New to all of this-

mcasper
mcasper Member Posts: 2
in Kidney Cancer #1
I am a new caregiver and we are so new to this we don't even have all the lingo yet. My husband had very high calcium and is now being told he has kidney cancer that has spread to the bone. I'm scared and so is he. I know I have to be strong and am trying my best. 4 months ago he was in complete kidney failure and was told it was caused by two meds he has been taking for some time now. 4 months ago they saw none of this and now all this? I am wondering if the meds that caused the kidney failure if it caused the cancer? We are both 63 so legal stuff is not what we are thinking. We are just trying to come to terms with how this happened so quickly. We are going to the VA as he has no insurance so hope it will be a good hospital. He has his diagnostic workup next Tuesday so will probably find out alot more then.

Can you offer suggestions as to what we need to be asking about ie- tests, results etc. We are like I said lost so far.

Thank you for any help and God bless all of you dealing with this disease. I lost my brother 4 months ago to brain cancer.

Comments

  • garym
    garym Member Posts: 1,647
    #2
    Welcome here...
    Dear mcasper,

    I am sorry to hear what you and your husband are going through, many times caregivers are hit harder than the patient. There is a solid group of intelligent and supportive people here, many of whom have been fighting RCC for a long time, there is hope.

    May I ask what tests they used up until 4 months ago when they saw nothing vs. tests for the current diagnosis of RCC? I ask because RCC is generally slow growing, it would likely have been present for several years and if there were CT's, MRI's, or Ultrasounds it should have shown up earlier. There doesn't seem to be a clear cut answer regarding the cause of RCC, risk factors include high blood pressure, smoking, and genetics, but no one except God can say for sure why it hits who it hits. Much depends on which type of RCC he has, but ask about treatment options and drugs such as IL2, Sutent, etc., and ask about the availability of clinical trials. Good luck on Tuesday and keep us posted.

    You are in my thoughts and prayers,

    Gary
  • Minnesota Girl
    Minnesota Girl Member Posts: 119
    #3
    I'm not sure if it helps, but
    it really does depend on the tests that have been done. Once my cancer was diagnosed with a CT WITH contrast the radiologist was able to go back to a CT WITHOUT contrast from three years earlier and spot the tumor. No radiologist reading the original CT would have seen it. My urologist couldn't even see the shadow on the first CT once the radiologist pointed it out.

    So, I know the cancer was there at least three years, but without the contrast, it just wasn't apparent. I even had a hysterectomy and gall bladder surgery during that three years. I'm a 43 year old who never smoked or worked in a factory - no one knows why I got cancer...

    You'll be armed with more information in the coming days. I'm certain this is difficult - I will hold you and your husband in my prayers.

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