Colon Cancer, With Blockage

I am on my 8th treatment of Chemo with my last being the worse.

I am hungry but unable to eat, when I do eat, i throw it up, my DR. says eat anything, just eat.  I am taking Oxaliplatin, Leucovorin and 5-Fluorouracil [Modified FOLFOX 6] I just had my 2nd X Ray & CT scan and was told no change in my tumor size from my last test but that was good at least it had not grown in size blocking my entire colon plus I cannot be operated on due the chance of spreading my cancer as i am now stage 4 with cancer in my lower ab. & overies . 

My question is now they want to add Bevacizumab [Avastin] to my MIX and i am scared as i have been told this may have serious side effects.  What do you think?  EN 

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Hi,

I believe the Avastin is what helped save my life!  There can be some serious side effects- the only one I had, however, was high blood pressure.  I also had nose bleeds- not serious, just annoying.

I was stage IV w/ it in my liver and lungs & am now in remission after 10 treatments with Folfox + Avastin.  !  I would embrace starting the Avastin if I were you, actually.  They'll monitor you carefully for any side effects & it just may be what you need to start shrinking the tumor.

Best wishes to you-

Lisa

 

On 6/12/2008 glsvette wrote:

I am on my 8th treatment of Chemo with my last being the worse.

I am hungry but unable to eat, when I do eat, i throw it up, my DR. says eat anything, just eat.  I am taking Oxaliplatin, Leucovorin and 5-Fluorouracil [Modified FOLFOX 6] I just had my 2nd X Ray & CT scan and was told no change in my tumor size from my last test but that was good at least it had not grown in size blocking my entire colon plus I cannot be operated on due the chance of spreading my cancer as i am now stage 4 with cancer in my lower ab. & overies . 

My question is now they want to add Bevacizumab [Avastin] to my MIX and i am scared as i have been told this may have serious side effects.  What do you think?  EN 

--Message edited by CancerCompass staff. For personal protection, email address removed. Consider private reply. Please review CancerCompass Member Guidelines at http://www.cancercompass.com/common/guidelines.html--

Hi, I agree with List's comments and I don't think I would be here now  either without Avastin. It shrank my 10 tumors that spread to the liver so they cound operate. Had minimal side effects. Your doc can give you a prescription to help with the nausea problem. Best wishes.

Please take the Avastin, its a wonder drug. im stage 4 with one met to my liver and now im cancer free. i really think God and Avastin was silver bullet...hang in there

your friend

Bobby Gene

I agree with the others about the Avastin. The targeting drugs seem to be the wave of the future and hold the most promise.  I'm also wondering about possible surgery for you.  My mom had extensive mets to her abdomen and ovaries and all were debulked (along with the main tumor) when she was diagnosed.  They told her that this was crucial-you may want to investigate this possibility again to be clear on why you can't have surgery. Are you being treated at a hospital with good resources?

Best of luck in your journey and stay strong!

 

On 6/15/2008 Chrisobrn wrote:

I agree with the others about the Avastin. The targeting drugs seem to be the wave of the future and hold the most promise.  I'm also wondering about possible surgery for you.  My mom had extensive mets to her abdomen and ovaries and all were debulked (along with the main tumor) when she was diagnosed.  They told her that this was crucial-you may want to investigate this possibility again to be clear on why you can't have surgery. Are you being treated at a hospital with good resources?

Best of luck in your journey and stay strong!

 

I am being treated at MD Anderson, Houston, TX and they said no Surgery  I have also been told this treatment has awful and dangerous side effects ?

I have stage 4, no surgery (thank god!), and have been on Xeloda and Avastin for over a year now. I started with every three weeks intravenous Oxaliplatin, Avastin, and whatever else was in the 'cocktail' and Xeloda - two weeks on, one week off. I just spent 4 hours one day every three weeks hooked up. After 10 rounds of Oxaliplatin, my hands went numb, so off that one. I've had 30 rounds of raditation that knocked the tumor down from 10 centimeters to 2. I will continue to do the Avastin and Xeloda 'cocktail' until it's not working and the cancer becomes active again. My mets are to lymph nodes into my abdomen and some suspicious node in my neck. Petscans showed very little movement in the nodes after a year and some change, so it's doing it's job. I had a second opinion on treatment before I started with another very well respected oncologist and she was all over surgery, NO Avastin until after surgery, and wasn't too hip on the Xeloda (which is another form of 5FU) either, but she wanted to have a port implanted and everything intravenous. I don't have the time to go two days and then to a nurse on the third day to have the pump unhooked and the port cleaned! SHEESH!!! Too inconvenient! I wasn't too hip on her methods, (too aggressive for my taste), so I took my docs's route. I was diagnosed February of '07 and I feel great these days! The Avastin hasn't been an issue whatsoever. Nose bleeds every once in a while as another poster said. Blood pressure is good. And contrary to what the other doctor said, (the one who didn't want to use Avastin until after surgery), it didn't cause me any bowel perforations! If yo research that it says only 1% of patients have that happen. In the end you'll choose the treatment that YOU feel comfortable with. DON'T listen to others about the lack of surgery - most fols thar haven't been there, (or have) are all over the surgery thing. I've read enough that had led me to belive that surgery isn't always the best option unless it's absolutely necessary. I'm 46, by the way and I REALLY don't think this is what's gonna get me! Don't let the cancer become you. Live your life as normal as possible and keep away form those who are overly focused on cancer.