And so it begins . . .

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Comments

  • roalice
    roalice Member Posts: 3
    thingy45 said:

    Welcome
    Welcome Heart,
    we all have a story to tell and we are all here to help when necessary. We are the CSN family, we cry, we laugh we argue, but on the end we are there for another.
    I started out with N1 T3 M0,stage IIIb, I had a left Hemicolectomy, 10 Lbs of cancer the size of a basebal, removed plus 34 cm of colon, plus 4 cm by rectum.
    I decided against chemo and Radiation, my personal choice, and so far I am NED (No Evidence of Decease)
    Many on this board are very knowledgable, so ask away when the question come.
    You are in my prayers. Take it all one day at a time, easier to cope with then looking for the long run.
    Hugs, Marian

    I am new
    So much to learn! mY daughter Alice, (42, devel dis.) has colon cancer. Surgery succesful a couple of weeks ago. About to start on Fluorouracil and leucovorin intravenously for 6 months. Do not feel comfortable with the Onc. since he was not open to questions, never heard of Turmeric, made a joke when I asked him about a healthful diet. So looking for a second onc. even though the first one has already "ordered" the chemo meds.... and wondering how to handle the situation.... not a good way to start, I am sure, but i feel getting an oncologist that we feel comfortable is imperative. Any suggestions?
  • thxmiker
    thxmiker Member Posts: 1,278 Member
    roalice said:

    I am new
    So much to learn! mY daughter Alice, (42, devel dis.) has colon cancer. Surgery succesful a couple of weeks ago. About to start on Fluorouracil and leucovorin intravenously for 6 months. Do not feel comfortable with the Onc. since he was not open to questions, never heard of Turmeric, made a joke when I asked him about a healthful diet. So looking for a second onc. even though the first one has already "ordered" the chemo meds.... and wondering how to handle the situation.... not a good way to start, I am sure, but i feel getting an oncologist that we feel comfortable is imperative. Any suggestions?

    Just call other Oncologists
    Just call other Oncologists in your area. Ask them if they will accept your insurance. (Medicaid/care)

    Almost all of the Oncologists that we spoke to told us not to worry about the insurance but to worry about getting healthy. I have top notch insurance and was not worried about the expenses to much. (One is always worried about the expenses.) I would also seek out a Naturalist Doctor, there are many out there. You could use the Naturalist as your GP, and they will help you choose a healthy diet, herbs for antioxidents, etc...

    There are several groups that will also help with the expenses. The Wellness Comunity is a good example. They will help you with the expenses, and find Doctors that will work with you.

    Best Always, mike
  • Heart76
    Heart76 Member Posts: 26
    wts said:

    Hey.. I know how you guys
    Hey.. I know how you guys feel. I was diagnosed in June. I have finished up radiation and chemo and am scheduled for surgery next week. It is a whirlwind for sure. I'll be praying for you guys. Just try to stay possitive.

    How are you doing?
    I haven't had a chance to be on here in a while and just saw the newer posts for the first time. wts, praying your surgery went well and you are recovering speedily!! J's surgery will apparently be later in the year than we originally thought. The surgeon had told us he liked to wait a "couple of weeks" after treatments end before operating, but the radiation oncologist recommends 4-6 weeks. Reason being the cancer continues shrinking for a period of time and the more it shrinks, the better. (Of course, I do tend to take things 'literally' - surgeon could have easily meant that long.)

    We are staying in good spirits - 14 chemo/rad treatments down (14 to go) and hubby is just starting to get some localized irritation and bowel issues. He's also tiring more easily, but we were told this all might happen. Nothing serious so far, for which we are truly thankful. Xeloda (the chemo pills) does not seem to bother him at all. He has not lost any weight and his CBC counts are down only slightly.

    I am a bit confused about the CEA test. Hubby's count was 1.2 - I guess we expected it to be higher (not that we're complaining!!!)? Also wondered if anybody ever had any kind of tests done DURING chemo/rad to determine how well it was working? The radiation oncologist said that we wouldn't know anything much until after surgery. We know different doctors do things differently . . .

    Keeping all of you in our hearts and prayers . . .

