Esophageal Cancer: Surgery Or Not?

38 years old. Not fair, but cancer is not fair. Your youth will help you greatly. get ready for a rocky road and focus on what you have to live for. You go where you look. Look forward.

I'm going to give my experience and please understand that yours may be different. I'm 62 stage 4 adenocarcinoma of stomach AND esophagus. I underwent chemo then surgery with gastric pull through and connection in the right neck.

chemo sucks. Depending on agents used, you will get multiple side effects. Nausea, loss of energy, constipation, mouth sores, weight loss, etc. I did 6 rounds of FLOT therapy and my body couldn't take anymore. 2 months recovery and weight gain then surgery.

I found that when I was constipated, my nausea and lack of appetite were the worst. Stool softeners were my friend as well as medical edible cannabis. also plenty of anti nausea meds. Everything made me tired and I spent a lot of time in my recliner instead of my sailboat. I couldn't work, immunosupression made me not be able to go out in crowds. I did work though. It's something that you go through and it gets better.

surgery sucks too. You won't be the first to go through it though. The people in the hospital will get you through. The adventure starts when you are home. feeding tube for sure. The constipation with chemo will be gone. Now it's time for diarrhea. I'm talking liquid. Never trust a fart. Eat as tollerated and once again you try not to loose too much weight. My pain was gone within 2 seeks. minor discomfort from feeding tube but benefits greatly outweigh the discomfort.

You are probably too young to remember SNL character Rosanna Rosanna Dana. she has a quote, "If its not this, it's that". There's also a game called Whack A Mole. When you whack one mole down, another pops up. Get ready to play this game and quote rosanna Rosanna Dana. Keep your sense of humor. It helps. We're with you and want to hear how it goes for you. I find great comfort in this group. I hope you do too. Best of luck in your journey. You can do it and you have so much living to do. Chin up Bro!

Surgery is rough and takes some time to recover. Mine was April 2023 and now at 68 years old I'm biking 20 miles a day on average and hiking short trails with the dog. My diet has changed of course; post-surgery there are a lot of foods I can no longer tolerate, and portions are drastically reduced. I eye the children's menu wistfully at restaurants. I'm 6 feet tall and before the cancer I was about 230 lbs. Now I'm 158 and still slowly losing weight, but I wake up next to my beautiful wife every morning and play with my grandchildren every week and that's well worth the struggle. Make sure your surgeon is BLUNT with you about the surgery. It is risky and it is a potentially brutal recovery at first. I was lucky to have an excellent doctor and a truly compassionate support staff of nurses and techs and physical therapists at the hospital. I went into the procedure scared and reluctant but promised myself I would do everything I could to fight and I can't emphasize enough how critical it is for you to do the same. I made myself take advantage of every opportunity to WALK starting the day after the operation. I absolutely didn't feel like it. Shuffling a few feet from the bed to a chair and back. Shuffling slowly to the hallway door and back. Walking with the therapists or nurse volunteers around the hallways. Making a point of being grateful and expressing that gratitude to the hospital staff for every frequent blood sugar finger prick or dressing change or temperature check. At the end of the day it saved my life. It will save yours, too.

No need to worry. Yes, the recovery is tough and not much fun, but way better than the alternative. Your redesigned stomach will give you fits when you start eating normal foods again. You will spend lots of time in the bathroom, but eventually you will figure out the foods that are best for you and how to eat. Seems everyone is a little different when it comes to this part of their recovery. I always remember what my son said when I was having second thoughts about treatment, “Dad, do we have to sit here and watch you roll over and die, or are you going to stand up and fight this like the man we know you are”. I fought and dam glad I did. I am 5 years out from surgery and doing fairly well. Life isn’t perfect, but I am still enjoying time with family and friends. Take Care and Good Luck with your fight. No doubt in my mind that you will also win.

Alex
I was diagnosed with EC several years ago. I had 28 days of chemo and radiation. After 3 weeks, the tumor in my lower esophagus had shrunk 40%. And after treatment my scans showed the cancer was gone and my lymph nodes were back to normal. I did not have surgery. The treatments for cancer continue t improve so there is hope for a brighter future. Be aware the side affects are not fun and you may feel tired for a while. When do you start treatment?
Don

I’m 38 and about to start chemotherapy for 3 months before I am going into surgery, I am worried , can anyone tell me what recovery is like? And don’t hold back your answers please I need an idea of what I’m facing
Cheers guys Alex

I'm Gona try what you did . I'm not good with surgery

I'm in the same boat. they are talking surgery but I'm just not going for it. i think I'll be like you and just try chemo and rad. and hope for the best

Not long winded at all. I truly appreciate you
sharing your success story
I am a T3N1. My surgery would be performed by 2 surgeons performing the Ivor-Lewis esophagectomy which is performed with incisions in the abdomen right side of the chest. We've been told by a different surgeon robotics couldn't be used for my condition. Not sure that would be the case at Mayo but geographically it would be difficult for us anyway. Your ability to eat the way you do is remarkable. Most of the information hasn't been quite as promising. Thank You again for your input.

I was diagnosed April 1, 2023 with adenocarcinoma the the stomach junction at 70 years old, and staged T3N0 at the Mayo Clinic in Phoenix. I underwent 25 proton radiation treatments and 5 Carbo / Taxel infusions once a week. I continued to walk 2 miles a day on the treadmill. The radiation and chemo was a non event and I actually gained 3 pounds. I underwent minimally invasive I-L robotic surgery August 1. I had cryoablation on the chest wall nerves for pain management and never experienced any discomfort. I was up walking the halls the next day after surgery. I was discharged after 7 days and was on a feeding tube for one week until I could get enough calories and protein on my own. I was actually doing water aerobics in the pool 3 weeks to the day after surgery. I have experienced no acid reflux, dumping or restrictions on what I eat. I eat all the ice cream, dairy and sugar I want. I eat filet mignon and lobster for Sunday dinner, albeit it at 5 pm so I have plenty of time to digest before bed. I do not take any stomach acid medication. I bought a Sleep Number bed to sleep on a slight incline and have no issues getting good rest. The only life style change I have made is eating smaller meals more frequently. I still have my happy hour cocktails. I have actually gained 5 pounds since being diagnosed almost a year ago. All this being said, I just wanted to convey to you that a lot of us go through the treatment plan without complications. Nobody writes in social media about those, only their horror stories. Social media is what it is, need I say more? But if you are lucky enough to qualify for the surgery, don't turn it down. This procedure is proven to be a cure for this beast. Even your own doctor says it will come back. PET scans do not pick up the microscopic cancer cells floating around in your lymph node highway. And when it does come back, it's stage 4 and there's not much you can do about it other than battle it with chemo. Sorry for being so long winded, but I want you to know there are some of us that go through surgery reasonably well. Good luck in your decision.

Hi Colleen,
Had a EGD performed yesterday. Should get the results early next week which will help with the final decision. After reading the pros and cons from the input of others, I know I'd love to avoid it if possible.