Has anybody had HIPEC procedure?
Has anybody had this procedure? If so how long ago? I have mets to the peritoneum and lymph nodes. They previously thought I had it on my liver, but my second opinion believes I have a cyst. Thoughts??
Comments
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As an Appendix cancer survivor
many (most) of my cohorts have had HIPEC. I had EPIC, which is intraperitoneal chemo given post-op; same goal, just different chemicals and not heated and not during surgery. Sloan Kettering (NYC) prefers EPIC to HIPEC. The standard of care for appendix cancer includes either HIPEC or EPIC.
Recovery varies, harder for some, not so terrible for others. However, it isn't easy.
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Hi,Once you're home afterRobinF said:Scheduled for HIPEC
I'm scheduled for HIPEC on May 20th, so no experience yet. Looking forward to seeing what everyone else has to say.
Hi,
Once you're home after surgery, don't be surprised if you're completely wiped out from the ride home and just want to sleep for a few days, it's ok, completely normal. One small thing that will help before you leave the hospital is to have someone bring you a small travel sized pillow (about 8'x12" from Walgreens) that you'll want to hold against your stomach while traveling, and pretty much any time you walk around. The reason is that the stomach muscles will be so weak that you'll want something to hold against your stomach for support while you heal. Also, when taking a shower, use a folded up towel to hold against your stomach for support and to keep the wound dry.
The large long wound will be stapled closed, so that will have to be patted with gauze and saline solution every day for cleaning. Simply buy a bottle of contact lens saline solution before you get home so that you'll be prepared in advance. Oh, and ask the hospital or pharmacy a cloth type bandage tape instead of nylon since it won't pull at the skin as bad. You might also want to purchase some "skin prep" pads that you'll wipe on before affixing the tape onto the gauze bandage - that will help with the tape removal, but again make sure to use the cloth tape, not the nylon tape. Rick's surgeon kept the staples in for about a month, and that really helped in the healing process. I've heard of people who were too anxious to remove the staples and the wound ended up splitting open. Not good. Just take very good care of the wound to prevent infections, and you should heal up nicely. Oh, and don't be surprised if you're frequently out of breath and just plain exhausted,it's normal. They don't call HIPEC the "mother of all surgeries" for nothing.
Take care, and best of luck with everything.
Cynthia
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HIPECLivinginNH said:Hi,Once you're home after
Hi,
Once you're home after surgery, don't be surprised if you're completely wiped out from the ride home and just want to sleep for a few days, it's ok, completely normal. One small thing that will help before you leave the hospital is to have someone bring you a small travel sized pillow (about 8'x12" from Walgreens) that you'll want to hold against your stomach while traveling, and pretty much any time you walk around. The reason is that the stomach muscles will be so weak that you'll want something to hold against your stomach for support while you heal. Also, when taking a shower, use a folded up towel to hold against your stomach for support and to keep the wound dry.
The large long wound will be stapled closed, so that will have to be patted with gauze and saline solution every day for cleaning. Simply buy a bottle of contact lens saline solution before you get home so that you'll be prepared in advance. Oh, and ask the hospital or pharmacy a cloth type bandage tape instead of nylon since it won't pull at the skin as bad. You might also want to purchase some "skin prep" pads that you'll wipe on before affixing the tape onto the gauze bandage - that will help with the tape removal, but again make sure to use the cloth tape, not the nylon tape. Rick's surgeon kept the staples in for about a month, and that really helped in the healing process. I've heard of people who were too anxious to remove the staples and the wound ended up splitting open. Not good. Just take very good care of the wound to prevent infections, and you should heal up nicely. Oh, and don't be surprised if you're frequently out of breath and just plain exhausted,it's normal. They don't call HIPEC the "mother of all surgeries" for nothing.
Take care, and best of luck with everything.
Cynthia
Cynthia was the surgery successful? Any pros any cons? did it clear the cancer?
Thanks, Carol
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Hikipper1219 said:HIPEC
Cynthia was the surgery successful? Any pros any cons? did it clear the cancer?
Thanks, Carol
Hi,
Unfortunately, the surgery was not successful, the mets returned only four months later. It was a very difficult surgery for him and it took over nine months to recover from it, and he was only 43 yrs. old at the time. Mass Gen. and Dana Farber didn't recommend it, but Rick still wanted to try to rid himself of cancer no matter what, so he ended up going with Dr. Martin Goodman from Tufts Medical. He was a good surgeon, but sadly, the chemo couldn't get it all. My suggestion is that you research this surgery as much as possible and ask the surgeon for his/her patients stats on how long it was on average before recurrence before you make this difficult decision.
All my best, and remember, whatever decision you make, it's the right one for you.