    C
  • So Worried
    So Worried Member Posts: 111 Member
    Heart76 said:

    How are you doing?
    I haven't had a chance to be on here in a while and just saw the newer posts for the first time. wts, praying your surgery went well and you are recovering speedily!! J's surgery will apparently be later in the year than we originally thought. The surgeon had told us he liked to wait a "couple of weeks" after treatments end before operating, but the radiation oncologist recommends 4-6 weeks. Reason being the cancer continues shrinking for a period of time and the more it shrinks, the better. (Of course, I do tend to take things 'literally' - surgeon could have easily meant that long.)

    We are staying in good spirits - 14 chemo/rad treatments down (14 to go) and hubby is just starting to get some localized irritation and bowel issues. He's also tiring more easily, but we were told this all might happen. Nothing serious so far, for which we are truly thankful. Xeloda (the chemo pills) does not seem to bother him at all. He has not lost any weight and his CBC counts are down only slightly.

    I am a bit confused about the CEA test. Hubby's count was 1.2 - I guess we expected it to be higher (not that we're complaining!!!)? Also wondered if anybody ever had any kind of tests done DURING chemo/rad to determine how well it was working? The radiation oncologist said that we wouldn't know anything much until after surgery. We know different doctors do things differently . . .

    Keeping all of you in our hearts and prayers . . .

    C

    Now I'm wondering.....
    Some of the above posts mentioned you doing chemo and radiation before surgery so the cancer doesn't spread. The Dr. did surgery on my husband 2 weeks after dx. I realize that all surgeons/Dr.s think differently, but now I'm worried about the spreading. He is stage 2b, right colon, 14" out and reconnect... and had an option of chemo or no chemo "after" surgery, and he is doing no chemo. I just wondered why they didn't suggest chemo or radiation before the surgery? I read above that they do it to shrink the tumor too, so maybe it's according to the size of the tumor? My husband's was 1.5 cm...the report reads. Anyway, just wondering about any thoughts you guys might have on this as when we were told about the cancer, we were in shock and didn't know AT ALL what we were doing. Thanks much
  • Heart76
    Heart76 Member Posts: 26

    Now I'm wondering.....
    Some of the above posts mentioned you doing chemo and radiation before surgery so the cancer doesn't spread. The Dr. did surgery on my husband 2 weeks after dx. I realize that all surgeons/Dr.s think differently, but now I'm worried about the spreading. He is stage 2b, right colon, 14" out and reconnect... and had an option of chemo or no chemo "after" surgery, and he is doing no chemo. I just wondered why they didn't suggest chemo or radiation before the surgery? I read above that they do it to shrink the tumor too, so maybe it's according to the size of the tumor? My husband's was 1.5 cm...the report reads. Anyway, just wondering about any thoughts you guys might have on this as when we were told about the cancer, we were in shock and didn't know AT ALL what we were doing. Thanks much

    So hard
    We are in the same boat - totally in shock and questioning if we are doing the 'right' thing. The surgeon that found the growth during a colonoscopy has operated on my husband before (an emergency appendectomy - his second one, believe it or not) and we have a great deal of faith in him. When he told us the growth was adenocarcinoma, he already had a tentative plan in mind that did not include the chemo/rad. His office set up all the appointments for a PET CT scan, an oncologist and a radiation oncologist to run further tests. All of the doctors communicated with each other and debated the pros and cons of doing the chemo/rad prior to surgery. What pushed them to do it was the result from yet another test - an EUS (ultrasound) that indicated there MIGHT be involvement of two lymph nodes.

    I tried to research like mad b/c it all happened so quickly, but it's pretty overwhelming and there's so much scary stuff out there (like you reading what we're doing and that makes you worry about your fella's treatment). It often seems like one site says one thing and another says the opposite. Who do we believe - where do we go for the best answers?

    That being said, I'm thinking that your husband's cancer was in an earlier stage than my husband's and your doctor felt it was early enough that surgery would do the trick without the prior treatments. The chemo/rad can cause some serious problems, so it isn't always indicated. If you know the stage of his cancer or know it was caught very early, then that probably explains the difference in treatments. You could call the doctor and tell him the question has 'come up'. See what he says. (If your fella is like mine, he doesn't ask questions - but I sure do!!)

    Try not to worry ... I know that's much easier said than done! If asking me for more details on our case helps put your mind at ease, please do!