Has anyone been able to have surgery for tumor in the tail?

Thank you very much. You sound like you have a whole lot on your plate and I thank you for finding the time to reply and encourage. I go to bed at night overwhelmed with fear and wake up the same - fear of losing my husband whom I have known since I was 15 (decades ago!). You should work on your fear of flying, if you can. I still fear flying but breathing exercises and some meds help. Flying lets me travel and see places.

Yes, I do continue to watch French movies with subtitles and I find it a good way to help me keep practicing my French a tiny bit. The daughter of my BFF (she passed in 2022 of gall bladder cancer) lives in the south of France and has invited me many times, but alas I hate to fly. It was on my bucket list to work with a therapist over my fear of flying so that I could visit some of my friends in other states and countries; however it is the last thing on my bucket list!! That’s a beautiful phrase though - the joy of life.
You are a great guiding light for your husband! I really admire you for that and I completely understand where you are coming from. Just a few weeks ago drs thought my husband might have lung cancer, but it’s some lung disease (he’s currently in the hospital) that drs are still trying to figure out. He’s a bit on the negative side and doesn’t converse with his family much and he says he doesn’t want to worry them, however I converse daily through text with his brother - a retired dr to make sure they know what’s going on with him and as a double check on the treatment he’s getting. But yes, I can understand when a spouse needs our up lifting and I’m so glad you are on this forum. It provides a discourse for helping others as well as being able to learn from others.
It sounds like he’s headed in the right direction. The GA chemo works very well on liver lesions and I imagine on tumors as well. The smaller one (1 cm) disappeared and the larger one (about 1.5 or 1.7 cm) shrunk to 0.9 cm and I recently had that radiated with MRIdean, so I’m hoping I decimated it; I’ll find out by next appointment in early December. These don’t light up on my PET scan. Yes, the info we get between drs, surgeons, or radiologists can be conflicting. Just be aware you can always seek out the opinion of another oncologist as just a consultation visit without having to change your actual oncologist, if desired. So glad your husband is improving and I wish you both well on this journey!

Great advice Maryanne if the time and energy can be afforded! I used to tell my son to volunteer when he was a teenager and feeling blue; and it resulted in helping his mood and his college application!. I volunteered as a board member for the Bolsa Chica Land Trust during my first round of chemo with 5FU in 2023. I started losing my hair with my 2nd round of chemo, abraxane, early this year and I quit recently for reasons not related to cancer. Maybe there’s a light volunteer task in the church you belong to which wouldn’t require much commitment or energy like serving donuts after service on Sundays (our church does this) or even helping out with just buying a box of donuts to donate. I always told my children that helping others takes the focus off ourselves I think we are too focused on ourselves, sometimes.

I might only add that having things to look forward to and being engaged with people helps a lot. No matter what we are going through, there is always someone going through something equally painful. When we pray for others it reminds us of how much we have to be grateful for.
There is always some place that can use your volunteer time. Even if just writing cards to others! Pls check with your Church. I find that the more I am involved with something besides myself, the less I feel depressed. 💜

You remember your French 🙂 Thank you for taking the time to share. I am in this forum without my husband knowing - he is very private and few people know of his illness. This support helps me alot and I then feel I can be of more help to my husband. We are Christians and faith helps. The surgery set my husband back quite a bit - he lost 10kg and he was not a big man to start off with, he had infection, then the Folfirinox gave him really bad side effects and it was a fight to put back on the weight. Now, a year after surgery, he is eating much better and exercising. We live in hot climes but walks are a thing. The chemo is ongoing but if it keeps the cancer away I can live with that. I have to help him live with that.

