where I’ll receive treatment. I’ve had some family and friends encourage me to try to get into MD Anderson in Houston. I’m 58 and in good health (except for the obvious as far as I know) so I hope all options will be available.

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@mlyles, I wonder if Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN might be an option for you. If you'd like to seek a second opinion from Mayo esophageal cancer experts, here's where to request a consult http://mayocl.in/1mtmR63

What did you learn from the biopsy? How are you doing?

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Mentor
Don Higgins, Volunteer Mentor | @dsh33782 | Feb 3 4:57pm
In reply to @tbkomparda "Hello Don If I may ask were you put on a feeding tube when initially diagnosed..." + (show)
@tbkomparda

Hello Don
If I may ask were you put on a feeding tube when initially diagnosed due to swallowing difficulties my Husband presently can swallow eat fine but has discomfort in mid abdomen and excruciating we’re going thru NW Chicago an accredited cancer center we had the CT Scan over the weekend mass is 2.5 cm it’s been a whirlwind of tests pet scan in a couple of days, next week endoscopy with CT to stage in process of setting up radiology consult and oncology surgeon consult. Was the radiology tough? So glad you’re in remission with stage 4 gives us hope. Thank you Tammy

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Hi Tammy
I got the feeding tube along with port very soon after esophageal caner diagnosis as I could not swallow food. I was on ISOSOURCE canisters for nurshment for several months during radiation and chemo which successfully removed the cancer tumor. The radiation and chemo made me very tired all the time and I also was caughing a lot. I am
feeling much better now. Let me know if I can answer other questions.
Don

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1 reply
rschreib | @rschreib | Feb 3 5:29pm

I have recently been diagnosed with gastroesophageal cancer. My symptoms came out of nowhere. Last Sunday night I began vomiting blood after dinner. My husband and I went to the ER at which point I was intubated. The doctors did an endoscopic ultrasound, found a mass in the area between my esophagus and stomach, which they biopsied. When I was in the hospital, I also had a CT scan and PET scan. By Thursday I received the pathology report indicating that I have gastroesophageal cancer. I met with oncologists who told me that my liver will need to be biopsied, as an area lit up on the PET scan. Once we have the results, we will have a better sense as to whether this cancer is localized or has metastasized, which will enable my oncologist to determine staging and a treatment plan. We will find out more when we meet with her on Feb. 14. (A quick side note – I am not the usual candidate for this kind of cancer, but since both my father and aunt had pancreatic cancer, it's likely related in some way to my genetic makeup. However, nothing came up with my previous genetic tests.) I will be asking questions to members of this support group as I find out more about my treatment plan. Many thanks in advance.

REPLY
2 replies
tbkomparda | @tbkomparda | Feb 6 8:06pm
In reply to @dsh33782 "Hi Tammy I got the feeding tube along with port very soon after esophageal caner diagnosis..." + (show)
@dsh33782

Hi Tammy
I got the feeding tube along with port very soon after esophageal caner diagnosis as I could not swallow food. I was on ISOSOURCE canisters for nurshment for several months during radiation and chemo which successfully removed the cancer tumor. The radiation and chemo made me very tired all the time and I also was caughing a lot. I am
feeling much better now. Let me know if I can answer other questions.
Don

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Hi Don
Thank you for your post regarding the feeding tube. What did your chemo/radiation schedule consist of how many days of each? In addition to the fatigue and coughing were you nauseous? We’re you able to be ambulatory on some days?

REPLY
1 reply
Mentor
Don Higgins, Volunteer Mentor | @dsh33782 | Feb 6 9:18pm
In reply to @tbkomparda "Hi Don Thank you for your post regarding the feeding tube. What did your chemo/radiation schedule..." + (show)
@tbkomparda

Hi Don
Thank you for your post regarding the feeding tube. What did your chemo/radiation schedule consist of how many days of each? In addition to the fatigue and coughing were you nauseous? We’re you able to be ambulatory on some days?

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Tammy
I had chemo for 3 weeks before starting both chemo and radiation for 28 days spread over 5 days per week. I received mediation which prevented nausea. I was able to walk the whole time but was very tired all the time. Let me know if I can answer more questions.
Don

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gooddaughter | @gooddaughter | Feb 7 1:00pm
In reply to @rschreib "I have recently been diagnosed with gastroesophageal cancer. My symptoms came out of nowhere. Last Sunday..." + (show)
@rschreib

I have recently been diagnosed with gastroesophageal cancer. My symptoms came out of nowhere. Last Sunday night I began vomiting blood after dinner. My husband and I went to the ER at which point I was intubated. The doctors did an endoscopic ultrasound, found a mass in the area between my esophagus and stomach, which they biopsied. When I was in the hospital, I also had a CT scan and PET scan. By Thursday I received the pathology report indicating that I have gastroesophageal cancer. I met with oncologists who told me that my liver will need to be biopsied, as an area lit up on the PET scan. Once we have the results, we will have a better sense as to whether this cancer is localized or has metastasized, which will enable my oncologist to determine staging and a treatment plan. We will find out more when we meet with her on Feb. 14. (A quick side note – I am not the usual candidate for this kind of cancer, but since both my father and aunt had pancreatic cancer, it's likely related in some way to my genetic makeup. However, nothing came up with my previous genetic tests.) I will be asking questions to members of this support group as I find out more about my treatment plan. Many thanks in advance.

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So sorry. This group is great for info. Let us know staging. There’s a live support group that meets 2/wk also.

REPLY
1 reply
tbkomparda | @tbkomparda | Feb 8 8:26am

Thanks a bunch Gary has reached out to me don't feel so alone.

REPLY
rschreib | @rschreib | Feb 8 9:39pm
In reply to @gooddaughter "So sorry. This group is great for info. Let us know staging. There’s a live support..." + (show)
@gooddaughter

So sorry. This group is great for info. Let us know staging. There’s a live support group that meets 2/wk also.

Jump to this post

Thank you. When do you meet?

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Moderator
Colleen Young, Connect Director | @colleenyoung | Feb 19 10:20am

@tbkomparda, how are you and your husband doing? Any update?

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