Cynthia
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HipecLivinginNH said:Hi
Hi,
Unfortunately, the surgery was not successful, the mets returned only four months later. It was a very difficult surgery for him and it took over nine months to recover from it, and he was only 43 yrs. old at the time. Mass Gen. and Dana Farber didn't recommend it, but Rick still wanted to try to rid himself of cancer no matter what, so he ended up going with Dr. Martin Goodman from Tufts Medical. He was a good surgeon, but sadly, the chemo couldn't get it all. My suggestion is that you research this surgery as much as possible and ask the surgeon for his/her patients stats on how long it was on average before recurrence before you make this difficult decision.
All my best, and remember, whatever decision you make, it's the right one for you.
Cynthia
did he continue chemo after the procedure? I'm trying to figure this all out. I have a consult in three weeks to determine if Im going to have the procedure. Thank you for all the info.
Carol
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Make sure you are going to one of the expert centerskipper1219 said:Hipec
did he continue chemo after the procedure? I'm trying to figure this all out. I have a consult in three weeks to determine if Im going to have the procedure. Thank you for all the info.
Carol
Find out what they anticipate accomplishing. I know several people who have had HIPEC and it was completely successful. Others where it wasn't. Unfortunately, it isn't only the experience of the surgeon (tho the detailed and complete debulking is critical to the outcome) but some tumors are more receptive than others, and it isn't always easy to tell in advance.
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Hi Carol,Yes, they put hiimkipper1219 said:Hipec
did he continue chemo after the procedure? I'm trying to figure this all out. I have a consult in three weeks to determine if Im going to have the procedure. Thank you for all the info.
Carol
Hi Carol,
Yes, they put him on Folfiri, but it failed about seven months later. Rick's cancer was very aggressive, so the chemos kept failing for him. There are many people for whom Folfiri works very well, and for many years at that, so there's no reason to believe that you wouldn't fall into the long term category. That's why I mentioned asking the surgeon lots of questions regarding your specific treatment since what works for one person may not work at all for another. And HIPEC may indeed work well for you, there's just no way of telling before you have it done since every person's reaction to a treatment is different, be it chemo or surgery. Colon Cancer treatment is certainly NOT "one glove fits all".
Good luck at your appointment, I hope that everything goes well for you.
Cynthia
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Do you know how many spots you have
on the peritoneum?
I ask because I had several peritoneal implants, and these were removed via conventional surgery. I know some people get "seeding" with spots throughout the peritoneum, and I can see needing to try HIPEC for that, but maybe the more standard option would be possible if you only have a few that need to be taken out.
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HIPECannalexandria said:Do you know how many spots you have
on the peritoneum?
I ask because I had several peritoneal implants, and these were removed via conventional surgery. I know some people get "seeding" with spots throughout the peritoneum, and I can see needing to try HIPEC for that, but maybe the more standard option would be possible if you only have a few that need to be taken out.
I'm in the dark to all other procedures available. This was one that was brought to my attention at my second opinion. Just want to know a few things from people. Like how long it lasted etc. but I'm open to hear other options that I can discuss with the doctors.
Carol
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kipper1219 said:
HIPEC
I'm in the dark to all other procedures available. This was one that was brought to my attention at my second opinion. Just want to know a few things from people. Like how long it lasted etc. but I'm open to hear other options that I can discuss with the doctors.
Carol
Hi,
For peritoneal mets, IHi,
For peritoneal mets, I believe the only options are either directed surgery (like Ann had done) and HIPEC. Rick's operation was about 8 hrs if I remember correctly, and a 6 day recovery in the hospital. I've provided a couple of links below, but you can find a lot of websites related to the HIPEC surgery simply by putting "HIPEC" into a Google search. You'll probably want to do a bit of research on this surgery so that you'll have your questions ready and in hand when you meet with your surgeon.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6utLyaEM1akBest regards,
Cynthia
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I had HIPEC
In 2009, I had HIPEC for peritoneal mets. They only found three, likely missed in my first surgery in 2007. They removed my gall bladder and appendix. The gall bladder doesn't respond well to the chemo wash and my appendix was abnormally long, bt healthy. I was in the hospital for 10 days, and bored stiff for most of it. They keep you in the hospital in case of complications as they can take a few days to manifest. The first two days post-op you are in ICU as they pump you full of fluid to flush out the chemo. My hospital wrist band was so tight but by the time I left, I could slip it off my wrist. It's a long surgery, mine was about 10 hours. I was on a ventilator for two days and it rubbed my trachea-painful! I had a tunnel epidural for pain that was in for 7 days and I never needed pain meds after. By day three or four, I was up walking around. I had been doing a boot camp for almost a year up to surgery so I recovered quickly and was scraping wallpaper in our new home a month later. Post-op chemo was delayed 3 months while I healed. I wish it had started earlier. I think that may have had something to do with my cancer coming back a year later.
