I'm new to the board. My 67 yr. old father was diagnosed with Stage IV, locally advanced, resectable pc in early Jan. 06. He presented mid Dec. with painless jaundice. He had a Whipple on Feb. 1, 2006. At the time of surgery, his doctor told us that the cancer was close to the portal-vein which made it unresectable, but since they were committed to the surgery, that had to proceed and remove parts of the tumor that they could. They left about 10%. His recovery was a little tough, but my dad is a fighter, and left the hospital in 15 days! The cancer has spread to some of the nearby lymph-nodes. To date my dad has started radiation in conjuction with chemotherapy thru a pic line (5FU). He is in his 5th and final week of treatment. So far, he hasn't had too many side effects other than fatigue. He now has diabeties and takes insulin injections. I have started looking for more advanced treatment options becuase we were told during surgery that the "Best case scenario" would be a year. We are so worried about wasting precious time. Has anyone heard anything about the Cancer Treatment Centers of America? Also, any new chemo or radiation treatments. My prayers are with all who are suffering through this.
Veronica in CA.