Wife is Scared

Lmm041

She gets CA125 results on Wednesday and gets her 5th Taxol maintenance treatment on Thursday.

She is really worried this time because she has felt some abdominal cramping starting late last week and has experienced some side pain for the last two days. She told me today she thinks the monster is back.

Question:

She had a CA125 24 days ago and it was a 3. Is it logical that she could be experiencing problems this quickly after a great CA125 test result?

Worried in Texas.

poopergirl14052

not to worry yet
sometimes taxolcan cause consipation. Has your wife been moving ok?? 3 is a grear # so I doubt very much the "beast " is back. Have her call her onc. and report her symtoms. Hope it is good news. Keep us posted please...stay strong....val

Tethys41

Pains
I can't guarantee that it is nothing, but I had a lot of abdominal pains throughout chemo and afterward. They area always terrifying. All my tests are clear and my CA-125 is 2. They will probably tell her it is scar tissue. I was also told not to worry about any pain that isn't continual.

Hope it's nothing!
Kate

Lmm041

poopergirl14052 said:

not to worry yet
sometimes taxolcan cause consipation. Has your wife been moving ok?? 3 is a grear # so I doubt very much the "beast " is back. Have her call her onc. and report her symtoms. Hope it is good news. Keep us posted please...stay strong....val

Constipation
She is moving her bowels every other day. She has also been under some extraordinary stress at work. It could also be lesions from her surgery back in June '10. Who knows...

I will let you gals know how it goes after we get results back from CA125 test. If it's still below 7, I don't thing it's a problem.

Cancer sucks.

Hissy_Fitz

I just finished 12 months of
I just finished 12 months of Taxol maintenance. It is highly unlikely that your wife is experiencing a recurrence. Recurrence while on maintenance is possible, but rare.

I swear, cancer has turned me into a semi-hypocondriac. I used to be the person who was never sick, now every headache is, to my mind, mets to the brain, and every pain in my gut tells me the OC is back. I have an incisional hernia and when I first found it - a big lump on one side of my belly - I almost had a heart attack, thinking it was a tumor.

It won't help to tell your wife not to worry, because she will anyway. I worry about a recurrence ALL the time. I have nightmares about it. But 3 is a GREAT number! My nadir (lowest) was 4.8 and since then it has gone as high as 7.5, which scared me to death (my doctor looked at me like I had lost my mind). If her CA125 should take a jump, up to 7 or 8, tell her not to panic over that, either. My doctor says any number under 10 is the same number, whether it's 1 or 9.

I'm in Texas, too - a suburb of Dallas/Ft Worth. Where do you live?



Carlene

Lmm041

Hissy_Fitz said:

I just finished 12 months of
I just finished 12 months of Taxol maintenance. It is highly unlikely that your wife is experiencing a recurrence. Recurrence while on maintenance is possible, but rare.

I swear, cancer has turned me into a semi-hypocondriac. I used to be the person who was never sick, now every headache is, to my mind, mets to the brain, and every pain in my gut tells me the OC is back. I have an incisional hernia and when I first found it - a big lump on one side of my belly - I almost had a heart attack, thinking it was a tumor.

It won't help to tell your wife not to worry, because she will anyway. I worry about a recurrence ALL the time. I have nightmares about it. But 3 is a GREAT number! My nadir (lowest) was 4.8 and since then it has gone as high as 7.5, which scared me to death (my doctor looked at me like I had lost my mind). If her CA125 should take a jump, up to 7 or 8, tell her not to panic over that, either. My doctor says any number under 10 is the same number, whether it's 1 or 9.

I'm in Texas, too - a suburb of Dallas/Ft Worth. Where do you live?



Carlene

Texas
We live in Corpus Christi now. We have also lived in Houston (yuck) and Austin (Yea!).

Our onc is at MD Anderson, Dr Coleman, but we get the poison down here in Corpus.

I have been following your posts religiously since you too went the maintenance route.

If I may say, you have been a great inspiration through this entire ordeal.

Morris

Hissy_Fitz

Lmm041 said:

Texas
We live in Corpus Christi now. We have also lived in Houston (yuck) and Austin (Yea!).

Our onc is at MD Anderson, Dr Coleman, but we get the poison down here in Corpus.

I have been following your posts religiously since you too went the maintenance route.

If I may say, you have been a great inspiration through this entire ordeal.

Morris

Thank you, Morris. If you
Thank you, Morris. If you have been reading my posts, you probably know that I am scheduled to board a plane this morning and head for a clincial trial in Manhattan, at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. It's a vaccine for women in their first remission. Let's hope it works and our daughters and granddaughters never have to experience what your wife and I have. (Also you and my husband, as well. You guys are the wind beneath our wings, as Bette would say.)

