Stent limitations?
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Richo…..is the diagnoses bile duct cancer or is it gall bladder cancer metastasized?
All my best wishes,
MarionThanks for all the replies guys.
I had a chat to my dad last night and he has a metal stent currently with another stent inside it (I assume this is plastic).
The cancer was initially found on the gall bladder and bile duct and was unresectable. Over the past year the cancer does not seem to have moved around his body very much, which is good news. This makes me hopeful that as long as we can drain his liver he can kick on for a while longer.
He has had a few different chemos and recently had some radiotherapy.
I have read about PDT which seems to be another treatment we can take. I haven’t come accross SBRT so I will look into that as an option too.Hi,
If, you can ,ask the specialist(GI doctor) to see whether they can insert a plastic stent into the existing metal stent to open up the bile flow again;or try a percutaneous drainage.
If your father has bile duct cancer(please forgive me if not, because I cannot find out your father’s diagnosis based on your message), then it is also a good idea to inquire about radiation treatments such as PDT and SBRT especially if your specialist happen to be an intervention radiologist.Clinical trial with chemo and radiation combination also being mentioned in current medical articles.
2nd opinion is also a good idea.
God bless.Hi Richo,
Welcome to the site. Sorry that you had to find us all and I’m sorry also to hear about your dad. But I am glad that you have joined us here as you will get a load of support and help from us all. And please feel free to ask as many questions as you have and everyone will do what they can to help.
You say that your dad has had a few stents put in over the last 12 months or so. Do you know if these stents were metal or plastic? I’m guessing that they were plastic and if so, plastic stents are more likely to start clogging after about 3 months as Lainy has said to you. Plastic stents can be changed when they do clog and again, I’m guessing that your dads stents were changed these times that you talk of.
I do think that you should speak with your dads specialist tomorrow regarding your dads stent instead of his GP. I think that the specialist will be able to give you better information regarding stents than what your dads GP has said. My dad also was given a metal stent after his CC was diagnosed. His CC was deemed as inoperable from diafgnosis and that is one of the reasons that he was given the metal one over the plastic stent. Metal stents will also last longer than plastic ones when it comes to issues of clogging, plastic ones can start clogging after 3 months but metal ones should last up to around 12 months before this might be an issue.
Please let us know how you get on tomorrow with the specialist, we are all here for you.
My best wishes to you and your dad,
Gavin
Dear Rich,
My Dad had metal stents, he had 3 in total as his cc was an extrahepatic tumor which was in the middle of the Y. They extended 2 of the stents and when this stopped working they fitted him with an external drain which helped to collect the bile.
From experience it depends on the tumor location as to where the stents can be fitted. With my Dad in the end the stent couldn’t be extended any higher as it was impossible to get to, on Dads scans you could see it looked like a tree with branches, some of the branches seemed to wrap around and a clear path was difficult to see for the stent. Blood vessels and arteries are near too which cause even more problems when fitting stents. Also metal ones cannot be removed once in place.
I also second what Lainy said, have you had any other opinions of treatment available? My Dad was offered chemo but his bile level never came down to a safe enough level.
Dads jaundice never really left him even when his first stent was fitted and his level dropped.
Hope you get some answers tomorrow.
Dear Rich, welcome to our wonderfull family but sorry you had to join us. How old is your father and where is he being treated? As you have probably read here we are big believers in 2nd and 3rd opinions. I am not sure but I do think that metal stents are more permanent than the other. My husband had the other tubes and they needed to be changed every 3 months or so. Either stent can get an infection. Have the doctors talked chemo? Surgery? Where is the tumor and how large is it? What is his prognosis. These are all things you would want to know. If it just doesn’t feel right to you, you have the right to all his medical records and LABS and take them for another opinion. A year seems a long time to me to be stented with no other plans taking place. Please keep us posted as you have come to the best place and we care.
P.S. Think of the Jaundice as a dye coloring the skin as it takes months to completely disappear.Hi all,
I have been lurking here for a while getting info from the many posts here to help us with my dad’s treatment. So firstly thanks to all for sharing their experiences and info.
My dad has had a few stents put in over the last 12 months or so to maintain his liver function. Recently he was getting jaundiced and retaining a lot of fluid so they put him in hospital to have another stent ‘tune-up’. He has been out a week and the jaundice has not diminished much.
He saw his GP today and his GP said that they can not do any more stent replacements or tune-ups, and that he is basically on his ‘last strike’.I can’t seem to understand what is limiting the ability to do more stenting, and reading posts here I see many people have had several stent replacements and or clean ups.
Now I understand there are several different types of stents, and all I know of my dad’s is that it is metal. I am going to find out all the info I can about the stent tomorrow from his specialists. So if anyone can think of any questions I should ask, feel free to offer them up so I can ask them.
Through my searching of the forums I have come across those who have had external bags with catheters to drain the liver. Is this the logical progression when the stents seem to no longer work?
Thanks for all the help so far, and any new assistance you guys can offer.
Richo.
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