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Esphogeal cancer spread to lung, liver and hip bones
My husband 71 years old, a diabetic and survivor of v-fib diagnosed with esphogeal cancer. He had chemo/ radiation then surgery to remove tumor and esphogus.
This last PET scan shows cancer in his liver, lung and hip bones. The oncologists will give him chemo every two weeks and he will receive radiation in his hip bones for 10 days to help manage the pain in that area.
The oncologists is hoping the chemo will take care of the liver and lung and radiation will take care of the bone cancer. The radiation doctor has him taking 30 mg of morphine for 10 days until the radiation kicks in . They did not say there was no hope for him but I feel as if they are not confident in what to treat him with. I'm not sure where to go to seek help. We live in kansas and have limited income of Social security .
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I cannot see the timing of things... when he was first dx'd, was his post-op pathology clean, how long did he apparently stay NED for. I'll just assume it's been less than 2 years post-op. I suppose it doesn't really matter... the bottom line is that it is back... and something must be done about it... and there must be a change to his treatments. So if he did the CROSS protocol of Carboplatin and Taxol the first time around, he's probably getting Folfox or FLOT or Capox this time around. Was any immunotherapy used before? It can't hurt to add this in now as well... regardless of his tumor biology. We need to see a positive response to these new treatments. Hang tough... much love to you both.
Gary
Free Zoom calls on Wed and Sun if you are interested.
It's been 6 mons since surgery. The first treatment of chemo he was getting immuno therapy. This time the oncologists stopped it. I feel that he needs it and am talking to the doctor about it. After the removal of the tumor tye surgeon said he had clear margins. No cancer in surrounding tissue. He is experiencing a cough that sounds like he is full stuff and he is short of breath. He has a doctor's appointment this coming tuesday. The first treatment of chemo he developed blood clots in his lungs and is taking a blood thinner. At the time of his surgery the doctor placed a screen in to stop any blood clots. This is still in place.
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1 ReactionOk... drop in on next Zoom call... they occur
Wednesdays, 6pm Eastern
Sundays, 9am Eastern... been doing these for over 3 years now.
Zoom ID -
455 028 4795
Passcode -
tuiBE5
We have some who've had their filters in place for years. You can talk to them. I believe Tim (who has an IVC filter for years) was also a stage 4, given 3 months to live about 5 years ago. For him it is Herceptin that seems to be working... he's had maybe 100 infusions now. Another stage 4, Tom... for him, Keytruda seems to be doing its thing... keeping him NED for maybe 7 years. I don't get it either.
Anyway... there's a bunch of these folks on our Zoom calls... as well as newbies just being dx'd, or just going to surgery, or 1 month post-op, or 10 to 20 years post-op. Some have recurrences as well.
Gary
Thank you for the information. It gives me hope . I will be there Wednesday.
Dorene
Gary,
I took my husband to the emergency because he was having a difficult time breathing.
Diagnosis is pleural effusion. Doctor put in a chest tube to drain the fluid from around his lungs.
This was Tuesday evening.
We hope he will come home Monday.
Wanted to let you know the reason I did not make it to zoom.
Dorene
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2 ReactionsHope things smoother for your husband and you - it must be so difficult. I was just released from hospital for feeding tube surgery having just been diagnosed with stage 4 EC Mets to spine , chest nodes , and liver to minor extent. Just began chemo and palliative radiation. No surgery in view for me. Starting to feel better and I hope you and husband turn a corner very soon. God bless you both
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3 ReactionsZoom calls are every Sunday (9am Eastern) and every Wednesday (6pm Eastern).
ID - 455 028 4795
Passcode - tuiBE5
Much love.
Update on my husband. Plural effusion ,fluid around his lungs. Chest tube in place and its almost stopped producing fluid. This past Friday took him to ER for what he thought was a UTI . Turns out to be a blood infection, scrratia marcescenes bacteria. He is in the hospitial getting antibiotics and they are watching him close. We were told that the chemo that he is getting is the last one for him . Because of this infection he has missed a treatment. How does this affect his treatment or is it to risky for him to continue ? This is so hard on us both physically and mentally.
I think having a positive attitude makes a big difference in how things work out in a person's life but at times I find myself wondering if this is to much for his body to fight. I believe this bacteria can be found to happen with medical procedures at a hospitial. I'm feeling like crying but I can't give in to that because he needs me to be strong now more than ever .
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2 ReactionsIt's brutal... that's all I can say. I've seen some incredible teams fight this beast together thru the years... and you two are right up there. A great attitude helps us cope, but does nothing for the effectiveness of our treatments. I've seen some folks with poor attitudes have great results... and vice versa. It comes down to our treatments work for us or they don't. I have no clue why our cancers respond differently to treatments. The fluid surrounding his lung(s) must be handled, as well as his blood infection... then he will be judged strong enough to resume treatments. Have any clinical trials been looked into... or more combinations of chemo and immuno drugs? Stay strong Dorene. Much love...
Gary
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1 Reaction@dorenemonchil, just checking in. How are you doing?