Radio frequency Ablation

Limelife50
Limelife50 Member Posts: 476
edited April 2012 in Kidney Cancer #1
Not sure i spelled that correctly but its a new term i was introduced to last week.I will be having this procedure done may2 wednesday ,i guess when they do this techniqe it uses heat to fry cancerous tumors,but is only efective on smaller ones,i guees it also is less stressfull on the organ compared to doing a partial,also preserves more tissue.And yess i am pissed heck i just had a surgery 6 months ago but i have accepted my situation and am ready to move on.Also wednesday cant get here fast enough,never thought there would be a day when iwould be excited to go to the hospital.but i am so anxious to get this **** of a tumor out of me.I hope everyone is doing ok and i know there are people on this board who face bigger chalenges than myself so i know in some ways i have been blessed,Take care everyone and i will post when i get home from my new hangout the HOSPITAL!!!!%%%%%

Comments

  • garym
    garym Member Posts: 1,647
    #2
    Good luck tomorrow...
    Hi Mike,

    Good luck tomorrow, hopefully this will be your last hospital visit for anything more than follow-ups. Ablation sounds like the right way to go and you'll be back riding before you know it. Let us know how it goes, we'll be thinking of you.
  • foxhd
    foxhd Member Posts: 3,181 Member
    #3
    garym said:

    Good luck tomorrow...
    Hi Mike,

    Good luck tomorrow, hopefully this will be your last hospital visit for anything more than follow-ups. Ablation sounds like the right way to go and you'll be back riding before you know it. Let us know how it goes, we'll be thinking of you.

    ablation
    ...sort of like targeted micro wave. Like when some of your lasagna is steaming hot, and some is still cold?...Good luck tomorrow.
  • suki731
    suki731 Member Posts: 13
    #4
    Rf friend 3 yrs out
    Hello Limelife

    I am a RF patient as well. How did your surgery go?..I am 3 yrs out.
    best wishes and sending you my very best wishes..
    :)
  • Limelife50
    Limelife50 Member Posts: 476
    #5
    suki731 said:

    Rf friend 3 yrs out
    Hello Limelife

    I am a RF patient as well. How did your surgery go?..I am 3 yrs out.
    best wishes and sending you my very best wishes..
    :)

    Mid August
    Did a scan on kidney on 6/02 where RFA was performed and nothing lit up but i am due for full body scan in mid August so i will have a much better ideal where i stand
  • Limelife50
    Limelife50 Member Posts: 476
    #6
    suki731 said:

    Rf friend 3 yrs out
    Hello Limelife

    I am a RF patient as well. How did your surgery go?..I am 3 yrs out.
    best wishes and sending you my very best wishes..
    :)

    Hi Suki
    Mind if i ask how large your tumor was that the RFA procedure was done to,also i would like to congatulate you on your three years may you enjoy dozens more of them
  • suki731
    suki731 Member Posts: 13
    #7
    Limelife50 said:

    Hi Suki
    Mind if i ask how large your tumor was that the RFA procedure was done to,also i would like to congatulate you on your three years may you enjoy dozens more of them

    Hi LimeLife...
    My mass was 1.5 cm when it was found. It is still the same size 3 yrs out. My scans were good up until 6-20-12. I now show a mild rim enhancement on MRI but they dont feel its recurring. They say there are no solid components in the rim. I will have another scan in November to see if there are any more changes and then decide with the doctor if I should go ahead with my partial. I feel RF and Cryo are the way to go if possible, stay positive!...this works!. How many cm were you?
  • alice124
    alice124 Member Posts: 896 Member
    #8
    Radio Frequency Ablation
    Mike - A zap sounds friendlier than a cut. Good luck to you and may you get it behind you ASAP. Will be thinking of you and Batman!
  • Limelife50
    Limelife50 Member Posts: 476
    #9
    suki731 said:

    Hi LimeLife...
    My mass was 1.5 cm when it was found. It is still the same size 3 yrs out. My scans were good up until 6-20-12. I now show a mild rim enhancement on MRI but they dont feel its recurring. They say there are no solid components in the rim. I will have another scan in November to see if there are any more changes and then decide with the doctor if I should go ahead with my partial. I feel RF and Cryo are the way to go if possible, stay positive!...this works!. How many cm were you?

    I Agree Suki
    My uroligist and my radioligist and also myself chose the RFA route due to two reasons for one i only have one kidney so this procedure allows you retain as much of your remaining organ as possible,also it reuires minimal time for recovery, i was only out of work for only one week with this procedure where if i had chosen going the partial route it would have taken much longer.My tumor was estimated to be 1.4cm at its greatest dimension also i would like to mention that the hospital i had the RFA performed only supported that procedure they were not set up to perform cryoablation.Thank you for your kind support reminding me to stay positive even tho i am not the same tough guy i once was i still manage to keep that positive vibe going most days as for you Suki try to put November out of your mind and enjoy your self and when November finally does arrive then you try to be strong and deal with it.
  • Limelife50
    Limelife50 Member Posts: 476
    #10
    alice124 said:

    Radio Frequency Ablation
    Mike - A zap sounds friendlier than a cut. Good luck to you and may you get it behind you ASAP. Will be thinking of you and Batman!