I agree that Austin rocks and Houston sucks.

Carlene

mopar

HI, MORRIS
I know you're worried about your Sweetheart (I love your photo), but just sit tight. All the ladies gave great advice - it can definitely be bowel issues, scar tissue, etc., etc. We all start to watch every little thing once we've been through this. So your and your wife's fears are not unusual. But 3 is a SUPER NUMBER! Let us know what you find out.

Till then. . .

Hugs and Prayers
Monika

Lmm041

And her fears were unwarranted.

Cindy's CA-125 is a 2!

Thanks ladies for your well-wishes.

She is getting her 5th maint. Taxol treatment this morning.

Life is good!

Morris

123missy

Lmm041 said:

Texas
We live in Corpus Christi now. We have also lived in Houston (yuck) and Austin (Yea!).

Our onc is at MD Anderson, Dr Coleman, but we get the poison down here in Corpus.

I have been following your posts religiously since you too went the maintenance route.

If I may say, you have been a great inspiration through this entire ordeal.

Morris

Hello
I am in Rockport and see you are from Corpus. Dr. Coleman is also my doctor. I was originally treated at UNM in Albuquerque but we have a place here and I am going to MDA for my follow up. Afraid it might be back as CA 125 took a hit. Going back next week for CT scan. Is there any way to stay in touch. Am supposed to come to CC today for a haircut but think I may take a pass as the bridge may ice over. Would love to know more about your experience at MDA and Dr. Coleman. Betty

123missy

Lmm041 said:

And her fears were unwarranted.

Cindy's CA-125 is a 2!

Thanks ladies for your well-wishes.

She is getting her 5th maint. Taxol treatment this morning.

Life is good!

Morris

Hi
Morris, would love to know more about your treatments in Corpus and at MDA as I have same doctor there. I posted earlier and tried to friend you but am new to this site. Am so happy for your wife. I think I am into a recurrence. Original surgery and treatment done at UNM in Alb. and now seeing Dr. Coleman while I am here in Texas. Congratulations - would kill for CA no. of 2. take care, Betty

Lmm041

123missy said:

Hello
I am in Rockport and see you are from Corpus. Dr. Coleman is also my doctor. I was originally treated at UNM in Albuquerque but we have a place here and I am going to MDA for my follow up. Afraid it might be back as CA 125 took a hit. Going back next week for CT scan. Is there any way to stay in touch. Am supposed to come to CC today for a haircut but think I may take a pass as the bridge may ice over. Would love to know more about your experience at MDA and Dr. Coleman. Betty

Hey Betty
Sorry to meet under these circumstances. My wife and I have been extremely pleased with Dr Coleman. He did the initial diagnoses (stage IV), recommended neoadjuvant chemo for three rounds. This went extremely well and Cindy had debulking surgery this past June.

Surgery was optimal and Cindy left MDA after 2 days!

We had three more rounds of chemo and was declared NED in September.

Coleman indicated my wife has a 50% chance of the cancer never coming back. I was surprised the percentage was so high.

Cindy decided to go on 12 rounds of maintenance chemo and has had limited negative aide effects.

All of the chemo treatments have been done in Corpus at the Christus Spohn Cancer Center.

Hope this helps and I truly hope the beast never returns for you or anyone else.

123missy

Lmm041 said:

Hey Betty
Sorry to meet under these circumstances. My wife and I have been extremely pleased with Dr Coleman. He did the initial diagnoses (stage IV), recommended neoadjuvant chemo for three rounds. This went extremely well and Cindy had debulking surgery this past June.

Surgery was optimal and Cindy left MDA after 2 days!

We had three more rounds of chemo and was declared NED in September.

Coleman indicated my wife has a 50% chance of the cancer never coming back. I was surprised the percentage was so high.

Cindy decided to go on 12 rounds of maintenance chemo and has had limited negative aide effects.

All of the chemo treatments have been done in Corpus at the Christus Spohn Cancer Center.

Hope this helps and I truly hope the beast never returns for you or anyone else.

Hello
Thank you for your reply. I was diagnosed at UNM and elected to do debulking surgery before treatment. It was optimal. I had two IV's taxol/carbo and then three iv/ip taxol/cisplatin. Had hard time with blood counts and last treatment 8/19 was carbo only. Hope this is not a recurrence but you have made me feel better. Right now I have had my IV port flushed twice at Christus Spohn Cancer Center. Met with Dr. Shalloum. Keep up the good work and I will try and let you know how it goes next week at MDA.