Hey Stephen,
I saw your note on the other board about Dr. Mulcahy; my husband saw her for a second opinion, at my insistence. She advised the same treatment plan that the the oncologist Ray decided on advised. He had radiation while also having Gemzar and 5 FU. The infusions were every 3 weeks for 3 weeks then 1 week off; this went on for 6 months. He missed 1 or 2 infusions due to low platelets and received a shot of a drug (the name of which escapes me) every week to build up his red blood cells. ( Dr. Talamonti did want Ray to be a part of a vaccine program he was going to implement at Northwestern but by the tine Ray's chemo was finished Dr. Talamonti had moved to Evanston Hospital and we never heard any more about the vaccine trial.) However, he had a 2.5 cm adenocarcinoma of the head of the pancreas and I'm not certain if neuroendocrine treatment is the same. He tolerated the treatment pretty well, never had nausea or vomiting but was tired. His appetite was off and I had to coax him to eat; there is a drug derivative from cannabis called Marinol, perfectly legal, that is said to boost the appetite and work well. I didn't know about it then or would have had Ray take it. Ray is depressed at times, a well-known side effect of pc; most patients and many care takers use an anti-depressant to get through the days and nights. Ray will never admit he is depressed hence no anti-depressant but overall he deals with things pretty well. There is a lot of support on these boards, some folks look to their religion, others to their families and friends for help and support. I guess we all just do what we can to make it, a day at a time.
I didn't mean to go on at such length. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask. I will be glad to help in any way I can. I know this is a very hard road.
Best wishes for continued recovery.
Joan