fluid around lung

Sasha · Regular Joined: 04 Mar 2008 Posts: 49

Everything for my Dad has been getting better no more fluid around his heart, one lung is clear, bones got worst, then got better, liver got better,adrenalin glands are clear now, but last week he had fluid around his lung and it was almost all the way collapsed, they took 2 litters of fluid out.
Any one else experience this.

Sasha

pbj11 · Site Admin Joined: 12 May 2007 Posts: 1302

Hi Sasha,

Glad to hear from you.

This can be a pretty common experience for some lung cancer patients. It is called pleural effusion and makes the person very short of breath. Effusion can happen from radiation, sometimes as a reaction to chemo, and often from the cancer itself. You are right, the fluid fills in the area between the lung and the chest wall, not in the lung itself.

I'm happy they've taken care of this. Often the pleural area will refill, so don't be surprised if he has to have it drained again. The draining procedure is called a Thoracentesis and is usually very easy. Collapse is always a possible complication when the force of the fluid is compressing the lung. Collapse may also happen when they drain the lung, but that's not typical. If the area keeps refilling, they may suggest permanent drains that can be emptied at home or a pleurodesis procedure which requires a hospital stay, complete with chest tube. During Pleurodesis, they empty all fluid and insert some type of irritant to the pleural area (usually talc) and the lung seals off the gap in the pleural area permanently. No fluid can accumulate again. This procedure is over 80% effective.

All in all, it sounds like he is doing fairly well. That's great!

Keep us posted.

PBJ
_________________
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hopeinlife · Regular Joined: 13 May 2008 Posts: 17

My mom was in the same situation. Her right lung collapse and deflated. She sticked a chest tube and withdraw the fluid so that her lung can inflate and re-expand again.

It may come back. What happened is that cancer cells in/out of the lung produces a lot of fluid that lead to pleural effusion.

I hope the best for your father.

Sasha · Regular Joined: 04 Mar 2008 Posts: 49

They took 2.4 more litters out of Dad on thursday, and then did surgery and put in a pump so that a nurse can come empty it.

They also tested the liquid and it is cancerous, the doctor didn't seem to understand this.

Sasha · Regular Joined: 04 Mar 2008 Posts: 49

The insurance does not want to approve these vaccum pumps to take the fluid out so we are waiting for free samples now should have been drained again yesterday but was not because nothing arrived, somebody should have approved this before they put it in him. Sorry for venting.
Sasha

brainman · Posted: Tue Jun 17, 2008 9:00 am Post subject: Re: fluid around lung

Sasha, try to get his doctors to help with his insurance company. Sometimes insurance companies make approval/disapproval decisions based on misunderstanding of the facts. Sometimes it is just a matter of changing the code in order to get a treatment approved. But the billing department that your doctor uses can often help.
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NewlyWedWife · Posted: Tue Jun 17, 2008 4:04 pm Post subject: Re: fluid around lung

My H too, they took 1.5 liters out....The Oncologist says the fluid is the cancer producing the fluid, once the cancer is stable or reduced, the fluid will stop collecting. The Glands of the lung can only handle the normal fluid, and with the cancer producing fluid it causes the lungs to fill and then unfortunately Collapes such as in my H case.
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pbj11 · Site Admin Joined: 12 May 2007 Posts: 1302

Hi everyone,

The fluid isn't in the lungs, but in the pleural space between the lung and chest wall. Cancer cells are not always found in the fluid. If they are, the chemo works on the bigger tumors and it certainly should knock out any cancer cells floating around in the fluid. Good luck!

I haven't heard of a vacuum drain and thought most drains worked through gravity. These may be something new and that's why the insurance company is balking about payment. I agree, this all should have been approved prior to the procedure. I'm sorry.

Take care all,
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

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