My husband just diagnosed

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  • mp327
    mp327 Member Posts: 4,440 Member
    #22
    veesmommy said:

    My husband was just
    My husband was just diagnosed in august with stage 4 as well, very scary. Im praying for all of you on this board! We have 5 kids together, youngest is 3. I feel very alone in this, thanking God I found this site!

    Hi veesmommy--
    I'm very sorry to hear about your husband's diagnosis. You have not mentioned the treatment he is currently receiving. I hope you have checked into clinical trials. My heart and prayers go out to your husband, you and your family.
  • duckyann
    duckyann Member Posts: 159
    #23
    mp327 said:

    Hi veesmommy--
    I'm very sorry to hear about your husband's diagnosis. You have not mentioned the treatment he is currently receiving. I hope you have checked into clinical trials. My heart and prayers go out to your husband, you and your family.

    Hi veesmommy,
    I am also
    Hi veesmommy,

    I am also sorry to hear about your husband's diagnosis. Please let us know how he is doing. I will keep you all in my thoughts and prayers.
  • duckyann
    duckyann Member Posts: 159
    #24
    Phoebesnow said:

    Sailor mom
    Sounds like you are in excellent hands. You are so lucky to have that new machine. Best of luck to you and your husband. You are a wonderful wife. We are here for you, whenever you need us. No question is too personal to ask.

    Hi Sailor mom

    I am happy that you have found this site too although I wish you did not have to look for us. I also had a lot of pain from the tumor and was taking morphine and vicoden 10 and still had a lot of pain. I will say when I started radiation treatments the pain diminished pretty quickly probably after the first week. Around the 4th week is when I started to feel the pain from treatments. It is tough but short lived as everyone else has said. Please come here often and keep us updated on your husband. I will be keeping you all in my prayers.
  • sailormom
    sailormom Member Posts: 13
    #25
    sephie said:

    picc line
    sorry you have to be here. great advice from all. one more: please do not remove the picc line until you are sure that your hubby is ok. i had mine removed the day after i stopped my last chemo and then that next day, i had to go into the hospital due to diarrhea, infections and low blood counts and etc. so i had to have IV's in both arms for many meds. would have been easier to receive all meds. if i had kept the picc line. sephie

    picc line
    Thanks for this relevant info. Better keep it in for a little longer then :-)
  • sailormom
    sailormom Member Posts: 13
    #26
    mxperry220 said:

    I Had A Port
    I had a port and they left it in about one month after my final treatment. The doctors said they felt comfortable taking it out that soon in my case. Everyone is different in the awful journey but most seem to have great outcome. My chemo doctor told me at the beginning if I had to have cancer this is the one to have. He said they have most success in treatment of this type cancer.

    melts away
    This is exactly what my husband's radiologist said too, so we are very optimistic :-)
  • sailormom
    sailormom Member Posts: 13
    #27
    mp327 said:

    Hi sailormom--
    You've gotten some very good advice and as you can see, we all sort of take care of each other here. The one thing that is very important to remember is that your husband must stay well-hydrated! He should drink lots of water. Also, as far as eating goes, his appetite may take a nosedive as mine did. My oncologist told me to JUST EAT! Whatever tasted or sounded good to me, I ate, even if it wasn't food that I would normally eat due to poor nutritional value, such as Ramen noodle cups. I would never eat those under normal circumstances, but I craved salty things while going through treatment and those tasted good to me. I would suggest that he try to get a little protein in each meal or snack, which is why I would not recommend the brat diet for too many days at a time. It is good for slowing down diarrhea, but contains no protein source and is meant to be short-term. If diarrhea is a side effect for him, try Imodium. If that fails, ask for Lomotil by prescription. Also, rinsing regularly with a solution of water and baking soda or salt may help ward off mouth sores, so I would have him begin that on day one. As for skin issues, Aquaphor in the beginning can keep the skin moist. Once the burning comes on, ask for a prescription of Silver Sulfadiazine (which must be completely removed before radiation treatment) or try the following: Domeboro, pure aloe vera, liquid from Vitamin E capsules. Okay, I'll stop for now, as not to overload you with info!

    I wish your husband the best and hope you'll keep us posted on his progress during treatment. We are here to help you, so just ask!

    Stocked up
    I've stocked up with most of your recommended medications, ointments, etc, so we should be good to go. My husband had his trial radiation run today so tomorrow it all kicks off and we are realistic although optimistic about the weeks ahead. Will keep you all updated of the progress.

    I'm so humbled by the incredible outpouring of support and empathy here. It's sobering but very valuable.

