Carcinoma Meningitis

My mother died May 9, 2005 from carcinoma meningitis. She had lung cancer the year before stageI. She had part of her lung removed and we were told she was cancer free. About a year later she started to have headaches, lost her hearing, vision, and became unable to swallow. The first neurologist couldn't find what was wrong. nothing showed up on any scans.
We went to another neurologist who did a spinal tap that is how we found out. She was so far gone by the time we found it. She had to have a feeding tube, she was losing all of her senses. We tried a couple of chemo treatments but she did not respond. I had never heard of cancer in the spinal fluid before and found that it is very uncommon. I hope this posting may help someone else with this cancer I'm told if you catch early you can control the symptoms better.

My deepest sympathy to you and your family for your loss. My mother passed away July 24 2005 with Carcinoma Meningitis. She had breast cancer about three years ago. In October she went for her last six month check up (it had been 2 years in remission). She had been having trouble walking and thought it might be arthritis. After a scan we found out the cancer had moved to the bones. She had been taking treatments since October. In June, she began hurting all over. Her oncologist put her in the hospital and ran a ct scan only to find tumors in the putuitary gland. An ommmah (SP?) reservoir was put in to deliver medicine directly to the tumors. I truly believe she was too far gone even for this procedure. She lived four weeks to the day that she was admitted into the hospital.

My father was diagnosed with carcinoma meningitis this past weekend - he has chosen to try chemo...the doctor mentioned using the Dartmouth regimen (a combination of drugs) to treat him. Has anyone else herd of this? What sort of success, if any, have you seen...I know that success in the case of this disease doesn't mean much, but I'm grasping at straws...thanks.

Beth

my daughter-in-law was just diagnosed with carcinoma meningitis. She had breast cancer and thought it was in remission, but come to find out, it is back again, and seems like with vengeance. She can't see out of one eye, and just had a PIC inserted, because of lymph node removal under her right arm, the right arm can't be used for any exploratory type insertions at all. She is really, really, sick. If there is any advice you can give us, we would certainly appreciate it. She is such doll, but cancer does run in her family. Keep her (and our family) in your prayers. My son is at his wits end. He hasn't talked to the doctor about longevity, because it hurts too much. Please, please pray for us. She is thirty-nine years
old, and they have one son.

I'm so sorry to hear about your daughter in law...my father pased away from carcinoma meningitis in January - he had been dx with it in August 2005...

I wish I could give you more hope, but there isn't a lot with this disease - I think the best you can hope for is to make your daughter in law as comfortable as possible...

My dad had chemo treatment when he was diagnosed and for a few months, things looked better - some of his symptoms did improve (his voice got stronger, he got some hearing back, he had less nerve pain, etc..), but around December, things started going downhill and chemo was stopped. He really began deteriorating in the begining of Jan. and it wasa very long three weeks of steady deterioration...when he passed Jan. 29, it was a blessing...

I am so sorry your family, and especially your son, is going through this...just let your daughter in law know how much you love her and make her comfortable...

My thoughts are with you =

beth

Just an update.  My daughter-in-law passed away from her disease.  She died in a hospice and we really had a hard time, but we all know that she is better off.  She was really sick, went blind and started hallucinating and gained a lot of weight from the steroids, but she is finally out of her misery.  Her son will be four years old on the 2nd of April, and is so busy with daycare, it hasn't really hit him.  Of course he is too young to know what is going on, but we solicite your prayers for him and his dad and grandparents.  Her sister really, really took it hard,  They joined the Susan Korman walk for cancer and in lieu of flowers, asked everyone to give to the Foundation.  BY they, I mean her family, including my son, and they would always walk for the cure.  Just wanted to let you all know the latest. Cancer is a serious and almost always fatal disease eee.

B Blessed!!

