Jay and family- I am happy your wife is doing so well. I was diagnosed with Stage 4 stomach cancer (adenocarcinoma) in Jan of 2004, had a total gastrectomy (stomach removal) on 1/30/04, (prognosis was 12 months to live) and did chemotherapy at U of Mich, consisting of carboplatin and taxol, from April to September of 2004. Unfortunately, the chemo did not seem to work (effectively long term anyway) as I had obstructions in Sept and November of this year (2004) with the latter resulting in the need for additional surgery (bypass of the obstructed small bowel so that food could once again pass thru the system). At the time of my Nov. 2004 surgery my surgeon advised that he could not extend my life (expected prognosis- 4 weeks to 4 months)but could give me a better quality of life (food intake) which he did, but now the tumor is again obstructing or closing down the system. Even tho I understand that the cancer was at one time dispersed and thus hard to radiate, I am curious why my docs did not recommend radiation as they did with your wife...(altho the tumor is now intertwuined with the bowels so now it may be even harder to do) Any thoughts on that?
By the way, ulcers, often caused by a bacteria (H Pylori bacteria) are often/usually a prime ingredient for persons with stomach cancer. H Pylori is often passed in families, so all family memebers should be checked for this potentially lethal stomach cancer pre-cursor. I am now at Cancer Treatment Centers of America in Chicago asking God for a miracle as my system continues to shut down and my body (already down in weight by 1/3) continues to shed weight. Would appreciate your prayers, thoughts and suggestions. TR