Liver surgery with multiple lesions

kluong
kluong Member Posts: 23
edited March 2014 in Colorectal Cancer #1
I was wondering if anyone has surgery on liver with multiple lesions. My husband has 6 lesions on the liver and was told that he is not a candidate for RFA due to amount of lesions and that some of the lesions were near the blood vessels. We meet with a surgeon two weeks ago and she was willing to resection but she only mentioned a couple of lesions. I don’t know if she viewed the latest MRI or PET scan. I know many people on this board had liver surgery so any light you can shed would be so appreciative

Comments

  • hopeforcure49
    hopeforcure49 Member Posts: 111
    #2
    kluong
    I just had liver resection on 11/29/10. Have recovered pretty fast. just had a ct scan for follow up. still waiting for results. I also had 5 lesions in my liver 3 were pretty large and 2 where attached near the vessels tothe gallbladder. He also took that out. They told me it was operable. Mine was colorectal metas. I did recieve chemo for 6 months prior and will need more chemo. I would seek a second opinion.
  • kluong
    kluong Member Posts: 23
    #3
    hopeforcure49 said:

    kluong
    I just had liver resection on 11/29/10. Have recovered pretty fast. just had a ct scan for follow up. still waiting for results. I also had 5 lesions in my liver 3 were pretty large and 2 where attached near the vessels tothe gallbladder. He also took that out. They told me it was operable. Mine was colorectal metas. I did recieve chemo for 6 months prior and will need more chemo. I would seek a second opinion.

    Thank you! Yes, my hubby
    Thank you! Yes, my hubby will need to have his gallbladder remove as well. It is 100% block. His is also colon mets... We have been to h@ll and I don't know when we will get back to the living. It is a new year so new beginnings right? He spent 75% of 2010 in hospital and the insurance paid out $2 million. I can only hope 2011 is better.
  • hopeforcure49
    hopeforcure49 Member Posts: 111
    #4
    kluong said:

    Thank you! Yes, my hubby
    Thank you! Yes, my hubby will need to have his gallbladder remove as well. It is 100% block. His is also colon mets... We have been to h@ll and I don't know when we will get back to the living. It is a new year so new beginnings right? He spent 75% of 2010 in hospital and the insurance paid out $2 million. I can only hope 2011 is better.

    New Hope!
    Its rough I know. I was diagnosed in DEc. 23, 2009. that year Christmas and New Years was tough. I had a 3-4cm tumor in the connection portion where the colon meets the rectum. Had scans done nothing showed in the liver only 3 lymphnodes around the colon. I started radiation and oral chemo in Jan.2010 for almost 30 sessions. It worked. It shrank to a pea size, I was ready for surgery. In April 2010 I had the colon resction with temp. ileoustomy.The surgeon also did a total hysterctomy and removed my ovaries. allgood there, but he felt a small corn size lump on my liver and recommeded a scan postsurgery.He also removed 14 lympnodes of which 7 were positive for ca. recovered for 6 weeks. had a ct scan and yes I had several lesions. But my oncolosgist suggested I start Iv chemo right away. the works. It was tough on me for the first couple of doses. Then it got better. Side effects not to bad. handled it, family and friends are very important. also keep your life as normal as possible it really took my mind off the cancer. I returned to work partime. it was nice to see co-workers and friends, they were very supportive. I finished 10 sessions of chemo and had my liver resction in 11/29/2010. the recovery was painful, but I had to push myself to get better. Now 6 weeks post-op, I feel great, will return to work next week. I had to restart chemo to contain any cells left behind. But my CEA levels elevated up to 55 post-op from 25 pre-op and that was also high. I just had a ct scan of chest, abdomen and pelvis to see if anything is new. I hope not and that the elevated CEAs are just results of the livers own proteins due to healing process. STill waiting for results. This part I hate. the waiting. It is a long road for many people, but just take it one day at a time. I started my new year with a Juicer.
  • kluong
    kluong Member Posts: 23
    #5
    hopeforcure49 said:

    New Hope!
    Its rough I know. I was diagnosed in DEc. 23, 2009. that year Christmas and New Years was tough. I had a 3-4cm tumor in the connection portion where the colon meets the rectum. Had scans done nothing showed in the liver only 3 lymphnodes around the colon. I started radiation and oral chemo in Jan.2010 for almost 30 sessions. It worked. It shrank to a pea size, I was ready for surgery. In April 2010 I had the colon resction with temp. ileoustomy.The surgeon also did a total hysterctomy and removed my ovaries. allgood there, but he felt a small corn size lump on my liver and recommeded a scan postsurgery.He also removed 14 lympnodes of which 7 were positive for ca. recovered for 6 weeks. had a ct scan and yes I had several lesions. But my oncolosgist suggested I start Iv chemo right away. the works. It was tough on me for the first couple of doses. Then it got better. Side effects not to bad. handled it, family and friends are very important. also keep your life as normal as possible it really took my mind off the cancer. I returned to work partime. it was nice to see co-workers and friends, they were very supportive. I finished 10 sessions of chemo and had my liver resction in 11/29/2010. the recovery was painful, but I had to push myself to get better. Now 6 weeks post-op, I feel great, will return to work next week. I had to restart chemo to contain any cells left behind. But my CEA levels elevated up to 55 post-op from 25 pre-op and that was also high. I just had a ct scan of chest, abdomen and pelvis to see if anything is new. I hope not and that the elevated CEAs are just results of the livers own proteins due to healing process. STill waiting for results. This part I hate. the waiting. It is a long road for many people, but just take it one day at a time. I started my new year with a Juicer.

