CancerCompass message board discussion started by Cjmitch on 3/17/2007 http://www.cancercompass.com/message-board/message/all,10452,0.htm Thu, 04 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT Thu, 04 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://backend.userland.com/rss RSS.NET: http://www.rssdotnet.com/ Hi,My father in law has just been diagnosed with EC, PET scan showed two small spots on his lung, one small spot on a rib.  Dr is not sure if they are cancer and did appear to be too concerned with those. Cancer in the Esophagus started at the lower portion and has spread upward. Dr. wants to start chemo and radiation and told him yesterday to see a surgeon right away. The surgery sound just awful. My father in law has just turned 70 has already lost about 15 lbs. he had by pass surgery about 5 years ago. Has not smoked in over 30+ years. He does have defibulator in his chest to regulate heart beat. We love him dearly and want to do all we can to help and be supportive. Although he has remarried he lost his first wife to colon cancer. So this is very hard on my husband and his siblings. I found this site this morning and just want to say I will pray for all of you. Rick if you read this know that you especially touched me. Let me hear from you. We live in Virginia, they say it is very important to find an experienced surgeon.  Wishing all of you the very best . cjmitch Cjmitch Sat, 17 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT Welcome to the board.  So sorry to hear about your FIL.  It is a tough cancer, but dont let the stats on the internet get you down.  Treatments are getting better all the time.  If he is having a hard time getting in enough calories and they think they are going to do surgery, he should talk to them about putting in a g-tube.  He will be able to take meds, fluid and nutrition through it. It was a life saver for my mom.  She has now worked her way off from it, and is taking everything orally, but with out it she woud have died.  They are leaving it in place until they decide on the surgery, as she would need it after the surgery anyway, so no sense in messing with it right now. They were able to put in her chemo port and feeding tube during the same surgery so they only had to knock her out once (the tube and port are not in the same place, but it saved them from putting her under twice). Hang in there and please keep us posted ! 2cats Sun, 18 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT Thank you so much for the advice re the g tube, when is your mom's surgery scheduled for? I will keep you in my thoughts. My FIL is having some trouble swallowing, but so far he is still able to eat. I am amazed at some of the things he can eat some that he can't. He told me the other day he went to Subway. So I thought that was great. Will keep on praying. Thanks againJanet Cjmitch Sun, 18 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT My husband refused the g tube.  He was able to eat chicken croquettes, eggplant rollantini, scranbled eggs, and other soft items as long as it wasn't red meats.  He ate small portions throughout the day.  Drank malteds and thank goodness never needed the port.  Unfortunately surgery is not an option for him, but the chemo & radiation shrank the tumors enough do that now he eats anything and everything.  As long as they can eat let it go orally.  Much more satisfying for them.  Eve52 Sun, 18 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT At this point mom is not scheduled for surgery.  They are not sure at this time if she is a canidate for it or not. On the PET scan they could see a spot on one lung. They said it was a "lesion". They are unsure if it is esoph. cancer that has mets., lung cancer or something else.  They wanted to see how it reacted to the chemo., rather then subjecting her to a biopsy.  The chemo oncologist told her that they will probably do more rounds of chemo to try to get it into remission.At this point we are just happy that they have bought her some time and given her back quality of life.  We know it could be short term and we'll probably have to deal with this monster again. I don't think my mom realizes how high that likelyhood is, but I think she is able to stay more positive not knowing, and it woudnt really make a difference at this point. 2cats Sun, 18 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT Did your mom receive any irradiation??  The chances of chemo by itself putting these cancers in remission is less than ten percent.  The standard of care is chemo radiation and surgery if possible.  The spot on the lung, if the SUV on the PET is high enough can be treated as well if it is the only "possible" metastasis. Witchdoctor Mon, 19 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT Yes, she had 4 1/2 weeks (22) radiation treatments. They started them the chemo and rad the same day.  What is "SUV"? 2cats Mon, 19 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT SUV is just a measurement of how strongly the glucose is taken up on the PET, the higher the number the more likely it is cancer.  It also gives some idea of whether it is fast or slow growing. Witchdoctor Mon, 19 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT Just wanted to say hello and to say that I also lived in va until 2 weeks ago. If you live near charlottesville and can get to uva med center, I would take the trip if only for second opinion.  My father was dianosed with ec about 1 month ago with metastases.  It is taking the drs soooooooooooo long to get his treatments started.  I will add you in my prayers and look for updates on the message board.   God Bless and keep your head upp j Patch Tue, 20 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT Regarding your FIL weight loss, my father has also lost 15 lbs in the last two months.  His GI doctor told him to supplement his food intake with 5-6 cans of Boost Plus (350 calories each).  My dad has been doing that for about one week now and has gained back about 5 lbs.  We are so relieved.  You may want to look into this for your FIL if he doesn't have any issues like diabetes that would preclude taking in that much sugar.  I think they are fairly high in sugar but not sure.My dad goes to his oncologist tomorrow to have his PET scan read.  