peggyp
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Dear Rachel,
I am so sorry to hear about your son. Please do as Percy suggests and get another opinion from a top CC hospital. My husband was diagnosed 3 and a half years ago with Stage IV ICC. His prognosis was 7 months. He has fought hard and is still able to do as much as he can on a daily basis. He tires very easily, but other than that and some stomach pain, he never complains. We just take one day at a time and thank God for that day. I hope your son will get the relief he needs and start feeling better soon. Please keep posting and let us know how his journey goes. Sending prayers your way, PeggyP
Dear Steve,
I concur with what Lainy, Marion and Darla have expressed to you. It is never easy to lose someone you love. My husband has been fighting ICC for 3 and a half years now. We try to take one day at a time and look at that day as being a gift from God. Our lives have been full of ups and downs; yet, we have always managed to keep our love for one another strong. I know things will never be the same when I lose him, but I also know that we will be together again someday. Be strong, and if you need to cry, then cry. Tears are very cleansing. I hope things will get easier for you in the days ahead, and I will keep you in my prayers. PeggyP
Hi Fatema,
I know that John asked the doctor if the procedure for Y90 could be repeated and he said yes. Maybe, they think it will be less strain on your mom to go ahead and do both lobes at the same time.
John also asked about the chemo procedure being repeated and they told him that as long as there was enough good liver left they could repeat it, too.
I think they are concerned because John has so many tumors and they have been growing that he will have liver failure unless they can get them to shrink. I hope, too, that both your mom and John have successful procedures.Hi Byron,
I had read where you were waiting for the Y90 treatment. I think I recall that you were going to have the chemoembolization first. Have you had the procedure yet? If so, what side effects did you have? They told John that he would feel like he had a bad case of flu and would throw up. I hope things are going well with you otherwise. Sending hugs, PeggyP
Dear Tiff,
I am so glad to hear that your tumors are shrinking; I bet you are walking on cloud nine. Go out and celebrate life, and I will continue to keep you in my prayers. I love hearing good news!! PeggyP
Hi Lisa,
I will keep you in my prayers that everything will be fine next week. You are such a strong person and I love your sense of humor. Sending lots of support and hugs your way, PeggyP
Hi Diana,
Welcome to the CC family. I know things are pretty overwhelming right now, but since you have a plan of action, hopefully things will calm down. My husband was diagnosed over 3 and a half years ago with Stage IV ICC. He still does as much as he can but tires easily. Just hang in there and be strong for your husband and you’ll be surprised at how much you can do when you have to. This site will give you the info you need plus it’s a good place to visit when you just need to get away from everything. My prayers are with you and your family, PeggyP
Dear Fatema.
I am glad to hear that your mom is stable. I know how concerned you have been about her. I will keep her in my prayers, too, and I hope that she will be able to have the Y90 treatment. Sending well wishes for your mom and lots of hugs, PeggyP
Hi Lud,
My husband was diagnosed with Stage IV ICC in August ’08 after having a resection. They removed over 70 percent of his liver, his right kidney, gallbladder, part of colon and some of his stomach cavity. In March ’09 he presented with multiple tumors in his liver and has been on different chemo cocktails since then. Two and a half weeks ago, we went to UVA where they did a trial run to see if he would be a candidate for the Y90 theraspheres. Unfortunately, there was too much leakage into his stomach cavity so he was unable to have the treatment. From everything that we were told and read, it appeared that this would be a good procedure to try. He is scheduled to have a similar procedure next Thursday that uses chemo instead of the radiation beads. You are still young, so my advice to you would be to go for whatever procedures are available to you. Try to keep a positive attitude as I believe that makes a big difference in your response. John continues to fight each day and I am amazed at all the things he gets accomplished. I hope everything will go well for you and I will keep you in my prayers. PeggyP
Derin,
