Is this the end for father with Stage IV?

rdrose2499 · New User Joined: 26 Feb 2008 Posts: 2

I'm new to this forum. My father, who is 56, was diagnosed back in Jan with Stage IV cancer. He has gone thru about 13 days of treatment with radiation and since then he is not eating very much. He also cannot talk without losing his breath after a couple of words. He is to the point of being delusional now and I have to wonder if this is the end for him? He currently sits at home in a chair all day and doesn't do anything. He's refusing to go to the hospital for help. His wife talked him into going to the dr today.

Any insight would be helpful.

Tera · Senior User Joined: 31 Dec 2007 Posts: 186

I'm sorry to hear of your father's plight. It is difficult to watch your loved ones suffer. It is so hard to say how much time someone has. My mom's hospice nurse wouldn't even take a guess the afternoon she passed away.

You don't mention any medications he is on or mention if the cancer had spread to his brain. Brain lesions and even some medications can make one appear delusional. As for his appetite, if talking makes him out of breath, eating will do so too, so that could be a factor in why he's not eating.

You stated he's gone through 13 radiation treatments and won't go get any help at the hospital. Your mom got him to agree to go to the doctor, that is good. It could be that he is just worn out. My mother wouldn't go back for any more radiation after only 10 sessions....she was just too worn out and weak to leave the house daily.

You don't mention hospice. Encourage your mother to reach out to hospice or talk to his doctor about hospice. They will be a blessing for your mom and dad and you too. They will supply him with anything he needs, meds, oxygen, equipment, etc. and wonderful emotional support for all of you.

rdrose2499 · New User Joined: 26 Feb 2008 Posts: 2

He's on pain medication and constant oxygen at home. The cancer has spread to his lymph nodes and the tops of his kidneys, but I don't believe that it's spread to his brain as they did a scan of that before he started the radiation. His tumor is the size of a grapefruit in his lung.

I don't believe they have explored hospice yet. He's very stubborn and would probably refuse that at this point.

pbj11 · Site Admin Joined: 12 May 2007 Posts: 1265

Rdrose,

I'm very sorry that lung cancer has touched your life through your Dad. It's a tough illness, there's no getting around that fact.

If they've radiated an area that is toward the middle of his chest, he may be having difficulty swallowing at all. There are medicines that can be given to alleviate some of the pain and it does go away in a few weeks. Fatigue is also a big side effect from radiation.

He may also be suffering dehydration. He has to up his fluid intake with gatorade, etc. We thought my mother had the cancer spread to her brain at one point in her journey because she was so out of it. It turned out to be dehydration.

My husband had difficulty, late in his journey, with eating larger amounts of food. It seemed to intensify his SOB. He also was on oxygen 24/7.

He may also be suffering depression/shock from the diagnosis itself.

I hope that the doctor visit produces some answers. He isn't a candidate for hospice if he is actively being treated -- at least not in our state.

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

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