Hi,
My husband is 45 and has been told that he likely has Stage IV rectal cancer with mets to the liver. We have five children. We found out when he had a CT scan to see if the back pain he was experiencing was related to a kidney stone. He had been hospitalized in September 2007 for his first kidney stone and the CT scan was clear then. The scan on 13 Feb showed rectal thickening, mulitple hypodensities in the liver and visible presacral and perirectal lymph nodes. We were floored. He had been having some bowel symptoms for about 4-6 weeks (bloating, constipation, irregularity, infrequent blood on the tissue and stool that he thought was related to a hemorrhoid). There is no family history of any kind of cancer.
The urologist sent us to a local colorectal surgeon who told us that there was "no urgency" in getting in for a colonoscopy! He scheduled the scope for the 27th and then had his office make appointments with the radiation oncologist on 3 Mar and the medical oncologist on 6 Mar. We were concerned about the "no urgency" statement and made some calls. With the help of our internist, who is anamazing advocate for us, and connections in the research community we were able to get him into Fox Chase Cancer Center this week for a scope and first meeting with the oncologists.
I trained as a nurse and have worked in pharmaceutical research for 20 years so I "know too much". I am actively forcing myself to focus on the idea that while the 5 year survival rates are not good for this diagnosis, there is no reason why my husband can't be one of the ones that makes it.
Even though we haven't had the scope yet he did have MRIs of the abdomen and pelvis. The abdominal MRI showed 6 lesions in the liver with the largest being 5 cm x 5 cm x 4 cm. The local surgeon stated that he expected my husband would need chemo and radiation before surgery.
We have no idea how this could have gotten so bad so fast! Because of his youth we're looking to be as aggressive as possible. We're starting at Fox Chase in Philadelphia and will also seek consults in Pittsburgh because we have contacts to the cancer center at Pitt and we know that there are some very aggressive liver surgeons out there as well.
I would be interested in any suggestions regarding nutriotional support. He has lost 25 lbs since January but we have been able to slow down the weight loss and keep his weight relatively stable by adding Boost and Ensure to supplement his caloric intake.
I am so thankful for this community because we are holding on to the fact that there are people on this board with success stories. We know we have a tough road ahead but we have vowed to fight every step of the way and knowing that there is hope means so much to us.
As you can tell, I am feeling a little scattered right now.
Juliet