new to the forum, please respond

faithe · New User Joined: 25 Sep 2009 Posts: 3

Hello,

My Mom was diagnosed this past June 2009 with NSCLC, non-operable. At the time they told her it "was NOT considered stage 4" - but because of the lymph node involvement I'm sure it was stage 3. They had originally planned to hit her hard with chemo and radiation with curative intent, however the day she was supposed to start chemo she was told that the most recent scan revealed the cancerous lymph nodes in her chest had grown so much in a week that it was pointless to do the chemo because the "tumours were too large to kill" and that it would only make her sick.

She is now considered stage 4. Of course this was a devastating blow to her...she did do 20 days straight of radiation. At that time there was no indication of mets to the brain, bone or liver, etc. but they said they were expecting it to present eventually. She goes for another Catscan next week.

At her last appointment she really pressed the doctor for "a time" and he told her 10 to 18 months (could be more, could be less). Since then she has researched and started many alternative treatments...and is talking about leaving the country to visit an alternative cancer treatment center. Of course we want her to do whatever she can to prolong her life, however sometimes the family feels she may be wasting her time away following protocol after protocol.

Unfortunately she has not come to "a place" where she can accept what is happening and to go on living, at least while she is feeling relatively healthy. I wish there were some way to help her reach this point.

Also I am pregnant but not due until May 1st 2010. I feel terribly guilty because I know she wonders if she will live long enough to see the new baby, her second grandchild, born. Our family doctor suggested waiting longer into the pregnancy before telling her, to see how she was feeling, but because of circumstances beyond our control this was not possible. I was hoping the news would give her something to look forward to, but now I am afraid we did the wrong thing by telling her.

I should add that my mother is only 54 years old and is otherwise in excellent health. The family was also researching cancer hospitals outside of the country (we live in Canada) that apparently have higher success rates with this type of cancer, however we thought it may be too much for her to get her hopes up, to spend literally thousands of dollars, and only to have those doctors tell her the same thing...a few days ago she found out we were checking on this hospital and was upset that we didn't tell her about it sooner. We thought we were doing the right thing since she said she "didn't think it was necessary for a second opinion" but now I am regretting that I didn't tell her about this specific hospital sooner.

It looks like she will be taking a trip to see her other daughter in Nov. and will likely visit this hospital then. What if they tell her she should have come two months ago? I feel absolutely terrible...Obviously we will know more after the scans on Tuesday...she is worried that she feels some discomfort in her stomach recently...I know it is impossible to tell how long someone has left, but has anyone had a similar experience?

Any suggestions advice or simple chit-chat would be greatly appreciated.

Faithe

pbj11 · Site Admin Joined: 12 May 2007 Posts: 2853

Hi Faithe,

I'm sorry that your young Mom has received this diagnosis. Please take care of yourself and that baby during this stressful time. My Mom was diagnosed with ovarian cancer late in one of my pregnancies, so I'm all too aware of how the impending birth gets all mixed up into the cancer mess. (((hugs)))

First question that hit me is are they refusing to give her chemotherapy treatment? I should think that choice should be hers and not the doctor's to make. Why run all over creation, chasing unreliable alternatives when the best treatments out there should be readily available to her?

Secondly, what exactly were they radiating at this point? How many tumors does she actually have in her lungs? What do they consider "too large to kill?" Do you know the sub-type and cell differentiation? These all are variables as to how well she may or may not do in terms of length of survival.

Sorry for all the questions. I'm a little confused and annoyed at the doc's response to her.

We're here to help give you as much support in any way possible. It's not a journey to travel alone. This is a safe haven to drop your "load" and know there are others who completely understand what you are going through.

Look forward to hearing from you again. (I put your post into paragraphs so it was easier on some of our eyes!)

God bless,
PBJ
_________________
Husband diagnosed with NSCLC Stage IV. (Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer) Fought & lived 2 1/2 years with multiple lines of treatment.

Post describing our battle: http://cancerforums.net/viewtopic.php?t=7026&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0

JaLee · Regular Joined: 20 Aug 2009 Posts: 26

I'm confused. Our doc told my mom that radiation would only be an option IF her cancer was localized (no metastisis). She has a left upper lobe tumor that measures 7x8 cm and they are doing chemo. I'm guessing this is considered a LARGE tumor also. They said chemo meds will seek out cancer cells and impair/kill them 'anywhere' in the body.

I think I read something about radiation being used as a pallitive treatment but I've read so much, and heard so much, I may be mistaken. Maybe someone could elaborate on these treatments.

I see you mentioned your mom having non-small cell... my mom was dx with small cell... maybe they treat the two different. I'm in the same boat as yourself... trying to make sure she is getting the best care possible.

Faithe, I wish you and your mom the best. Take care >>HUGS<<

faithe · New User Joined: 25 Sep 2009 Posts: 3

She has bronchogenic adenocarcinoma. Is there something more specific I should find out? They radiated the troublesome area in her chest (lymph nodes, etc.) as they had grown enough to cause discomfort (coughing up blood, etc.). They have not done anything with the mass in her lung (about the size of a grape, we're told) because that tumour is not what they are worried about...the part that they say is "too large to kill" with either radiation or chemo is the chest area and lymph nodes. They did say that using chemo right away would mean they would have one less option available to her if and when something shows up somewhere else in her body. Thanks so much for your reply...

	Cancer Forums Forum Index -> Lung Cancer Forum	All times are GMT - 5 Hours
Page 1 of 1

A website for discussions about any type of cancer, including lung cancer, breast cancer, prostate cancer, laryngeal cancer, leukemia, lymphoma, multiple myeloma and others