amylea
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Barbara,
My mom had a needle biopsy recently the pera aorata, and she was very uncomfortable for a couple of weeks after. The surgeon told Mom that it is very common for people to be uncomfortable after needle biopsies.
I see that your dad had a PET and CAT scan also. Mom’s oncologist told her that the only way to REALLY know that it is cancer is to do a biopsy.
If your dad is similar to my mom it may take him some time to recover. I completely understand your concerns.
Big hugs, AmyHi everyone,
Well, got the results from Mom’s latest PET scan. Not exactly the news that we wanted to hear. There are three spots which showed up on the PET scan. Here is the information they gave us…. A 1.3 cm left supraclavicular lymph node, a 1.3 cm hypermetabolic para-esophageal lymph node, and a 1.9 cm left periaortic lymph node. The spots showed up within range, but on the high end. Mom starts chemo on Tuesday. She is going to go every two weeks for two months. She is going to have a port put in this time. The drugs they are using are Oxaliplatin and Gemzar. All of the organs are clear.
Anyone have any advice about what is going on? The doctor has told her that they are confused about all of this, which makes me a bit nervous, but we trust her, so we are going to go with her advice.As everyone knows this seems like it isn’t even happening. I can see how the thoughts about what is going on can totally overtake your life. I could be sad all of the time, but I know that isn’t healthy for any of us. Do you just have to come to grips with the fact that you or someone you love are going to live with cancer? We can’t let it overtake our lives, but right now I don’t know how to do that.
I am so thankful to have you all as a part of our life.
Thanks a bunch, Amy
Hi everyone,
We went to the dr on Friday. She was very optimistic. This is cc again. The first step is to do a PET scan on Friday to make sure that the cancer is only in this one spot. I guess that from the scan there are three lymph nodes. Two of them were two small to biopsy, but they believe that they may be affected also. If it is contained to this area, Mom will have chem for two months and then the surgeon believes he can remove the cancer. It is the same surgeon from the original cc surgery. The radiation oncologist is on vacation, but Mom has an apt to visit her on November 17th. Jeff and Kris, thank you for the idea about cyberknife. IU hospital has a Gamma knife, which is essentially the same thing. So, we have that as a back up if surgery isn’t an option. So the next couple of weeks will be full of dr apts, but it sounds like we have a plan.
Mom’s oncologist encouraged us to visit this site. She was happy to hear that we aready are members. I told her that we were already a part of the family
.Thank you for your words of encouragement and support.
Amy
Hi,
Well, the dr called yesterday and told Mom that it is cancer. We go on Friday to discuss the options. The dr. will call us tomorrow and let us know if this is cc again or another strain of cancer. I am not really suprised, I have read a lot about the stats, just really sad. Mom is down. She doesn’t want to have to go through all of the trouble again. I feel so sorry for her. The dr did say that it is only one spot and the spot is less than 2 mm. If for some reason they can’t do surgery, does chemo and radiation kill the cancer, or does it just put the cancer on “hold”? I feel good about the fact that this one is small.
Please, if you have any spots, get them tested.
Thank you all for being her to help.
Amy
Hi,
Thank you all for your replies.
Mom had her follow up scan yesterday. The dr called and said that they will do a biopsy next week. She said that she isn’t concerned, but she knew that we were, so they would go ahead and do it. The spot is less than 2 mm, and it is right where her incision started for the initial surgery. The spot hasn’t changed from the initial cat scan. I am glad that she is willing to work with us, and do what makes us feel better.
Mom had blood work done last week and we noticed that the liver numbers were up some, the dr said that she isn’t concerned about them. That is usually caused from medication. Mom also asked if there were any other spots, and the dr told her no. They are going to start sending a copy of the reports to us at home.Lots of love to you all. I will keep you posted….
Becky,
Hello. I am sorry that you have had to join our group, but welcome. You will find this group very helpful.
My mom was diagnosed with cc in October 2006. Your mom’s attitude sounds just like how my mom is. I am the one who could break down, and my mom stays so strong and positive. I know that inside she is unsure of what is going on through this whole process, but she stays so positive.
Big hugs to you and your family.
Amy
Hi!
This is all that we could find as the type of radiation Mom received, could this be the name of it?…… Image Guided Radiation TherapyHope that helps some…
AmyHi Jeff,
Thank you for your response.
Mom had the klatskin tumor, so they didn’t call her procedure “whipple”. Mom had Gemzar as the chemo. Mom had radiation every day for 5 weeks for and the total procedure lasted about 30 minutes. They had a form for her to lay in each time. I am not sure of any other details about the radiation.
Talk to you soon, Amy
Hi John,
Congratulations on being cancer free. My mom had surgery in November 2006. She has had a lot of problems with gas pains and discomfort. The dr. told her that any time that they do anything with your stomach and so on it is very common. I wish that I had better advice for you, just wanted to let you know that you aren’t alone.
Mom has a hernia. The dr. wants to give her a little more time to recover from the other surgery before they do anything. I am curious if you can tell me some about what they did when you had your hernia surgery. Hers is about 6 inches. The surgeon wasn’t at all concerned about it. Sounds like it is very common. We would just like to know what to be prepared for.
Congratulations again.
AmyScragots,
Sounds like the cruise could have been more fun…. that just gives you a reason to take another one
.I see from your post that you had your surgery at IU hospital. My mom had her surgery there also. Do you live in Indiana? We live in Mooresville, Indiana. They say that IU hospital is a wonderful hospital to have this sort of surgery. Not every hospital has the capacity to do such an in depth surgery. Mom’s surgeon told her that this is the biggest operation that there is. She had her surgery on November 1, 2006.
I know that my mom thinks a lot about what is next. She went through chemo and radiation and met so many people who had been through chemo and radiation before for all varities of cancer. It made her think about the fact that she might have to be back there sometime. I try and reassure her that she didn’t get to meet all of the people who haven’t had to come back, because they were cured the first time. I know that is easy for me to say, because I am a bystander. I think that now I probably think about cancer more than she does. Cancer hasn’t been a major concern in our family, but now it certainly is.
Sounds like you have a wonderful supportive husband. I am so sorry that you have had to go through this. Big hugs to you.
Amy
Hello,
Thank you both for getting back with me.
jmoneypenny: I am so sorry about both of your parents. The fact that they died so close together has to make this even harder. I am also sorry about the fact that your sister is so worried. We don’t have much cancer in our family. My mom has an aunt who had colon cancer at 85 and an uncle who died of cancer many many years ago, but other than that no one. I agree with you, it can just show up with anyone. YOu mentioned that cc is rare, but showing up more and more, I agree. We have never heard of this form of cancer, and after Mom was diagnosed we know 2 more people who have been diagnosed with it….. very strange.
devoncat: I wish that you would have won the lottery also!
Big hugs to both of you.
Amy
