positivity
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Derik,
I am also sorry for your loss, but glad the family got to spend time with her. It takes courage to share and thank you for joining our forum. It’s wonderful you had part of your life to share with her.All the best to your family.
Hello Fay,
That is a personal choice to seek a naturopathic doctor. It doesn’t do harm to be knowledgeable about all your options, and don’t just resort to conventional medicine. Just like a healthy person has to maintain their health with quality food and supplementation, it should not be different for a person with a chronic condition or cancer.I cannot suggest what you should give her as each individual is different. I can only share what I give my mom. Before she was diagnosed her immunity was compromised due to a case of anemia, so the first form of healing was to increase her immunity before even considering conventional treatment.
She has a mushroom extract twice a day, lemon water in the morning, 2 vitamin/mineral supplement for women over 50, one beta glucan, and tries to have a veggie or carrot juice once a day. She chews ginger a couple of times a day to avoid stomach aches. She eats fairly healthy, but can get off track at times so it’s hard to be very strict. I had no alternative, but to set a program to build her body. This is in addition to emotional healing and walking a few days a week. This was tough to implement, but this was our only choice. She could not and would not get chemotherapy.
Again, please use your judgment, I am only sharing. Look at her blood tests.
Thanks for sharing as we continue our journey.
Fay,
Also, make sure she gets high qualities nutrition, a lot of plant based foods. Vegetable juices daily and supplements. Sorry, I got short on time to elaborate.Hello Fay,
Usually once you have selected an oncologist, they have a team including the radiation specialist. The key is to interview a few oncologists. Ask questions and compare responses. Who seems arrogant or pushy and who do you feel at ease or more comfortable. It’s best to think about the qualities you are looking for in a doctor. I went to three before deciding on which one to be our oncologist. One was a smart *** and only had 1 option that we must start right away (too pushy), just to give an example.I would say ease at having a discussion with them and even if you disagree, they understand your decision. They should work with you, no matter what treatment you choose. They have to be patient and open to suggestions. They also have different treatment protocols. Ask yourself what do you want? Do your research and have questions prepared.
Is she getting blood transfusions? Did you ask if a longer term break from chemo would help raise her blood count, obviously with the transfusions. I know chemo can be tough on the body.
https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01766219?term=bile+duct+cancer&rank=8
I will test it again, and hopefully it works.
https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03003065?term=bile+duct+cancer&rank=4
Hopefully this works.
Megan,
The first issue to rule out would be pancreatitis as this is a risk factor with ERCP when placing stents, even though she doesn’t have stents it’s probably similar. My mom got pancreatitis and her lipase level shot up high and got abdominal pain even with IV of pain medication. Luckily, it subsided in about a week, but the patient must be monitored daily with bloodwork. Why did they choose drain over stents? Is it due to tumor location?
Hopefully she feels better soon.Great for your break from chemo. Be kind to yourself with great nutrition, nature walks, calmness, anything that lifts your spirit or mood. Supplements is a great way to restore everything you went through with chemo. Maybe you can take tranquil walks through the forest with your dog. Nurture yourself.
http://inhealth.cnn.com/advances-in-immunotherapy/what-is-immunotherapy-and-how-does-it-fight-cancer
Hopefully this works. I have never posted a link, otherwise go the site.
Hello Trish,
Surgery is very risky and CC is in a bad location, very close to veins and arteries making some tumors very challenging to remove. Also, surgery does not guarantee that the cancer will completely be gone as there could be microscopic spotting of the cancer which is hard to see. Some patients still need to undergo chemo.
Although people can live with 30 % of their liver, transplants are an entirely different process. One has to find a donor and can take up to a year. My mom was given dismal suggestions of chemo not working and maybe a liver transplant is the only option. I did not believe that liver transplant should even be an option as that seems more risky than the CC itself.
Have you suggested for your husband to take a short break from chemo, and feed him highly immune boosting foods and supplements before undergoing it again?
I highly believe that individuals can do well without surgery, if not better. Don’t give up just because surgery is not an option. It’s not an option for my mom and I got to a point of saying, “Good!”. I don’t want her to face the risk with the chance of all the cancer not being removed anyway, and I want that area not to be tampered with. Again, only a personal belief.Great Fay! The worst part is not having a supportive medical team, no matter what route you choose. I eliminated one oncologist due to not agreeing with some of his suggestions and overall not comfortable with him. He was also pushy which is not a good characteristic.
I have also been very curious about this, and on my continuous journey have learned the uniqueness of each individual. There may be differences on how active the cells are from individual to individual. Has anyone had a PET scan to determine this? Isn’t it supposed to show the activity and aggressiveness of the cells? I know sometimes the areas lit up can be inflammation and not necessarily having to do with the activity of cancer cells.
Hello,
My mom has her second set of plastic stents and it’s always nerve wrecking to wait for the conclusion of the ERCP. Metal stents are permanent and can also migrate, and may be difficult or even possible to take out. Another issue is if the tumor grows stent placement could be impossible and it may only be able to be taken out. I dislike the fact that plastic stents must be replaced every 3 months to prevent infection, but hope to extend the time by about another month. I will check more into metal stents in future visits. Keep us informed. Thank you.