    Thanks Hope
    Hope! That is my new favorite word in 2011. My hubby CEA has been going up eventhough he is on weekly chemo and the onc is blaming it on the liver too. It has gone from 5.4 to 18 since November 2010. They think the cancer cell in the liver is aggressive and surgery might solve the problem. However, he has cancer in other areas of his body so he will need chemo right after surgery (if possible).

    This journey of hope we are on is a never ending journey of hope, survival, and struggles.

    Thanks again for your words of wisdom.
  • hopeforcure49
    hopeforcure49 Member Posts: 111
    #6
    kluong said:

    Thanks Hope
    Hope! That is my new favorite word in 2011. My hubby CEA has been going up eventhough he is on weekly chemo and the onc is blaming it on the liver too. It has gone from 5.4 to 18 since November 2010. They think the cancer cell in the liver is aggressive and surgery might solve the problem. However, he has cancer in other areas of his body so he will need chemo right after surgery (if possible).

    This journey of hope we are on is a never ending journey of hope, survival, and struggles.

    Thanks again for your words of wisdom.

    Hey Journey!
    I know its a long journey ahead, but don't do it alone. Always talk to someone. Its what keeps me going. There is always someone with encouraging words. I know I just started my journey, but hope it won't be too much of a bumpy road, aswell for your husband. I wish him good luck. I also had ups and downs with the CEA levels. Can't understand that, either the chemo works or not was my Q? but my oncologist told me that when tumors shrink the cea levels drop, but also told me that when they are being EXTERMINATED (that what I call it) the cea levels may increase.. so now to me the cea levels could just mean about anything. I have even heard of people having a positive CT scan and then nothing on a Pet scan. This is great news, but you have that first news which is not what we want to hear. I don't mean to be discourging. I just mean that they may tell us some bad results and then down the line it may be nothing. So keep your Hopes and Faith, things will clear up. Nice to hear from you!
  • mom_2_3
    mom_2_3 Member Posts: 953 Member
    #7
    Multiple lesions
    I had 5 bilobar lesions (three on left lobe, one on right and one in the middle). I have heard others say doctors would not operate due to the number of lesions but haven't heard that from anyone I have met while a patient at MSK in NYC. I don't know where your husband is being seen but perhaps additional opinions are in order. I have met people at MSK who had livers described as "Swiss cheese" who had HAI pump treatments that allowed them to then have liver resections. Please PM me for more information.

    Amy
  • tammybrook
    tammybrook Member Posts: 43
    #8
    mom_2_3 said:

    Multiple lesions
    I had 5 bilobar lesions (three on left lobe, one on right and one in the middle). I have heard others say doctors would not operate due to the number of lesions but haven't heard that from anyone I have met while a patient at MSK in NYC. I don't know where your husband is being seen but perhaps additional opinions are in order. I have met people at MSK who had livers described as "Swiss cheese" who had HAI pump treatments that allowed them to then have liver resections. Please PM me for more information.

    Amy

    multiple lestion
    my dad was just diagnosed with mets to liver and lung 3 years after rectal surgery...wanted to ask about msk and doctors who would do the hai pump to the "swiss cheese" liver..don't know how to pm yet ..
  • k1
    k1 Member Posts: 220 Member
    #9
    Second opinion at an NCI center
    I would go for a second opinion at one of the leading cancer research NCI hospitals. It's worth it even if you have to travel. You can get a list of them here.


    http://cissecure.nci.nih.gov/factsheet/FactSheetSearch1_2.aspx
  • farmgirl500
    farmgirl500 Member Posts: 8
    #10
    RFA
    What is RFA? I have one small lesion on my liver (met after colon cancer almost 2 years ago) and I believe I will be having a resection done after some chemo and a 6 week rest (due to Avastin). Is RFA the same as a resection?

    cindy
  • pepebcn
    pepebcn Member Posts: 6,331 Member
    #11
    farmgirl500 said:

    RFA
    What is RFA? I have one small lesion on my liver (met after colon cancer almost 2 years ago) and I believe I will be having a resection done after some chemo and a 6 week rest (due to Avastin). Is RFA the same as a resection?

    cindy

    RFA
    Radio Frequency Ablation.

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