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Esophageal Cancer

Archives for December 2010

My dad's gift to me and my family
Hi all. For those of you that don't know me, I lost my dad to this dreadful disease on August 29, 2010. He was only 54 years old and was officially disgnosed on August 9th and passed away on August 29th. To say that I wasn't able to process what happened is the understatement of the year. I have had a really tough time…
Hi to all my friends on the EC board!
Hope everyone is able to enjoy a peaceful Christmas despite the phase of the journey that you are on.... Have not been over here in a while....my mother passed from SCLC in Sept and mother in law from EC in October, so it has been a gut wrenching year to say the least. I just wanted to stop in and wish eveybody well and…
Heart afib
Don's surgery went well and he is healing as expected. The thing that is keeping him in the hospital is problem with his heart. They are putting him on cumidin to see if that will help. After about 4 weeks, they may have to shock it back in rhythm. Please keep him in your prayers and that he will be home for Christmas. Reba
Dad has questions about diet
Good morning, Dad asked me to ask those that know from experience.... I've been telling him to eat less more often, and all of William's suggestions, but he wants to know.... How long will it be before he can eat normal food? Particularly steak. Also, how long does he need the Jtube? He's getting his stitches out this…
Newly diagnosed - so many questions
Hi everyone, I am new here - with some information and many questions. 12/7 my husband had a EGD - a mass was found in the lower 1/3 of his esophagus. Tissue was taken for biopsy. Cancer suspected. At a minimum, surgery required to remove affected area of esophagus. Referred to surgeon. 12/14 saw surgeon who gave us biopsy…
Update - 5 days after surgery
Hi all, Just wanted to answer Williams question and give everyone an update. Yes, Jim's surgery was Minimally Invasive. He had 9 small incisions, I think 3 on his back and the rest on his front and side. Three were drains. Today they removed his nasal tube, and that was his personal turning point. Nothing else about this…
Mayo Clinic - recommendations for oncologists/surgeons?
Hello... My family discussed the idea of pursuing treatment at Mayo Clinic for my father. We will not know his stage until Thursday so we do not yet know what direction his treatment plan will go yet, but we are trying to get some ressearch done while we are waiting. If there are names of oncologists or surgeons there that…
Surgery is on for my husband
We received the word that the cardiologist and the cardiac surgeon are in agreement that Jim is fit enough to handle the surgery. They will hospitalize him on January 4th and hydrate him and get his pacemaker set for the surgery on the 5th. Just for the new people, I will give the facts of his ec. Jim is 68 years old, was…
What happens after the chemo is done?
My father is going thru his chemo as we speak for stage 4 Esophageal cancer. Recently he had a PET scan and all lymph nodes and the tumor site were clear for cancer. We all were so excited! His doctor told us he was responding well to the treatments, however the micro cells still are invading his body. He also explained he…
Seekin care for advance Esophageal Cancer in Boston
I was diagnosed with Esophageal Cancer, probably in it's advanced stages and need the best facility and contacts in the Boston area. I have been informally advised that it is not operable not treatable agressively.
Esophageal Cancer Staging
Thank you William for posting the general staging guidelines. Here is an article with the staging criteria specific to EC which some may find helpful. It was updated in July 2010: Practice Guidelines in Oncology - v.2.201 0 American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) TNM Classification of Carcinoma of the Esophagus*…
vomiting bile ?
Hello... my father has been fighting Stage IV EC for a year. Over the past month, he has lost 30 lbs, become extremely weak and sleeps most of the day -- there is one tumor in his liver that the chemo/radiation has not impacted. Last night he started vomiting bile and now has blood in his urine. He was taken to the…
Thank goodness for this Board and it's members
We so appreciate the help we've received from this fine group of people It is such a caring family and sense we are all in this fight together. William, Paul, Bailey, Donna and so many others have helped us with their personal suggestions. Thank you. May you have a wonderful Christmas and blessed New Year. Please keep…
Answers needed for Esophageal that has metatasized.
Starting in June 09 I had a radical hysterectomy for cervical cancer and then 4 months later I was diagnosed with stage 3 esophageal cancer. As I couldn't swallow at all at that time, I had a feeding tube and port put in. The feeding tube was a leaker and infection set in. Another surgery was performed and I was a week in…
William...Please don't stop helping
I have been reading this site for the past five months. William is a wealth of help and informations. Please, William, don't stop with your caring and compassionate postings. You are helping more people than you know. We need you. As for the lady whose feelings were hurt. I am sorry sweetie. I do hope you change your mind.…