    It is Alice
    I guess the most frustrating aspect of choosing either cryo or RFA is if the radioligist does not obtain a good sample for biopsy then the path report will come back as inconclusive as what happened in my case,Have a Nice Day Alice and by the way i hope your husbands weight has stabalized and even possibaly i hope John is adding a few pounds
  • robert_douglas_smith
    robert_douglas_smith Member Posts: 82
    #11
    Cryoablation
    On Oct. the 25th 2011 I went into the Rockdale hospital and had laproscopic nephrectomy surgery of my left kidney. My Urologist thinks all of mass was contained in kidney. The type of cancer is multifocal chromophobe renal cell carcinoma. My first post op cat scan was clear, the second 3 months later showed a 2 cm. mass on my right kidney. My urologist referred me to the radiology department at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Atlanta for a Cryoablation procedure on the mass. My doctors, wife and I decided that this is the least evasive procedure to preserve my remaining kidney. This procedure destroys less of the functioning kidney tissue. On May 16th they froze a 2.7cm. tumor. The procedure caused no pain to speak of and I was up and about the next day with no trouble at all. A June 29th follow-up visit at St. Josephs Hospital was with mixed feelings. The CAT scan confirmed the Cryoablation (freezing) of the tumor last month was successful, it is gone!! But the CAT scan also showed 2 more masses that are approximately 1 cm each. We will go and have those suckers frozen too this Friday July 20th. My radiologist will be my best friend for quite a while. Will have full body scan at next follow-up in about 4 to 6 weeks. Will be hoping for a NED!
  • suki731
    suki731 Member Posts: 13
    #12
    Limelife50 said:

    I Agree Suki
    My uroligist and my radioligist and also myself chose the RFA route due to two reasons for one i only have one kidney so this procedure allows you retain as much of your remaining organ as possible,also it reuires minimal time for recovery, i was only out of work for only one week with this procedure where if i had chosen going the partial route it would have taken much longer.My tumor was estimated to be 1.4cm at its greatest dimension also i would like to mention that the hospital i had the RFA performed only supported that procedure they were not set up to perform cryoablation.Thank you for your kind support reminding me to stay positive even tho i am not the same tough guy i once was i still manage to keep that positive vibe going most days as for you Suki try to put November out of your mind and enjoy your self and when November finally does arrive then you try to be strong and deal with it.

    Hi LimeLife
    My situation is very similar to yours. The facility where I had my procedure done did not support Cryo ( didnt have the equipment) (so RF was the choice) My other kidney also has a large simple cyst at 5.5 cm and a stone so they didnt want to leave me with the possibility of losing one and the other acting up at a future date. But what I fear now is my new doctor states that he cant be concrete in his decision to do a partial due to the RF destroying most of the cells and the pathology may not show him what he needs to know now anyway. I have had a rim enhancement on my last scan and they say it is just blood and has no solid components. That is why they want to wait until Nov to see if there are anymore changes in the rim. Waiting is scary!...Im not sure if I should just ask him to do the partial now and get it out!..even if they cant get a proper path report I will know its gone. I need advise from my firends here..what do to?..
  • Texas_wedge
    Texas_wedge Member Posts: 2,798
    #13
    suki731 said:

    Hi LimeLife
    My situation is very similar to yours. The facility where I had my procedure done did not support Cryo ( didnt have the equipment) (so RF was the choice) My other kidney also has a large simple cyst at 5.5 cm and a stone so they didnt want to leave me with the possibility of losing one and the other acting up at a future date. But what I fear now is my new doctor states that he cant be concrete in his decision to do a partial due to the RF destroying most of the cells and the pathology may not show him what he needs to know now anyway. I have had a rim enhancement on my last scan and they say it is just blood and has no solid components. That is why they want to wait until Nov to see if there are anymore changes in the rim. Waiting is scary!...Im not sure if I should just ask him to do the partial now and get it out!..even if they cant get a proper path report I will know its gone. I need advise from my firends here..what do to?..

    Advice
    Susan, ask your namesake again for further help - she knows much more than anyone here. It's the sort of dilemma in which you need expert guidance not just well-meaning speculation.
  • suki731
    suki731 Member Posts: 13
    #14
    Texas_wedge said:

    Advice
    Susan, ask your namesake again for further help - she knows much more than anyone here. It's the sort of dilemma in which you need expert guidance not just well-meaning speculation.

    Thanks Texas
    Hi Texas

    I am in the process of contacting her. Thanks for all of your advise and help
    Best wishes!
    Suki:)
  • Limelife50
    Limelife50 Member Posts: 476
    #15
    suki731 said:

    Hi LimeLife
    My situation is very similar to yours. The facility where I had my procedure done did not support Cryo ( didnt have the equipment) (so RF was the choice) My other kidney also has a large simple cyst at 5.5 cm and a stone so they didnt want to leave me with the possibility of losing one and the other acting up at a future date. But what I fear now is my new doctor states that he cant be concrete in his decision to do a partial due to the RF destroying most of the cells and the pathology may not show him what he needs to know now anyway. I have had a rim enhancement on my last scan and they say it is just blood and has no solid components. That is why they want to wait until Nov to see if there are anymore changes in the rim. Waiting is scary!...Im not sure if I should just ask him to do the partial now and get it out!..even if they cant get a proper path report I will know its gone. I need advise from my firends here..what do to?..

    Just my Thought
    I would wait i think as long as it is smaller than 3cm that the chances of this spreading are minimal or atleast this is what was explained to me by my uroligist but you know what if this is bothering you would you consider a second opinion at another medical facility,i know myself and this is me when i found out i had a suspicious node this past april i wanted it out as soon as possible but then again i was dxed in 2011 with RCC in my other kidney.

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