My mom was diagnosed with NSCLC (a tumor attached to her right lung and partially wrapped around her trechea), in August of 06 (she was and is a smoker of 35 yrs). Her dr didn't get her started on treatment until Sept. Which she finished at the end of Nov. They didn't do another pet scan until the end of Dec. and didn't send her to a surgen for consutation until the middle of Fed, so by that time the tumor had reattached itself back to her trechea so surgically removing it was out. It had also spread to her adreanal (sp) gland and the surgeon wouldn't even remove that! She went back to her oncologist and he told her that it was basically over and that she couldn't do anymore chemo or radiation and put her on Tarceva and gave her a 1 - 5 yr life span and sent her on her way (not to mention he told her this the only time she was all by herself!!!! I have been reading some of your posts and notice that some of you have gone through treatments up to 4 times. How is this, when he told my mom she couldn't do it anymore after only 1 time? She was sick during the chemo, but she did her best and pulled through, she was only in the hospital once for fluids cause she got too dehydrated, but that's it!
Now she has a really bad headache that never goes away (for the past month) and makes her cry it's so painful (she's been to the ER and they knew nothing. She's been in the hospital for 4 days and they know nothing! Her oncologist came to see her ONCE, ordered an MRI and hasn't talked to her since. They didn't even give her the readings from the MRI! Other then the cancer has not spread to the brain). When she first had these head aces she called her oncologist and instead of having her come in so he could check her he just told her to stop taking the Tarveva for five days and see where that leaves her. Is this normal Oncologist attitude????
I feel that she would have had a better chance with a dr that didn't wait so long to get her started on treatment, got the pet scan read ASAP and sent her to a surgeon ASAP! It took them 2 WEEKS to copy her medical information and send it to her general dr for crying out loud!!! And when we call them and tell them that she's basically dying they say 'yeah well so are most of the people we see', like it's no big deal!!! I'm so mad at them! How can they treat people like they don't matter?!?!?!?!?!
We don't know what to do. She's trying to get on with City of Hope or Cancer Treatment Centers of America, but they only take certain insurances and she doesn't have the right one right now (she has to fight the government first!!!). Yet another thing she has to wait for! Where are all these places that are supposed to CARE about people with cancer instead of linning their pockets?????????
Sorry this is so long, but I have a lot of questions and no one seems to want to give me any answers! Have any of your or your loved ones been treated this way?????
Do any of you take or have loved ones that take Tarceva and if so do you or they suffer from extremely painful head aches?
Also do any of you have loved ones that REFUSE to help themselves? My mom doesn't do anything but lay on my sisters couch all day and sleep (she lost her job back in aug 06 and has been living with me and/or my sister since oct 06). She refuses to call her dr, to set up appointments, to spend time with her younger children, and complains about EVERYTHING we do to try to make it better for her. She also calls us nags when she's complaining of being in pain and we ask if she's called her dr. We don't know what she WANTS!!! She expects me and my older sister to do everything for her. I know it's mean of me and I feel bad for being mad at her, but the one thing she can still do on her own is SMOKE! I have to call dr's for her, I have to try and get her appointments with new oncologists for more opnions and possible treatment and when I do she's complains about not wanting to see them or she doesn't like the way they treated so and so in a different department all together, 2 yrs ago. The dr's have told her she's healthy (as can be), that she should still remain active (that that would be good for her), and enjoy her life. Nothing, but herself is stoping this. When she gets mad at us she says things like smoking will speed up her death or that she should take pills to spead up the cancer because she wants to die, since her children don't love her. My sister and I are both pregnant (22 wks and 13wks), we both work full time, my sister has a 2 yr old (who she actually gets mad at when the baby doesn't want to give her hugs and kisses and then picks on her until she cries), we both take care of our teenage sisters full time, we do my mother's errands, and she STILL complains. The only time she seems happy is when she's in the hospital being waited on hand and foot and we come to visit. I don't understand it!! We are both at the point where we just want her to go live with her sister. Is this wrong???
Thank you all for reading and sorry also for venting, but I'm just so frustrated!
Sincerely, Katheryne