    Thank you all very much!
  • sailormom
    sailormom Member Posts: 13
    #28
    eihtak said:

    So many ...
    So many good suggestions and I agree. He will need to remember as you probably did to just take baby steps ( One day at a time ). You want to hurry and be done but this is a process. As you move along continue to consult others but don't let yourselves become overwhelmed with too much info at one time. I was diagnosed with Stage3 AC about a year ago and finished treatment last April. My tumor was 6cm so quite large and I was also in horrible pain even before treatment. I found standing and massaging my butt cheaks to be the only relief. Sometimes I would kneel and rest my head on the side of the bed !!!! I was taking a lot of pain meds., oxycontin gave me some help tho takes a while to ween off of but also helped with pain from radiation burns later. I agree with the comment about when feeling sick from chemo to just eat anything you can. For a short time he will just need any kind of caloric intake he can get....but remember its all short lived, we are all here to tesstify to that. My family tried to be understanding but this is a tough one for kids because they don't like to talk about their parents butt!!! You will have to make some humor out of it, and this will help them be less uncomfortable. Your whole family is in my prayers, keep in touch.

    Pain and humor
    My husband totally relates to the pain you describe. His tumor is almost the same size and I guess it puts pressure on nerves and tissue which makes it so incredibly painful. Last night he woke up with excruciating pain even though he is on 8 percocets a day, and could only find rest when walking or standing.

    Love your comment about the humor and kids not wanting to talk about their parents butt. That is exactly how our 11 year old feels like. So we have indeed made jokes about it and even given the tumor a name. We've also told them that the chemotherapy is like an army of soldiers to help kick the butt out of the bad guys in Dad's butt. They get that!
  • sailormom
    sailormom Member Posts: 13
    #29
    veesmommy said:

    My husband was just
    My husband was just diagnosed in august with stage 4 as well, very scary. Im praying for all of you on this board! We have 5 kids together, youngest is 3. I feel very alone in this, thanking God I found this site!

    Thoughts
    I'm so sorry to hear about this. I assume that your husband has started treatment. How well is he doing?
    Sending you all my thoughts and well wishes.
  • cap630
    cap630 Member Posts: 151
    #30
    Kirsten
    Sorry you have to be here. The treatment is difficult and I'm glad to hear that you will be a great support for your husband. The most difficult time for me was when treatment stopped. I was very tired from the radiation. As far as food - I remember no whole grains. My husband cooked meals like I received in the hospital (only they tasted better).
    Just be understanding and there for him. I will keep your family in my prayers.
    ~Carol
  • gerberdaisywon
    gerberdaisywon Member Posts: 2
    #31
    cap630 said:

    Kirsten
    Sorry you have to be here. The treatment is difficult and I'm glad to hear that you will be a great support for your husband. The most difficult time for me was when treatment stopped. I was very tired from the radiation. As far as food - I remember no whole grains. My husband cooked meals like I received in the hospital (only they tasted better).
    Just be understanding and there for him. I will keep your family in my prayers.
    ~Carol

    What helped the pain for me
    I was in such pain for months that not even epidural helped me, nor pain killers. WHen I was put on Murinal or what is synthetic pot, did my pain subside, if only for a little while, I would take that!. I only left the bed for radiation treatments daily, and the chemo, well, that came home with me. If the cancer did not get me I was sure the treatment would. But I did survive, amazing the human survival factor, especially when you have hope, love and a family ( little ones)especially!

    I am sorry for the pain you /or your loved ones are going through. I am glad I found this site as well, since I am still having mental difficulty.
  • mp327
    mp327 Member Posts: 4,440 Member
    #32
    gerberdaisywon said:

    What helped the pain for me
    I was in such pain for months that not even epidural helped me, nor pain killers. WHen I was put on Murinal or what is synthetic pot, did my pain subside, if only for a little while, I would take that!. I only left the bed for radiation treatments daily, and the chemo, well, that came home with me. If the cancer did not get me I was sure the treatment would. But I did survive, amazing the human survival factor, especially when you have hope, love and a family ( little ones)especially!

    I am sorry for the pain you /or your loved ones are going through. I am glad I found this site as well, since I am still having mental difficulty.

    gerberdaisywon
    Thanks for joining us and telling us about your experience. Pain can be excruciating, as you well know, while going through this treatment. How long ago was your diagnosis and treatment? I am almost 3 1/2 years post-treatment and I agree that the mental part of this disease is most-often the worst. I hope you are doing well physically.
  • cap630
    cap630 Member Posts: 151
    #33
    gerberdaisywon said:

    What helped the pain for me
    I was in such pain for months that not even epidural helped me, nor pain killers. WHen I was put on Murinal or what is synthetic pot, did my pain subside, if only for a little while, I would take that!. I only left the bed for radiation treatments daily, and the chemo, well, that came home with me. If the cancer did not get me I was sure the treatment would. But I did survive, amazing the human survival factor, especially when you have hope, love and a family ( little ones)especially!

    I am sorry for the pain you /or your loved ones are going through. I am glad I found this site as well, since I am still having mental difficulty.

    Mental Pain
    I agree that mentally it is hard. I find the nights the hardest. My mind just goes places that I don't want to be in. During the day I'm busy and only think of cancer when I use the bathroom. This site has been a god sent for me.

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