Hi:
I'm writing on behalf of my wife. She is now 46 years old. She was diagnosed with stomach cancer in Feb. of 2003. She had surgery to remove 2/3 of her stomach. Unfortunately, the cancer was located in the lower quadrant and it had permeated the stomach wall. It was discovered late due to an ulcer on top of the tumor. She had a endoscopy done in November of 2003 which found the ulcer. Biopsies done at that time came back negative. They did not reveal any cancer. The followup in February, however, did reveal the tumor. At the time of the surgery (March '03), the cancer had spread to 7 of 15 lymph nodes in the stomach area. She was staged at a 3-4.
She had radiation treatment 5 days a week for 5 weeks. And at the same time, was undergoing intensive Chemotherapy. She was getting Oxylaplatin every two weeks in an IV drip, and 5FU on a 24/7 pump.
She too did not fit the "norm" for gastric cancer. It is prevalent in Asian Males over the age of 50. She is obviously female, 45 years old, and caucasian. Go figure that one out!
And the good news.......She went into remission last November, and is still in remission now!
She has her blood markers checked every 6 weeks, and CT Scans done every 3 months. I believe that her remarkable turnaround, was due to a very aggressive chemo, and radiation regimen, prescribed by the Doctor who gave us the 2nd opinion. We are with Kaiser Permanente, but the Doctor who prescribed her treatment is a leading Oncologist at the USC Norris Cancer Center. He has been a life saver for us, in my opinion.
There is hope for you. I didn't think my wife had a chance of beating this at all, in the beginning. But I sure was glad to be wrong.
Jay B.