Pancreatic Cancer Group: Introduce yourself and connect with others

I am the wife of a recently diagnosed (1/2/26) pancreatic cancer patient. He started Folfirinox on 1/28 and everything was fine for the 1st 8 days. We thought he needed hydration and took him to infusion on 2/6/26. Nausea, vomiting and diarrhea continued. No improvement, and by Saturday 2/7 he had a fever. I took him to the emergency room and they admitted him. After 6 days, poor communication, with no improvement we moved him to our preferred hospital and he was diagnosed with a bowel obstruction. He required surgery and was hospitalized for an additional 17 days. (23 days total) He came home 3/2. We have switched our medical oncologist to the team at our preferred hospital and we were told that he never should have been on Folfirinox at his age.(72) Our new regimen will be Gemcitabine/Abraxane and he will have a modified schedule of every two weeks. Yesterday was his first chemo and so far so good. His current treatment plan is to do 4 months and then reassess with the possibility of surgery/radiation at that time. He is a stage IIB with no current metastasis. I am interested in connecting with those familiar with this chemo and any suggestions to increase appetite. He lost 22 pounds during the acute illness and I am trying to ensure he maintains/gains some weight back. Tastes have changed and he has no appetite. He was started on Mirtazapine yesterday as he had been on Zyprexa for 3 weeks with no increase in appetite. I am very interested in learning more and hoping to find information that will help with his treatment. He is currently listed as curative, but I know this disease is a monster and I want to find every option available since we are early in the fight to help him beat this.

No, I hadn't thought about questions, I was trying to take it a day at a time which is hard for a planner. I will work on that today. I think I keep working because it distracts me. Then I don't have time to worry about myself because I am solving other people's problems.

@anne7573217 Usually with a lot less fingernails. Scanxiety is real. I have been getting scans for over 3.5 years to monitor pancreatic cancer. Waiting for the post scan Dr. visit can be nerve wracking too. The first thing that I do is type out my questions for the doctor. I limit myself to three questions and a half hour to pick three. Then I don't look at them again until the morning of the appointment. Otherwise, I would never stop thinking about them. I also have learned to distract myself better over time. Do some things that you enjoy. I go for a long walk with my dog. It also makes me tired which is good. I watch a ballgame, read, listen to music. Are your questions prepared? Do you have anything that you enjoy doing that may help distract you?

Hi folks, I was diagnosed with Stage 2 pancreatic cancer in February 2025, after three doctors told me the solution to my involuntary weight loss was to eat more. I had 12 rounds of folfirinox through September 2025 and distal pancreatectomy with splenectomy in November 2025. I was hospitalized for a non-related issue in January 2026 and a CT scan was done to look at my lungs, it also imaged the pancreas which was termed "unremarkable". Tomorrow I have the first official CT follow up and an appointment with the oncologist. The anxiety is terrible. I would appreciate hearing how others approach these appointments.

@billb720301
Thank you.

@honeyboo4
Thank you so much for your kind words of encouragement and prayers. You are much appreciated.

Praying for you to beat this. I'm so glad you are not too sick from the treatment so you can do some normal living. Hang in there.

I had 70% of my pancreas removed as well as spleen. Gallbladder had already been removed. I had two nodules outside of the pancreas removed as well. I was in the hospital for two weeks. I've had chemo and radiation and have had lots of pain and nausea. It's been a year since I was diagnosed and had treatment and I'm still very sick and lots of pain but my last scan said they got all the cancer. Is this abnormal to still feel so bad? I'm 76 and a female.

@colleenyoung
After a year of zeros on my Natera ctDNA blood test it too has gone up. Scans show cancer has returned to the surgical bed of the Whipple but not nearby lymph nodes. I am scheduled for my first infusion of Gem/Abrax this week and every two weeks until September. Caris test revealed KRAS G12D mutation. Want to explore immunotherapy with Dr Tejani to work in conjunction with chemo. Is radiation or ablation an option? I know I’m lucky/blessed that the cancer hasn’t spread further yet. Aside from constipation, neuropathy and low red blood cell/hemoglobin count, I feel pretty good. I just want to do everything I can to beat this. Hope and prayers.

@dryheataz Good luck with the bloodwork today.