The oncologist knows and has recommended that my husband sees a psychiatrist. My husband decided he did not want any more medication and is trying to cope. I can see some success and each day he is more like his old self. I cannot remember what cancer type he has and I will go find out. Surgeon placed him at Stage 2B, because the tumour had 'stuck' to his stomach. His spleen, lymph nodes, adrenal gland and the fatty tissue in the abdomen tested clear of cancer. Unfortunately, a PET scan a month and a half after Folfirinox commenced showed up a lump in the abdominal bed - much like what @mnewland99 described - and a lump on the liver (1.2x1.0cm). The lumps did not 'light up' but oncologist classified my husband as Stage 4. Surgeon insists they are not cancerous. Since then, the regime changed to Gem-Abr. We have done 3 PET scans since - no cancerous activity and the lumps are not doing anything - not smaller, not bigger. But still classified as Stage 4 and 1 chemo every 3 weeks.

Hello joiedevivre,
I think in French that means “joy of life”? I haven’t taken French since high school, so forgive my translation. Your husband’s journey sounds similar to mine, but common ground is attained based on the mutations. Mine are KRAS12D, ATM, TP53, and a 4th I never see posted. My surgery was in the mid and tail section of the pancreas. I had 12 rounds or I received 2 infusions of chemotherapy each month for 6 months. After 4 months of no longer receiving chemo, it spread to my liver and possibly it was always around my hepatic artery and abdominal peritoneum. Those areas light up on PET scan but the peritoneal area wasn’t seen on the CT and my biopsy was negative for it. Radiologists say scar tissue but oncologists assume it’s cancer to be in the safe side. I haven’t had any growth on them but I do have occasional pain in those areas.
Right now I’m on GA chemotherapy and will be until some other cure comes along. I was on a short 2-3 week break from the chemo after which time a nodule showed up on lung and a lesion lit up in my femur after a PET scan. I did become depressed at that time and my UCLA oncologist offered the assistance of a marriage and family counselor to speak with. Most oncologists g will be able to put you in contact with one. I spoke with her by phone since I was feeling anxious/depressed at that time. It did help and I highly encourage finding someone like that to speak with. It’s good to have a community to reach out to like siblings, friends, old coworkers, children, neighbors, etc, and of course this forum would be good for your husband to jump on and ask questions or about feelings he might be having. I also created a bucket list of things to do. I don’t like to fly so mine are simple like going to a concert, or going out to a restaurant you wouldn’t go to under typical circumstances as it might be bit pricey. There are so many when you really think about them. The chemo itself didn’t cause depression or anxiety (the two often go hand in hand or can be mistaken for the other). There is anxiety about moving on to the next place in time. My crux has been my faith. I go to church when I can or watch the mass online. I get as many blessings for the sick as I can. I’ve spoken with the priest at my parish. I hope your husband has a faith he can rely on or this might be a good time to find some. Is he eating ok? I take protein shakes and plenty of other foods and vitamin b12 to help me be strong. When I was feeling weak a lot of it had to do with the chemotherapy playing havoc with my underlying cardiac arrhythmia as a high heart rate can you make feel weak. I found a good cardiologist that prescribed the right medication for my rapid heart rate. I don’t know where you live, but hopefully the weather is nice enough to take short walks outside? Please try and get your husband to join in on the forum and I’m so glad you are leading him to this!

I can appreciate your concern for your husband's fatigue and depression. Is his oncologist or his PCP aware of his depression? Have they suggested any anti-depressant medications or therapies?

You mentioned that his oncologist said that "this type of cancer is aggressive." Did his oncologist mention the stage of your husband's cancer (cancer is often staged using a number)?

How is his appetite? Often when you are having difficulty eating is can contribute to depression or anxiety.

I would like to invite @mnewland99 to this conversation. She might have something to add to your concerns.

May I know what chemo regime your husband is on and what does 12 rounds mean? When my husband was on Folfirinox, 1 round was 1 month of 2 chemo sessions.

Husband is doing well, as well as can be living with cancer. Thank you for asking. The main battle is with depression. The other major side effect is fatigue. His CA-19 markers have stayed within 36 for nearly 5 months now. Oncologist has spaced out chemo to once every 3 weeks; still no end to chemo and it is likely he has to be on chemo for a long while. Hopefully, it can be spaced out even more. I think the oncologist's concern is that the cancer will return. I do not understand all the medical terms but oncologist said this type of cancer is aggressive.