Primary Peritoneal Carcinoma

So glad to have found this message board, thanks to all of you who have posted on this horrible disease. My 79 year old mother was diagnosed with PPC stage 4 mid-November 2006. Like so many others, she had difficulty breathing after her belly bloated up. She was admitted yet it took days to diagnose; then 12 liters of fluid were drained and chemo started (taxol and carboplatin). Six cycles were prescribed, she has completed 4. She was 135 lbs just prior to the drain, is now down to 109, lost her hair and has become so weak she has to use a walker and pretty much needs 24-hr assistance. She wants to eat but even with the anti-nausea/vomiting meds, not much stays down. She spits alot. She's taking liquid supplements and likes drinking warm milk, green tea and Ensure or Glucerna (she's also diabetic) but with the lack of actual food, she's slowly starving. She's holding onto the 2 remaining rounds of chemo and the possibility of remission. Additionally she developed shingles while in the hospital and continues to endure occassional pain and itch on top of everything else!  Any advice on the spitting? On the vomiting? Thanks and God bless.  

 

On 2/2/2007 Esthersdaughter wrote:

So glad to have found this message board, thanks to all of you who have posted on this horrible disease. My 79 year old mother was diagnosed with PPC stage 4 mid-November 2006. Like so many others, she had difficulty breathing after her belly bloated up. She was admitted yet it took days to diagnose; then 12 liters of fluid were drained and chemo started (taxol and carboplatin). Six cycles were prescribed, she has completed 4. She was 135 lbs just prior to the drain, is now down to 109, lost her hair and has become so weak she has to use a walker and pretty much needs 24-hr assistance. She wants to eat but even with the anti-nausea/vomiting meds, not much stays down. She spits alot. She's taking liquid supplements and likes drinking warm milk, green tea and Ensure or Glucerna (she's also diabetic) but with the lack of actual food, she's slowly starving. She's holding onto the 2 remaining rounds of chemo and the possibility of remission. Additionally she developed shingles while in the hospital and continues to endure occassional pain and itch on top of everything else!  Any advice on the spitting? On the vomiting? Thanks and God bless.  

 

Hi,

I know it has been awhile since you posted your message. I hope your mom is doing better. I don't think I would have been able to offer any help any ways. My husband has colon cancer with mets to the liver but also peritoneal involvement. He takes Aloxi for nausea. Peace be with you.

Thanks for your kind words.  My mom is hanging in there.  She's down 5-1/2 pounds from chemo 3 weeks ago to 105 lbs now, and has gotten very frail and weak.  She hardly eats anything anymore; a couple teaspoons of soup, a cracker or two, a spoonful or two of ice cream.  She says her stomach just feels full.  We're putting extra scoops of protein powder in fruit smoothies.  She was to have been done with chemo last week but the pre-chemo labwork showed a low platelet count so they sent us home for a week.  I'm crossing my fingers she'll be okay for later this week.  Nothing foodwise is really appealing to her, she's forcing herself to just taste something.  I'm afraid she's starting down the road of starving to death.  The fluid hasn't built up and her last CA 125 test was 183. She's withering away and we're just trying to find ways to help her.  Is it normal not to want to eat at all?  Is it the chemo, or is her 79-year old body starting to give up?   

Hello-

I too am glad to have found this message board.  How is your mother doing?  My 71 year old mother was recently diagnosed with this terrible disease as well.  Originally they thought it was ovarian cancer but when they did surgery mid march, they ultimately diagnosed it as PPC.  She has had one round of chemo (carboplastin and taxol) and is scheduled for round 2 next week.  The first one went extremely well.  No side effects and if anything, it seems to have helped.  It made the fluid in her stomach and legs go away.  Without that, her appetite seems to have come back although she still can only handle a little at a time.  She usually is around 125 pounds but is now only 95.  That is my biggest worry as she is weak as a result.  For those of you that have been through this or are going through this, should we expect the side effects to get worse with subsequent chemo treatments?  She goes to the doctor tomorrow and we hope to hear that her body is responding well to the chemo.  Will find out about her CA 125 etc.  (She was almost at 800 at diagnosis).  Yes, this is very scary but we are trying to  remain very positive and saying lots of prayers. 

I am in chemo, including intrapertioneal chemo.   I was diagnosed 6 months ago with stage 3 that spread.   CA125 was 9062.  It is 14 today.   I had 6 litres of fluid drained off and lost 28 lbs.   Had 3 round of chemo, once every three weeks, had surgery to debulk, and am in  3 week  cycles of once a week for 2 consevative weeks and the third week off.   I have completed 4 cycles of 6.   I am 61 years old.   I am maintaining my wieght as eventally as possible varying only 5 lbs and that means I have to eat high calorie foods. 

My mother was diagnosed with same cancer 10 days before me and died 7 days after my diagnosed.   I thought I would not live till Christmas 2006.   As the treatments continued, I felt stronger in many ways and this included my mental outlook.   Sure, it is hard to go through chemo and all the side effects, but my mental outlook is now positive and that helps me to tolerate the down side of treatments.    

One of the hardest things was to watch my children and friends avoid me seeing their tears as life seemed to be coming to an end.   But hey, I am still alive and this cancer journey is part of my life.   Share those teary emotions with me, and we will be stronger together.   I know I am in many prayers that are powerful in my recovery.  

No one promised us life without problems.  It is my turn to fight a cancer battle. Many survirors  showed examples of how. For me, it is not the sickness but how I am positively going to heal from this journey.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   

 

So glad that you are doing well with your treatment. My mother also just finished her 4th of 6 treatments.  So far she is responding extremely well to the chemo.  We were thrilled to hear this week that her CA 125 is now at 6!  We have many many people saying many many prayers and she has maintained a great outlook after getting over the initial shock period.  She is back at many of her usual activities (walking 2-3 miles a day, kayaking and hiking with friends- just at a slower pace than before).  She is also back teaching her yoga classes.  I think this return to "normalcy" is a tremendous help physcially and mentally.  I pray for your continued recovery!

Bonny-  How are you doing?  I have been thinking of you and hope that you are doing well.

 

On 6/1/2007 Maxalliemom wrote:

So glad that you are doing well with your treatment. My mother also just finished her 4th of 6 treatments.  So far she is responding extremely well to the chemo.  We were thrilled to hear this week that her CA 125 is now at 6!  We have many many people saying many many prayers and she has maintained a great outlook after getting over the initial shock period.  She is back at many of her usual activities (walking 2-3 miles a day, kayaking and hiking with friends- just at a slower pace than before).  She is also back teaching her yoga classes.  I think this return to "normalcy" is a tremendous help physcially and mentally.  I pray for your continued recovery!

Hi I was just checking out the boards.  There are so many different ones pertaining to PPC that it's hard to check them all.  My mother was diagnosed about 3-4 months after yours....July 2007.  She had surgery and debulking and then 6 rounds of chemo via belly port.  Then remission in Dec. 2007.  She still takes tamoxofin and feels great again.  But they have recently found some hot spots in belly and chest but determined them small enough or not growing so they will not start chemo.  Her number is still low...around 12.  I was just wondering how your mother is doing since they both seem to be in the same situation at the same time .

sorry diagnosis was 2006 not 2007.

Unfortunately, my mom has had a relapse of the cancer in January 2008.  They started her on Doxil in Feb 2008 but yesterday after 3 rounds of it, they told us that it is not working and the cancer is continuing to progress.  She will be switched to Topotecan now and we hope that will be more effective.  It was definitely not what we wanted to hear.  We are praying and hoping that this will work.  I'm glad that your mom is responding so well and pray that continues for her.