Sir-Spheres Reviews

lakia_m
lakia_m Member Posts: 5
in Liver Cancer #1
My father has been battling carcinoid tumors. He visited a research clinic in which they are pushing him to have the Sir-spheres procedure done. Not knowing if he will be able to tolerate this much radiation I am against the procedure. I am fighting for life, and am fearful that this procedure will only shorten his. After researching I rarely hear of any extreme negatives about this procedure. After treatment how long have patients survived their fight and really what should we as a family expect in terms of after care. I know that everyone is different, but his liver is full of tumors with only (as of June 2011) 30% liver function. Did your family members have the same or less tumor growth? Also did the symptoms of night sweats, diarrhea, and flushing go away and or decrease.

Help!!!!
A Daughter in Need OF Answers

Comments

  • pbwtok
    pbwtok Member Posts: 3
    #2
    yttrium spheres
    My husband was diagnosed with 1 large tumor and 5 small ones,mets to his liver. I had the same fear of having the yttrium, but I felt I had to leave the decision up to him. He had his first implant 6 days ago, and feels pretty bad, but I understand some people have little or no side effects. Also, his tumor was 10 cm. Best of luck to you, whatever you decide. In addition, he has been taking Octreotide injections monthly for flushing and diarrhea and it seems to help with that.
  • rajeshkalro
    rajeshkalro Member Posts: 2
    #3
    Hi this Rajesh Kalro. My dad
    Hi this Rajesh Kalro. My dad is suffering from liver tumor HCC with clear cells. Doctors suggested me Sir sphere n since then i have been doing research on the net about it. My findings are that this along with therasphere is the second best solution, in case of non resectable tumor. I just got the procedure done today n till now my dad is very fine the minor side effects observed are vomiting but under control n abdominal pain but improves with IV pain killers. just make sure that the bilurubin level is prefrably less than 2 or max upto 3 before the procedure as if it is not then the procedure might become risky n can also lead to liver failure. We need to understand that this is like end of road option n this is the only solution that may provide some hope. My suggestion is to stop finding other options n go ahead with name of god he will take of everyone n i am sure your dad will also become alright...God Bless best of luck n take care.
  • Jenna2680
    Jenna2680 Member Posts: 3
    #4
    Hi! Not sure if this info is
    Hi! Not sure if this info is any help. My father has HCC. He went today for the mapping procedure for radioembolization with the y90 treatment. I believe this is a similar treatment to the one being suggested to your father but slightly different in sphere size. Anyway, I want to say my dad has only 10% liver function. He has really bad cirrhosis from hep c. His bilirubin is okay though at 1.5. He is undergoing the treatmet because that's his only option. He cannot have a transplant because he has cancer in other places too. I cannot speak to what the side effects are after treatment. He goes for his first radiation dec 6. It seems like the side effects are a lot less intense than chemoembolization and they have similar outcomes. My dads radiologist said that people in his situation (cirrhosis) can expect to get 1.5-2 years of life per treatment. However the treatment can be done several times as long as the liver is healthy enough. Sure you run the risk of dangling the liver further doing the treatment but I think if the doctors thought the patient wasn't healthy enough they wouldn't do it. I guess I feel like for my dad this will buy us time. The dr told him that liver cancer or the other 2 cancers he has won't kill him, his liver will fail before that happens. Not the most uplifting thing to think of but it's reality I suppose. My dad has two 2cm tumors, one on each side with several tiny ones around the middle of the liver. I was told it take 9-12 months for these tumors to double in size.
  • LISAmaried
    LISAmaried Member Posts: 6
    #5
    Jenna2680 said:

    Hi! Not sure if this info is
    Hi! Not sure if this info is any help. My father has HCC. He went today for the mapping procedure for radioembolization with the y90 treatment. I believe this is a similar treatment to the one being suggested to your father but slightly different in sphere size. Anyway, I want to say my dad has only 10% liver function. He has really bad cirrhosis from hep c. His bilirubin is okay though at 1.5. He is undergoing the treatmet because that's his only option. He cannot have a transplant because he has cancer in other places too. I cannot speak to what the side effects are after treatment. He goes for his first radiation dec 6. It seems like the side effects are a lot less intense than chemoembolization and they have similar outcomes. My dads radiologist said that people in his situation (cirrhosis) can expect to get 1.5-2 years of life per treatment. However the treatment can be done several times as long as the liver is healthy enough. Sure you run the risk of dangling the liver further doing the treatment but I think if the doctors thought the patient wasn't healthy enough they wouldn't do it. I guess I feel like for my dad this will buy us time. The dr told him that liver cancer or the other 2 cancers he has won't kill him, his liver will fail before that happens. Not the most uplifting thing to think of but it's reality I suppose. My dad has two 2cm tumors, one on each side with several tiny ones around the middle of the liver. I was told it take 9-12 months for these tumors to double in size.

    How did the procedure go?
    How did the procedure go? My father had excellent results. 60% death in the tumor within a month.He had some discomfort after, lost weight, but otherwise, I can't say enough about the possibilities this treatment provides. We had a wonderful Thanskgiving holiday because of it. His tumor was 8.5-9 cm. I am just wondering if other people have had such positive results. and What does it mean? How long do people go after the procedure? Do more tumors still grow or is it just gone? Good luck to you with it all. I would really love to know how it turned out.

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