Afraid to say it!
After two consecutive CT and PET scans and an esophageal ultrasound after Dale's semi recovery from a fractured left hip were all negative for cancer, our oncologist has decided to stop the chemo. We have completed five out of twelve rounds of Folfox. The oncologists words were....."am i 100 per cent sure that this is the…
This is a strange question
My husband was never a big man but since being on chemo he looks so shrunken. He has lost all his hair, facial and head, plus the beard. He is exausted and no energy at all. he will start his 4th treatment of cisplatin, 5Fu and taxotere on Monday. I know these are rough chemos but his appearance has changed so much. Will…
Father diagnosed yesterday. Need to find an oncologist in Chicago/Midwest
Hello - I found this site after my 66 year old father was diagnosed yesterday. He had an endoscopy which showed tumor mass at 35cm into the esophagus, at its bulkiest point it obstructs 2/3's of the esophagus. The findings read that "at the gastro esophageal junction, extending into the stomach prominent tissue was noted,…
Scan went reasonably well but I won't be here any more
Husband's scan was good...his onconglist is a woman...she noticed a slight thickening in the esophagus...she's an agressive doctor and since she said that ec is agressive, she will do an endoscope after Christmas....she doesn't like to wait 3 months for another scan...which is fine with us..he's gained another 3 lbs and…
Brother Jim's surgery
Hi all, haven't written in a while, things have been really busy the last couple months. I have been visiting and reading and you all are in my prayers. Wanted to give an update on my brother Jim and his quest to beat this monster. Yesterday he had his surgery, everything went as planned. A little over six hours and he was…
Father diagnosed 1 week ago
And I am his frightened, grief-stricken 45-year-old daughter who lives more than 2,000 miles away. I have some questions and perhaps the more knowledgeable and experienced members can inform me. My father does not like to talk about his health, so the information I have received from him is somewhat minimal. Here is what I…
An apology for the many postings
I am sorry to take up so much space . I discovered the many postings on my part just now. I do not know what happened and sincerely apologize for this. Any suggestions to not do this again are welcome. Thanks and sorry. Grandma Jo
Diagnosed with EC T3 N2 Mx - what's next?
Hello everyone, My husband, 37 years old, got his ultrasound results today. The initial CT scan and endoscopy assessment gave us a hopeful prognosis of T1 N0 M0, which turned out to be too good to be true. His diagnosis based on the ultrasound is T3 N2 Mx. We are pass the stage of crying and feeling hopeless. We will do…
unexplained events to report
Dear Mr Marshall I had previously asked if anyone had cancer come back to the same area of the esophagus and stomach after chemo, radiation and Ivor Lewis surgery. I received so much information from you and support. I have printed all of this for my daughter. Because she had what felt like a blockage we went for a Ct scan…
unexplained events to report
Dear Mr Marshall I had previously asked if anyone had cancer come back to the same area of the esophagus and stomach after chemo, radiation and Ivor Lewis surgery. I received so much information from you and support. I have printed all of this for my daughter. Because she had what felt like a blockage we went for a Ct scan…
unexplained events to report
Dear Mr Marshall I had previously asked if anyone had cancer come back to the same area of the esophagus and stomach after chemo, radiation and Ivor Lewis surgery. I received so much information from you and support. I have printed all of this for my daughter. Because she had what felt like a blockage we went for a Ct scan…
unexplained events to report
Dear Mr Marshall I had previously asked if anyone had cancer come back to the same area of the esophagus and stomach after chemo, radiation and Ivor Lewis surgery. I received so much information from you and support. I have printed all of this for my daughter. Because she had what felt like a blockage we went for a Ct scan…
unexplained events to report
Dear Mr Marshall I had previously asked if anyone had cancer come back to the same area of the esophagus and stomach after chemo, radiation and Ivor Lewis surgery. I received so much information from you and support. I have printed all of this for my daughter. Because she had what felt like a blockage we went for a Ct scan…
unexplained events to report
Dear Mr Marshall I had previously asked if anyone had cancer come back to the same area of the esophagus and stomach after chemo, radiation and Ivor Lewis surgery. I received so much information from you and support. I have printed all of this for my daughter. Because she had what felt like a blockage we went for a Ct scan…
unexplained events to report
Dear Mr Marshall I had previously asked if anyone had cancer come back to the same area of the esophagus and stomach after chemo, radiation and Ivor Lewis surgery. I received so much information from you and support. I have printed all of this for my daughter. Because she had what felt like a blockage we went for a Ct scan…

Esophageal Cancer

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