Studies show that it takes a 150 procedures for a HIPEC surgeon to get consistently good outcomes. I think a lot of that has to do with being able to find the very small mets. Some doctors are very aggressive, removing the spleen, parts of the colon and other organs or structures, others only take out what is necessary. Some doctors are saying that HIPEC doesn't work as well for colon cancer as it does for appendix cancer because appendix cancer mets are on the surface and get the full blast of the chemo while colon cancer is deeper in the tissue. Another thing to think about is that the chemo wash makes your organs sticky and can make future surgeries difficult. I do know of one woman that is 5-6 years post HIPEC and still cancer free. Dr. Sugarbaker, who developed HIPEC, did her surgery.
It's a tough decision. I made it because I felt it was my best chance of getting rid of the cancer once and for all. I don't regret it. Good luck with your decision. Traci
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HIPECtraci43 said:I had HIPEC
In 2009, I had HIPEC for peritoneal mets. They only found three, likely missed in my first surgery in 2007. They removed my gall bladder and appendix. The gall bladder doesn't respond well to the chemo wash and my appendix was abnormally long, bt healthy. I was in the hospital for 10 days, and bored stiff for most of it. They keep you in the hospital in case of complications as they can take a few days to manifest. The first two days post-op you are in ICU as they pump you full of fluid to flush out the chemo. My hospital wrist band was so tight but by the time I left, I could slip it off my wrist. It's a long surgery, mine was about 10 hours. I was on a ventilator for two days and it rubbed my trachea-painful! I had a tunnel epidural for pain that was in for 7 days and I never needed pain meds after. By day three or four, I was up walking around. I had been doing a boot camp for almost a year up to surgery so I recovered quickly and was scraping wallpaper in our new home a month later. Post-op chemo was delayed 3 months while I healed. I wish it had started earlier. I think that may have had something to do with my cancer coming back a year later.
Studies show that it takes a 150 procedures for a HIPEC surgeon to get consistently good outcomes. I think a lot of that has to do with being able to find the very small mets. Some doctors are very aggressive, removing the spleen, parts of the colon and other organs or structures, others only take out what is necessary. Some doctors are saying that HIPEC doesn't work as well for colon cancer as it does for appendix cancer because appendix cancer mets are on the surface and get the full blast of the chemo while colon cancer is deeper in the tissue. Another thing to think about is that the chemo wash makes your organs sticky and can make future surgeries difficult. I do know of one woman that is 5-6 years post HIPEC and still cancer free. Dr. Sugarbaker, who developed HIPEC, did her surgery.
It's a tough decision. I made it because I felt it was my best chance of getting rid of the cancer once and for all. I don't regret it. Good luck with your decision. Traci
at this point I think this is my only option. The only other mets I have beside the lining is lymph nodes. They said that the chemo would take care of the cancer in that area and they would continue to work. They thought I had a spot on my liver. But CTCa seems to think its only a cyst. I'm young(53) and pretty active with no other health issues besides this. i speak with a surgeon in two weeks.
. Thanks Traci for the time and info!!Carol
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HIPECLivinginNH said:
Hi,
For peritoneal mets, IHi,
For peritoneal mets, I believe the only options are either directed surgery (like Ann had done) and HIPEC. Rick's operation was about 8 hrs if I remember correctly, and a 6 day recovery in the hospital. I've provided a couple of links below, but you can find a lot of websites related to the HIPEC surgery simply by putting "HIPEC" into a Google search. You'll probably want to do a bit of research on this surgery so that you'll have your questions ready and in hand when you meet with your surgeon.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6utLyaEM1akBest regards,
Cynthia
thanks Cynthia I will look into those.
Carol
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Have you had a PET scan?kipper1219 said:HIPEC
at this point I think this is my only option. The only other mets I have beside the lining is lymph nodes. They said that the chemo would take care of the cancer in that area and they would continue to work. They thought I had a spot on my liver. But CTCa seems to think its only a cyst. I'm young(53) and pretty active with no other health issues besides this. i speak with a surgeon in two weeks.
. Thanks Traci for the time and info!!Carol
That should show whether or not the liver spot is cancer. I would want to know that for sure if it was me.
Good luck, and keep us posted!
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HIPECannalexandria said:Have you had a PET scan?
That should show whether or not the liver spot is cancer. I would want to know that for sure if it was me.
Good luck, and keep us posted!
no they said everything would glow at this point since I just had surgery In February. I had 2 CT scans.
Carol
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Good luck!kipper1219 said:HIPEC
at this point I think this is my only option. The only other mets I have beside the lining is lymph nodes. They said that the chemo would take care of the cancer in that area and they would continue to work. They thought I had a spot on my liver. But CTCa seems to think its only a cyst. I'm young(53) and pretty active with no other health issues besides this. i speak with a surgeon in two weeks.
. Thanks Traci for the time and info!!Carol
Hope it's successful. Traci
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