Post-treatment follow up for clear cell endometrial cancer
Just wondering how your oncologists are monitoring you for recurrence of an aggressive cancer . I am two+ years post treatment with surgery, chemo, radiation & brachytherapy. I had metastasis to local & distant lymph nodes during chemo so I’m deemed chemo resistant.
-How often do you see your oncologist?
-Do you get CT scans & if so how often?
Is there concern for radiation overload?
-Is anybody using liquid biopsies? A blood test seems like a great way to monitor for cancer cells but my oncologist is not a fan.
I’m always worried about recurrence, so your experiences might be helpful.
Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Gynecologic Cancers Support Group.
Hi Corinne,
Thank you for sharing your experience. I applaud you for turning your body into a temple and for working out daily!! Your experience as a young woman certainly makes this disease & treatment more challenging for you than for me, but we share the fear of recurrence and all of the unknowns (even to our oncologists) about this aggressive cancer. And I don’t know if having or not having Lynch syndrome makes a difference in any way.
I wish you well and will continue to read posts for updates. It is good to have “sisters” who understand and support each other.
Hi corinne1985. I'm 15 years your senior and I was diagnosed with mixed uterine clear cell and serous cancer 3A diagnosed 6/2024. I have exactly the same thoughts you have and I'm doing all the life style things you are doing. In addition to that I'm working with a holistic doctor. I also have Crohn's disease and it went undiagnosed for probably 15 years. Once it's was identified I want on an immune suppressing drugs to control the inflammation and gut damage. I think that created a perfect storm. My goal is to get my immune system to work properly without immune suppressing drugs. I can't figure that out on my own. That why I'm working with the holistic doctor. So I'm mixing both medical and complementary therapies hoping my body will be able clear cancer cells as it should.
I write to help with anxiety. If you go to my profile you will see my writing and how I've been processing my situation.
@corinne1985 I agree with @beebe. It's good that you are doing both radiation therapy and chemotherapy.
Are you located in the U.S. or Canada? I am asking you this because scans seem to be the standard in North America. You wrote: " i asked my oncologist "when will i have a scan again" she said "Corinne there is nothing to scan, Mr Kumar removed it" we will keep a close eye on you now as we dont know how this type acts 🙁 " I find this comment puzzling. From what I have experienced myself and read from others we have periodic CT scans to detect signs of cancer at the original place and in other places in the body. For instance, I had CT scans with contrast for pelvis, abdomen and lungs because this is where it is most likely other cancers or metastasis would be seen.
I completely understand your anxiety and fear too. All that you went through is traumatic. Of course you feel anxious and frightened. I still feel that at times although I have been NED (no evidence of disease) since 2022. Every new pain I have I wonder if it's cancer. I cannot seem to get away from that.
What is your next step? Are you still in chemotherapy?
I totally identify with “Every new pain I have I wonder if it's cancer. I cannot seem to get away from that.” I work hard to manage this, and sometimes wonder: Are there NED women out there who don’t?