I have not kept up with all the postings lately but I am glad to hear that you had a successful resection. I, also, think that you are doing a wise thing in choosing the chemo followup since you are so young and healthy. My husband was very healthy, too; in fact, he had never been sick until he developed a pain in his right side. He has been fighting for 3 and a half years now and continues to fight each day. He is determined not to let CC rule his life. He had Gem/Cis from January ’11 until October ’11 but had to stop because it was damaging his remaining kidney. His only side effect was that he got so tired and his counts dropped very low. He never took any precautions and did what he wanted when he could. You sound so much like him. I wish you continued success with your treatments and many more years of living life to the fullest. PeggyP
Hi Lee Ann,
Welcome to the CC family. My husband was diagnosed three and a half years ago with Stage IV intrahepatic CC. He had a resection in August ’08 and his surgeon thought he had gotten everything. In December ’08, two spots showed up on his CT scan in the part of the liver that had not been removed. Not knowing what they were the doctors decided to wait until his next 3-month scans. In March ’09, he presented with multiple tumors in his liver. He has been on chemo since then, with some breaks in between. We had been told from the beginning that chemo or radiation were not options. John had wanted follow-up chemo after his surgery just to be on the safe side. I wish we had pushed harder for it. His last scans showed more progression so yesterday we spent the day at UVA seeing if he would be a candidate for TheraSphere. We got home at eleven last night. We did not hear from the hospital today as I had hoped, so we don’t know anything yet. Everyone has to do what they feel is right for them. I wish you many years of being CC free but you still have options available if you should have a recurrence. We, also, are raising a 9 year old boy and 14 year old girl. Love, PeggyP
Hi Eriq,
Just wanted to welcome you to the CC family. My birthday is also January 4. My husband was diagnosed Stage IV ICC in August ’08. He had surgery where they removed 70% of his liver, his right kidney, gallbladder, part of colon, and part of stomach cavity. Within six months, he had multiple tumors in the part of liver they hadn’t removed. He has been on three different chemo cocktails since March ’09. John has a very positive attitude and tries to take one day at a time. I believe attitude goes a long way in fighting this terrible disease. You seem to have everything in perspective, so my wish for you is that your pain will diminish and you will be able to enjoy your trip to Alaska. Keep coming back here as you will get lots of support from this site. PeggyP
Hi Sue,
Don’t get discouraged; I know that every time that my husband has had a chemo holiday his scans usually show more growth. If your husband is going back on the same chemo, it must have been doing some good or else his oncologist would suggest something else. John is on his third chemo cocktail. He was diagnosed Stage IV ICC in Aug. ’08. but he continues to fight the fight. That’s why we call this a roller coaster ride, because you get thrown so many curves. Sending prayers and lots of positive thoughts your way, PeggyP
Hi Tiffany,
Great news on the numbers going down! I hope they figure out what’s causing your shortness of breath. Glad your chemo is going well; keep fighting the fight because you have two precious children that will keep you motivated to hang in there. Sending lots of well wishes your way, PeggyP
Hi Richard,
We are practically neighbors; I live in Staunton, but am originally from Danville. My husband John was operated on at UVA by Dr. Reid Adams in August ’08. He was diagnosed with Stage IV intrahepatic CC. In March ’09 he presented with multiple tumors in the part of the liver that they didn’t remove. John started out with FOLFOX/Avastin; then he was on Gem/Cis/Avastin; and now he is on Xeloda/Avastin. We see his oncologist on the 24th to decide what our next course of action is going to be. Just hang in there and keep fighting the fight, and try to stay as positive as you can, because I believe that attitude plays a strong part in fighting this cancer. Sending lots of well wishes and a big welcome your way, PeggyP
Hi Marion,
John’s first two cycles were FOLFOX; then Avastin was added from May ’09 – Sept. ’09 with FOLFOX. This was for 10 cycles. Because of significant response, FOLFOX was discontinued and Avastin was given from Oct. ’09 – May ’10 every other week. FOLFOX was restarted with Avastin on 5-24-10 – 8-30-10. Then John had an adverse reaction to the oxaliplatin, and they stopped everything until 11-03-10 when he started back on Avastin. Because of progression in the liver, Gem/Cis was started 1-5-11 through May ’11 with Avastin. He had a break from June to August ’11, but his scans showed more progression in August so he restarted Gem/Cis/Avastin 8-26-11 – Oct. ’11. John started on Xeloda 11-1-11 where he takes it for 9 days and then is off 5. He still gets Avastin every other week, also. His last scans on Jan. 3rd showed more progression so his oncologist is rethinking his plan. We meet with his oncologist again on Jan. 24th. Hope this answers your question. PeggyP
