Drained but still very distended?
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I am really glad Fiona got some fluid out. I can only imagine she feels much more comfortable.
I am thinking good thoughts for the latest CT results.
Peace and prayer
BarbaraWell we didnt get the chemo – blood count too low. Did the CT scan but not got results yet. Since we didnt get chemo we had time to get drained. This time we were guided in under ultrasound again and they got 6.7L out of her – pretty much normal so I expect her distention was caused by fluid and they botched the drain last time.
Fiona is not keen to get latest CT results – afraid of bad news but we will hear in the next week or so.
Thankyou so much for all your kind thoughts.
Ralf
Ralf & Fiona,
I too will be thinking of you tomorrow & hoping the results of the scan bring good news.
Darla
My prayers will be with you that tomorrow brings good news from the scan and that the chemo goes well for Fiona.
Jamierortman…also wanted to remind you of the invaluable “SEARCH FUNCTION”. It contains the the collective wisdom, experiences, tips, and hints of all members of this site. Ascities has been discussed frequently and you might find something pertaining to your situation.
Sending all my love,
MarionYes, recently she has added a diuretic by another oncologist but it seems to dehydrate her and we have reduced the dose on the recommendation of her main oncologist. He originally didnt recommend diuretics although we asked about them. All the research I have done suggests that they are ineffective in most cases. We have not been using them long enough to tell for sure but they seem to have slowed accumulation of ascites.
She was using 2 oncologists because her family is in a different state and she stayed with them for a fortnight to get away a bit, during that time she needed to be drained twice, once on arrival and then just before I drove her back, so she needed an oncologist to OK that.
Ralf….I am wondering. Has Fiona been presribed any diuretics to help with the fluid reduction?
MarionThankyou for all your support.
We are hoping that the issue is just loculated fluid that cant be seen on the ultrasound for some reason. Hopefully the CT scan will provide positive news on Tuesday.
Fiona is not looking forward to the CT – she is scared of what it will reveal. It will be our first CT since starting the Gemzar – she has had 5 doses.
Regards
Ralf
Ralf,
I am not a complete expert on the draining procedure, but what i did learn prior to my dads tapping was that his fluid was in “pockets”, and they could only go after a few of the areas to get fluid, b/c it is dangerous to tap too many areas. Consequently, they got 6 litres from my dads abdomen, but he was still distended(definitely less then before, but still distended) Maybe the difference is the that this time they only got 2.75 litres out and not the usual 7.5? thats a big difference. Maybe were fluid is in too many pockets? I hope you can get the answers you need. I know the stress of the unknown, can be exhausting emotionally.
Peace and Prayer
BarbaraWe are due for the scan next Tues and its the first appointment that we can get. We have chemo on the same day so it will be a tough day – especially as chemo is at 8:30am and the CT at 3:30pm – going to try to get her in early by just showing up. Its in the same building so we have nothing to lose.
Fiona is feeling sick and she is quite weak. She doesnt feel that the doctors hold out a lot of hope and she thinks the Doctors dont think the chemo is working. I didnt hear that and I think they have a bias toward not using it because they have no direct evidence that Gemzar is effective for this cancer. I think the negativity stems from the hospital funding the drug as the government doesnt fund it for this type of cancer in Australia. Not sure what this stuff costs but I expect its very costly.
I’m hoping Fiona’s distention is loculated fluid that they couldnt see in the ultrasound. Fiona is not keen on he CT as she is worried what else it will show.
Fiona needs me to be strong so I need to keep emotions in check, she needs the rock to lean on. We live in a rural area and commute for treatment so there are not many people to vent with but this forum is great help and its good to be able to talk to people who just understand.
Many thanks to you all
Ralf
Ralf,
You wrote: I’m so worried and struggle not to show it.
Your words really caught me, I remember this as being one of the most difficult things. You are wondering if there is any hope and you can’t show that because then you are afraid of what that means. Do you have someone you can talk to in person about this? When my mom was in the hospital, social workers would stop by quite frequently and they were very helpful to me.
With regard to the draining problem, I have no experience to report but it seems to me that this cancer can cause all sorts of blockages, hope they can fix it soon and that Fiona is comfortable.
Patty
Quanyinprayer,,
I have no advice but there are plenty of posts here on nausea if you use the Search function. These one seem helpful:
http://www.cholangiocarcinoma.org/punbb/viewtopic.php?id=2561
http://www.cholangiocarcinoma.org/punbb/viewtopic.php?id=16
Patty
Any explanation or tips?
Does anyone experience or seen patience nausea over a long period of time after chemo? My mom had her 3rd chemo treatment on March 02. It’s been over 3 weeks now. Hospitalized 3 times after the treatment due to pain, unable to urine and constipate, and nausea. She was discharged home 4 days ago but now mom still keeps vomiting and the nausea med does not seem to help. She has the ext drainage replaced last week and it draining less than before it was changed but no jaundice so I’m assume the drainage is still working. However, it causes her pain also.
Feeling so depress about seeing mom going through so many complications.
Will call oncology tomorrow but I know I won’t get a certain answer.Thanks,
Quanyinprayer
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