Say prayers for him!! Debby Debbyw67 Tue, 20 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT Nice to hear from a former Virginian. My FIL has decided he will go to Duke. He sees the oncologist today to get his chemo and other treatment suggestions. He resides in Manteo and they do have a cancer treatment center there now. He will be able to have his chemo and radiation there. I keep telling him to gain as much weight as he possibly can before treatment and surgery. I find out more this evening when I call him. This message center has given me so much hope and advice. I am so very glad I found it. Thank you take care and God Bless Cjmitch Thu, 22 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT Hi Debby, hope the PET scan shows good results. My FiL is diabetic but has been drinking the Boost drinks. Luckily he can still eat pretty well. I plan on spending next week making soups, stews and banana pudding to take to him. Thanks for the advice Good luck and God Bless Janet Cjmitch Thu, 22 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT Hi,I'm new to this board and have never really been in any room for anything until now. I'm sorry to hear about your situation. My husband was diagnosed with EC in March of 05. He had a suffered with heartburn for most of his life. He did all of the right things by eating right, elevating his side of the bed, antiacids and ongoing care with his primary care physician for 23 years. In early January we were on a small week-end away and he was having trouble keeping food down. He had noticed the increase in this for a few weeks but it got so bad on that week-end. He was bringing up some blood and feeling bloated. After much fighting with his doctor he was given an endoscopy and we were given the news that he had a fairly large tumor in the upper esophagus, not that close to the stomach. We were devastated. We were told that there was only one doctor in Southern California that did the surgery. He was at USC Medical Center and my husband had to go through a battery of tests before he was approved for the surgery. We were so hopeful and confindent in his doctor. He passed all the tests and the surgery was scheduled for April 19th. We were told it was a 9 hour surgery and all the risks. We were very informed. He had his esophagus removed and 2/3 of his stomach removed and the remaining stomach brought up and a new esophagus was created. When they removed the lymp nodes they found many that were involved. The battle began. Radiation was out because of the extent of the surgery so chemo was recommended. He was in the hospital for 8 days and did amazing when he was home. He ate soft, high calorie foods. Stayed away from foods that made him dump.  A few weeks after surgery he was having a difficult time breathing and back to the hosptial we went. The drained 3000 cc of fluid off his lungs and found the fluid to have malignant cells. It was the worst case scenario. We had 2 opinions. I work in a big hosptial and our oncoligist was the one we went with. He told us that he could not cure my husband but he felt that he could give him some time with a good quality of life. He started the treatments on July 8th his 56 th birthday. We were so hopeful because he was able to work and fish and lead a very "new normal" life. His cat scans were always clean and his tumor markers went down with each treatment. He really did well and had such a great attitude. What a terrific role model for our 2 grown sons. He did suffer some kidney issues and it wasn't always pleasant but he was alive. On April 19th of 2006 he had to have a small surgery to help with his kidney situation. It was not succesful. The scar tissue was to dense. After the surgery he was getting horrible headaches. Nothing helped him. He was only comfortable with his chin on his chest. He was not able to get any relief. I have never felt more alone or desperate to help him in all my life. I was blessed to have him here at the hospital I work with a doctor that cared about his life. After many tests it was determined that the cancer had gone to his spine and brain. He was not getting pain relief and we were out of options. We took him home on Monday April 24th and his pain and suffering ended on April 27th. He was at home surrounded by his sons, myself and his sister. Oh, and our dog Jackson. He was looking out on his beautiful, green, full of flowers backyard and I have no doubt it was just like he would have asked for. Just hours before we lost him his doctor called and cried with me. He was just as surprised as all of us that the cancer had spread so fast. He was working just days before he was admitted to the hospital.Looking back we as a family have no regrets. The surgery seemed like his best hope and he was a candidate for it. His chemo went well and he was living. The only thing I would say to others that are going through this is forget the tumor markers. His were down the lowest ever and he died 10 days later. Go by how they look, how they eat, how they live. They will be the best judge. As with any cancer, early detection is the best and believing you can beat it. Always, always a positive attitude. Prayers and prayers of others will give you hope. Love life!!!I miss him every day. I was married for 30 years to an amazing man and I wouldn't trade anything we went through. Some people never get to say that. Even with the pain I was blessed.   Moonstonebeach Mon, 26 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT Thank you for taking the time to share your story. Dx in April 2005, My husband as well just wanted to work and fish. I am hoping he will be able to get back on the water. Thankful you came here to share. God Bless. Lou38s Mon, 26 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT I will pray that your husband can do those things he loves too. It sure helps them with their spirits. Where is your husband in his battle?  Moonstonebeach Tue, 27 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT I'm sorry to say that my husband lost his battle to cancer on April 27th of last year.It's hard for me to believe that he has been gone for almost a year. I would have never believed that at the beginning of his treatment it would end like this and so fast. Once it was discovered in his lungs and the extent of the lymph nodes we knew the changes of his beating it was not to be. However, we never thought it would take his life in a little over a year.I think we were very naive going into this. Who would have thought that a 57 year old man in good health, except for "heartburn" would have a life threatening cancer. Moonstonebeach Fri, 06 Apr 2007 00:00:00 GMT