I have just been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer

Still hanging in there. Will switch to another Chemo next week since, after a two-month delay in treatment due to medical reasons I have several new lesions along the colon which is causing some digestive issues.

AND SJG, your good health will see you a long way. Be ready for diet issues, low energy, and weght loss.

Ron

All three are a constant challenge for me,my boss is letting me work from home most days  which is a lifesaver, I will get the results of my latest ct scan on Monday praying for a good report since my tumor markers are down about 30%.

Glad to hear you are doing well SJG! Remember, just one day at a time 😉

Checking in. How are you doing @Ronmac and @SJG?

I am still hanging in there. They switched my chemo, now have treatment once a week for three weeks then a week off. Can't tell you what it is, they said I would loose my hair but it has only stunted it growth. Minimal side effects on this one so we shall see this week when I get CT. Insurance denied petscan saying I have already had three...but that's in almost two-years of treatment. Gotta' love those number crunchers!

Hey Ron, good to hear from you. Glad to hear that the treatment has minimal side effects this time around. Do you take the chemo treatment at home orally or do you have to go to the hospital and get it intravenously (IV)? How are the digestive issues?

Welcome. I feel you were fortunate in finding the cancer at this stage and area now. Amidst concerns I would have would be "is there any value to using radiation treatments before the chemo? They did that in my case and it prolonged the growth a little bit. What about resection? Is it feasible? And when you get to the chemo point ask about chemo reactions and affects to heart and kidneys. Chemo can cause affects 5 or more years after it. Another area to learn from is http://www.chemocare.com--there you can get updated info on chemo types and system affects.

irvkay312

I am curious about the liver sample sent to be genetically coded. Did that genetic coding help customize the treatment plan
they are using for you.

I would think that is most important because the first place Pancreatic Cancer is said to mestasize is the Liver. Likely, they want to see if it made it there and to what stage, while it may be treatable. Note hereto: my Oncologist told me a while back "once its in your liver, the cancer is in your blood and capable of mestasizing to other organs. That happened with spleen, GI, GU tracts and Liver in my case.

irvkay312

Not being sarcastic...but I wish I could concentrate on worrying about side effects that might occur 5 years from now.