90yr old dad diagnosed with SCLC on palliative care: What to expect?

hi @beck7291 - your dad is blessed to have your care. I would recommend meeting with both his doctor and the hospice team to help answer your questions. I can tell you broadly that to qualify for hospice care, they expect that you won't live longer than 6 months. That said, my grandmother outlasted hospice multiple times. Cancer departments often have a social worker for patients. They can be super helpful. I would check if you have access to one via your dad's clinic.

@mamajite thank you!

Does anyone have experience with Small Cell Lung Cancer progression without treatment

Re: Hospice. I’m a retired medical social worker and worked as hospice staff. Utilize the full services of hospice. The team will have their own social worker who can help answer your questions about what to look for in your father’s decline and also resources since you’re from out of town. Often they’ll have material and pamphlets for you. Call hospice and ask the social worker for a visit. Also they should have a chaplain who can visit, and even if your father has a church the hospice chaplain will be comfortable speaking about “end of life.” The nurses are great for everything and their role is medical and making sure your father is comfortable and has any equipment he needs. They should have a home health aid to come twice a week to bath your dad which will help you. Sometimes they have volunteers who can come and just sit so you can take a break and go out for coffee. Utilize all the services they offer as that will help both you snd your dad. Don’t be afraid yo call them and ask about all this. Hugs!

Thank you so much for this information. Hugs to you 💞

An extended family member was diagnosed with EX-SCLC, she also had Alzheimer's. Her children, knowing how awful death from complications of Alzheimer's is, elected not to do treatment.

Hospice was brought in and the she was gone in less than 6 weeks.

Oh wow. Thank you for sharing

Hi Beck,
I'm so sorry that you have lung cancer! That's awful! My husband had lung cancer. He had some Chemotherapy and Keytruda. However, the side effects almost killed him! So he decided no more treatments. He ate very healthy and for him that was good quality red meat and lots of vegetables and fruits. We also prayed a lot and God was there for us. My husband lived with stage 4 lung cancer for 14 years. He did see his primary care doctor and his cancer doctor on a regular basis. He had breathing problems and eventually had to have a small breathing machine and oxygen 24 hours. That however was toward the end of his life in 2024. Until the last two years my husband was able to do his regular activities such as leaf blow the yard, take the garbage down to the dumpster, repair multiple things in the house with his power tools, drive the car, change the oil in the car etc. During his last two years he became very breathless and lost weight. We were in the emergency room several times. He also could no longer do any of the things I mentioned above. It was hard on him to be so different from what he had been but he kept a positive attitude and was always telling me he loved me and was very open to prayer. I really think that the good food he ate and prayer plus staying away from too many strangers so he wouldn't get the flu or something helped him live with lung cancer as long as he did. And I'm very grateful for that! We decided not to have Hospice even though they are very nice because we just wanted to be by ourselves for that last time together. I had taken care of my mother when she was very ill so I was aware of what to do.

Do you have family that can help you through this? If not, then eventually Hospice would be very good for you. Also make certain you eat healthy and stay away from crowds where sick people may be. Prayer also definitely helps too. You don't have to go to church to find God. Just talk to him like he's your best friend and he is! He made you and he can fix you! I'll say a prayer for you also.

If you have any further questions or just want to talk I have plenty of time these days. I wish you the best.
PML

Thank you for sharing your journey with me! I am very grateful. God Bless You!

@beck7291, I'm hoping that your father is settling in, is at peace, and is not having difficulties. Most cancers are hard to predict, but his doctor's may have an idea of what they expect. Even with SCLC, there are different subtypes, and each can act a little differently. Are you working with a hospice team? They may be helpful to know what to expect also.