Each option comes with its own hopes, risks, and uncertainties. Surgery can offer the possibility of removing the tumor, but it is a major operation with a long recovery and no guarantees. Chemotherapy, while challenging in its own way, may help control the disease, relieve symptoms, and potentially extend life. The balance between quality of life and potential benefit is deeply personal.
In my own experience, I was not considered resectable, so surgery was not an option for me. I had no choice but to proceed with chemotherapy. While that path was not what I initially hoped for, it taught me that treatment journeys can still be meaningful, manageable, and worthwhile—even when they differ from our original expectations. I want to make this clear I would have had surgery if I could have. I was in a type 2 trial of the triplet ( Gemcitabine (Gemzar) with nab-Paclitaxel (Abraxane) and Cisplatin (Platinol)** along with vitamin D after that I had 33 days of radio therapy. The side effects are fatigue, nausea, diarrhea, neuropathy (tingling/numbness in hands/feet), low blood counts (white cells, platelets, red cells), appetite loss, and skin issues** I have been on 5FU as maintenance since then every 12 days for 46 hours which requires me to take home a pump. I have lived like this for 7 years

Michael Francis