My grandmother and I are very close and she was recently diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma in January. She had breast cancer in 2004 that went into remission and everything has been fine. For the past year I have taken her to different doctors trying to find out why she was having such terrible headaches and problems with her leg giving out on her. In late January she was rushed to the ER with severe chest pains and released from the hospital two days later. After spending two long weeks at home, my father and I decided it was time to take her to a bigger hospital out of town because she was not getting any better at home. After two weeks of multiple test, she was diagnosed. On Monday, March 12 she was treated by a neurosurgeon in Montgomery Alabama that told us he believed she had carninoma meningitis. She had a port placed in her chest in late January to receive her chemo through. In mid-February she had two lumbar injections of chemo into her spine because her blood was too thin for them to put the omaya port in her brain. After taking her off of plavix, her blood finally thickened up and she was able to have the port put in her brain last Wednesday. On Monday, March 19, our family went to speak with her oncologist about some issues the neruosurgeon presented to us. The oncologist did tell us that the cancer was in her spine and brain and basically all over her body. My grandmother is only 70 years old and up until the first week of January, she was driving her own vehicle by herself, going to the grocery store etc. This literally has taken her down in a matter of two weeks. She is absolutely misreable. The oncologist told us yesterday that she did need to continue with the chemo because the chemo travels through her blood supply. She has began experiencing terrible headaches this past week and we were told that is because you have a limited supply of blood in your brain so the chemo is not covering the entire part of her brain where the cancer is. She also stated that if she discontinued the chemo her entire body would be in that much pain. She also told us when asked about a time frame that she couldn't give us one. My grandmother's scan when she left the hospital showed that the cancer cells were outnumbered greatly but a week later it had spread to her spine and brain. My family has never dealt with anything like this before and I am begging anyone for any help or tips. She has quiet eating and lost over 30 pounds in a matter of two weeks. She has also had terrible mood-swings. If there is anyone that has dealt with this, please let me know some good tips just to keep her comfortable and anything we can expect. We have no idea what to expect next. I know that it will not be good, but I would love to at least know that whatever happens next is usually normal. I wonder when I leave her house each night if there will be a tomorrow for her and that is the worst part of it all for me. Anyone with any information, please let me know! Thanks for any help you can provide! -Linsey

Lindsay,

I am very sorry about your grandmother.  My father had carcinoma meningitis so I cant tell you about his symptoms, but every patient exhibits different symptoms and there is no way to tell which symptoms a person will have.  He experienced dizziness, loss of balance, loss  of hearing, and absent seizures prior to diagnosis.  Also, one side of his face began to droop.  He also had sever pain in his spine.  In his last few weeks he became very disoreinted and was no longer able to stand without having a seizure.  He began to  confuse words and had moments when he  did not undertsand what was going on around him.  He also became increasingly agitated and annoyed at those around him.  This reaction was controlled by a strong medicine, that unfortunately made him sleep alot.  However, until the last week and a half he had many moments of clarity.  I am unsure what amount of the disoreinetation was from the cancer and what was from the large amounts of pain medicine that he was on.  If your grandmother is in such severe pain the doctors can put her on pain medicine to either be taken orally or through a sticky patch placed on her skin.  I have heard of many patients lossing the ability to  walk, see, hear and/or swallow. 

 This  is a terrible disease and the only thing you can do for your grandma is to be there forher and love her and make her as comfortable as possible.  I am sorry I can not be of more help.

I am sorry you are going through this with your grandmother - it's horrible to watch your loved one go through this, I know. My father died of carcinoma meningitis last January...

You can definitely control pain, however, even once chemo is stopped. My dad's chemo was stopped about two months before he passed away and by the end he was on very high doses of pain medications that was given around the clock. It didn't take away all the pain (I believe) but it definitely helped and also helped keep him calm when he'd get overly aggitated.

I'd suggest talking to your doctor about this...I wish I could offer better suggestions, but sometimes keeping your loved one out of pain is the best you can hope for...

 Beth

Dear  Lindsay:

I understand what you are going through,  We just buried my daughter-in-law. She also had carcinoma meningitis.  At the end she was really really sick.  Haliucinations, and then seizures, which of course, took her right out.  But we thank God that we had her as long as we did.  She was a very nice young lady, and was happiest when she  (they) got their little son, who will be 4 next month.  She also marched, along with my son and their friends ib March for the Cure.  Keep in praying that one day a cure will be found for the "Big C".

B Blessed!!