Recently diagnosed mother

hamburgler77
hamburgler77 Member Posts: 5
in Lung Cancer #1
Well this is my first post but here goes:

My mother was diagnosed on December 21 with stage 4 NSCLC. It was might have gone unnoticed except that it had spread into her neck and formed an 8 x 4 x 4 cm mass that was causing lots of pain in her left arm. Anyway I am sure that her condition is fairly similar to others. I am concerned with my mother's naive approach to such a serious disease. It seems as though at this point that she intends to ignore the problem away. I am having diffuculty dealing with my mother's rather lackadaisical approach to cancer treatment. I have tried to steer clear of most remarks that might make her feel that I am not confident in her approach, but I feel that time is of the essence and may be slowly slipping away.
My mother has raised to strapping men (one of them being myself LOL), but she is very small. She is about 5'1" and somewhere between 90 and 95 pounds. It has been mentioned that she may not be able to handle chemotherapy and radiation due to her size. I personally feel that chemotherapy and radiation are the best available cancer treatments and therefore should be pursued. My uncle on the other hand has convinced my mother that alternative treatments are the way to go. He is the patriarch of her family and as such she has opted to try alternative treatments (i.e. DCA, ozone therapy, etc.)
I have not been able to tell any positive up to this point. Her bloodwork from 02/22 is worse than the test from 01/19, she is unable to stay on her feet for more than a couple of minutes, and she has gone from 96 to 91.5 pounds in a month. My uncle insists that the treatment is working as the swollen mass in her neck does not appear swollen anymore. I beg to differ given the above mentioned items.
Anyway sorry about my rambling but if anyone has any testimonials about chemotherapy and radiation treatment that I can pass on to her, I would like very much to share your story with my mother.
I pray for my mother and for a cure for this disease for everyone affected.

Thanks

Comments

  • stayingcalm
    stayingcalm Member Posts: 650 Member
    #2
    Hamburglar!
    (Interesting choice of name!)
    First of all, at just under 5 feet and original weight of 85 lbs, I'm smaller than your mom. I had Cisplatin and Etoposide and 30 (or thereabouts) radiation treatments and stood up to it just fine: she SHOULD be able to handle it, too.
    There is no sound scientific data showing that ozone therapy or DCA work, and the longer your mom goes without proper treatment...well, you get the picture =(

    I was diagnosed in 2005, and I'm still here, feeling a little angry at whoever told your mom she was too little for chemo :)

    Best wishes,
    stayingcalm
  • Dan620
    Dan620 Member Posts: 220
    #3
    stayingcalm said:

    Hamburglar!
    (Interesting choice of name!)
    First of all, at just under 5 feet and original weight of 85 lbs, I'm smaller than your mom. I had Cisplatin and Etoposide and 30 (or thereabouts) radiation treatments and stood up to it just fine: she SHOULD be able to handle it, too.
    There is no sound scientific data showing that ozone therapy or DCA work, and the longer your mom goes without proper treatment...well, you get the picture =(

    I was diagnosed in 2005, and I'm still here, feeling a little angry at whoever told your mom she was too little for chemo :)

    Best wishes,
    stayingcalm

    'WOW'
    This little lady (stayingcalm) is geting operated on tomorrow and she is still here helping people the night before. You are one amazing lady. Thank you! .... Hugs and prayers going your way for a very succesful outcome..... Dan
  • lekkerone
    lekkerone Member Posts: 199 Member
    #4
    stayingcalm said:

    Hamburglar!
    (Interesting choice of name!)
    First of all, at just under 5 feet and original weight of 85 lbs, I'm smaller than your mom. I had Cisplatin and Etoposide and 30 (or thereabouts) radiation treatments and stood up to it just fine: she SHOULD be able to handle it, too.
    There is no sound scientific data showing that ozone therapy or DCA work, and the longer your mom goes without proper treatment...well, you get the picture =(

    I was diagnosed in 2005, and I'm still here, feeling a little angry at whoever told your mom she was too little for chemo :)

    Best wishes,
    stayingcalm

    Deb
    You might be little but you are not lacking in fight.
    I pray that tomorrow's surgery will go smoothly and your recovery time quick.
    Keep hanging in there Deb....you are awesome.
    Diane
  • hamburgler77
    hamburgler77 Member Posts: 5
    #5
    stayingcalm said:

    Hamburglar!
    (Interesting choice of name!)
    First of all, at just under 5 feet and original weight of 85 lbs, I'm smaller than your mom. I had Cisplatin and Etoposide and 30 (or thereabouts) radiation treatments and stood up to it just fine: she SHOULD be able to handle it, too.
    There is no sound scientific data showing that ozone therapy or DCA work, and the longer your mom goes without proper treatment...well, you get the picture =(

    I was diagnosed in 2005, and I'm still here, feeling a little angry at whoever told your mom she was too little for chemo :)

    Best wishes,
    stayingcalm

    Thanks for the info. I am
    Thanks for the info. I am right there with you on the DCA and ozone. We (my family and I) have been discussing this back and forth for a month. Thanks for the input. I will definately pass this on the my mother.

    I read some other posts that indicate you are having surgery tomorrow. Prayers and well wishes on your procedure.

