Updates about my mom:
We went to another doctor to get a second opinion on her case and it turned out that her diagnosis, now, is the opposite of what we were given when I made this first post.
My mother actually has "pseudoprogression". Have you ever heard of pseudoprogression? From what I've been researching, only 15% of cancer patients have cases of pseudoprogression, which is why the correct diagnosis is very difficult, which can lead half of patients to abandon standard treatment and go to palliative care.

In my mother's case, the CA-A 19 marker was always high, around 19,000, however, none of the imaging exams showed lesions in other organs. As soon as she started the chemotherapy cycles, lesions appeared on her spine. The doctor explained to us that they knew that the pancreas tumor cells had migrated, but they didn't know where, so, with the infusion, the lesions appeared in the spine in response to the treatment, like pseudoprogression.

According to this same doctor, to assess cases like this, it is essential to assess the clinical status of the patient and my mother is better now than before starting the first infusion. The pain has subsided!!

So, I share our story to encourage everyone to always seek second opinions! Don't give up on the treatment!

Jump to this post