    Thanks Again
  • mamacita5
    mamacita5 Member Posts: 254 Member
    #6
    hamburgler77 said:

    Thanks for the info. I am
    Thanks for the info. I am right there with you on the DCA and ozone. We (my family and I) have been discussing this back and forth for a month. Thanks for the input. I will definately pass this on the my mother.

    I read some other posts that indicate you are having surgery tomorrow. Prayers and well wishes on your procedure.

    Thanks Again

    Will be Thinking of You Tomorrow
    To Staying Calm: Best wishes for a successful surgery tomorrow. Many good vibes headed your way! (((0)))
  • JohnBinDC
    JohnBinDC Member Posts: 91 Member
    #7
    Best wishes
    Best wishes to you Deb and to thr Hamburgler and family! I am amazed how you continue to help others with your contributions.
  • JohnBinDC
    JohnBinDC Member Posts: 91 Member
    #8
    Best wishes
    Best wishes to you Deb and to thr Hamburgler and family! I am amazed how you continue to help others with your contributions.
  • JohnBinDC
    JohnBinDC Member Posts: 91 Member
    #9
    Best wishes
    Best wishes to you Deb and to thr Hamburgler and family! I am amazed how you continue to help others with your contributions.
  • Glenna M
    Glenna M Member Posts: 1,576
    #10
    Hamburgler
    So sorry to hear about your mother's diagnosis but even sorrier to hear that someone is trying to convince her to go with alternative treatment. I try not so voice my opinion on these treatments as it only starts a long battle with others who believe in them.

    As Stayingcalm said about size not being a factor...I am only 5 feet and weighed 110 during treatment and I had Cisplatin and 35 radiation treatments for the laryngeal cancer and 4 Stereotactic Radiosurgery treatments for the lung cancer. As my oncologist said, Cisplatin is the big guns of chemo. Even with my small size I tolerated it pretty good I think. I'm 17 months post treatment and still doing good and I've managed to get my weight back up to 103 pounds.

    I personally would never have considered alternative treatments!! I hope you can convince your mother to see her doctors and schedule a treatment plan with them to fight this. Please tell your mother that there are many of us here who have been treated with chemo and radiation and we are still going strong. It's a tough road to travel but it is VERY doable.

    My best to you and your mother.
    Glenna
  • hamburgler77
    hamburgler77 Member Posts: 5
    #11
    Glenna M said:

    Hamburgler
    So sorry to hear about your mother's diagnosis but even sorrier to hear that someone is trying to convince her to go with alternative treatment. I try not so voice my opinion on these treatments as it only starts a long battle with others who believe in them.

    As Stayingcalm said about size not being a factor...I am only 5 feet and weighed 110 during treatment and I had Cisplatin and 35 radiation treatments for the laryngeal cancer and 4 Stereotactic Radiosurgery treatments for the lung cancer. As my oncologist said, Cisplatin is the big guns of chemo. Even with my small size I tolerated it pretty good I think. I'm 17 months post treatment and still doing good and I've managed to get my weight back up to 103 pounds.

    I personally would never have considered alternative treatments!! I hope you can convince your mother to see her doctors and schedule a treatment plan with them to fight this. Please tell your mother that there are many of us here who have been treated with chemo and radiation and we are still going strong. It's a tough road to travel but it is VERY doable.

    My best to you and your mother.
    Glenna

    Glenna M
    Thanks for your input. I hope to share stories with my mother at the end of the week. I have suggested conventional medicine since diagnosis. I hope that she will start to see what option is the best for her soon.
    I hope that I don't step on any toes in this post, but I hold no consideration for alternative treatments especially since one onc had already told her that he thought she would get positive results from chemo and radiation.
    I will continue to try to get my mother to go with chemo. At the same time I will try to convince my uncle that although it isn't perfect, chemo and radiation is the best treatment. After all it isn't called "fighting cancer" because it is easy.
    Thanks again and congrats on your recovery. Best wishes and prayers for your continued success.
  • medi_2
    medi_2 Member Posts: 505 Member
    #12
    hamburgler77 said:

    Glenna M
    Thanks for your input. I hope to share stories with my mother at the end of the week. I have suggested conventional medicine since diagnosis. I hope that she will start to see what option is the best for her soon.
    I hope that I don't step on any toes in this post, but I hold no consideration for alternative treatments especially since one onc had already told her that he thought she would get positive results from chemo and radiation.
    I will continue to try to get my mother to go with chemo. At the same time I will try to convince my uncle that although it isn't perfect, chemo and radiation is the best treatment. After all it isn't called "fighting cancer" because it is easy.
    Thanks again and congrats on your recovery. Best wishes and prayers for your continued success.

    here is another...
    small lady who went with cisplatin/ep and survived quite well. They pretty much know how chemo and radiation can help; that is why I went with the treatments and glad I did...
    Medi
  • hamburgler77
    hamburgler77 Member Posts: 5
    #13
    medi_2 said:

    here is another...
    small lady who went with cisplatin/ep and survived quite well. They pretty much know how chemo and radiation can help; that is why I went with the treatments and glad I did...
    Medi

    medi_2
    Thank you for sharing. I appreciate your's and everyone elses comments. I will share them with my mother and hope that she can see where the best treatment is.

    Once again thanks and congrats on successful treatment and recovery.

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