Some pretty good news - a positive story

I havn't been on here for a while, I found that it scared me to death reading all the negative stories.

Well mine is a very positive story. I had heart complications just after diagnosis, have had a stent inserted in my coronary artery and another heart procedure to replace a pacemaker/icd which ran out of battery at the same time. I had Stage 2, no lymph involvement but poorly differentiated cancer cells I then went on chemo, 5-FU continual pump infusion via a PICC line for 9 weeks, Carboplatin and Epirubicin every 3 weeks. Well have just had my final cycle and have two more weeks of the 5-FU via the picc line and pump bottle. I was diagnosed on the 30th March this year, so feel pretty good that with all the earlier heart complications I am sitting here, 4 months later, tumor virtually gone and now nearly finished chemo.

Prior to starting chemo, I was hardly able to eat, was dosed up to the max with pain meds. Now, 7 weeks later, I have no pain and am swallowing easily. My cancer is in my gastric cardia. My oncologist is very happy and believes that the tumor has gone. I feel great. Of course the chemo hasn't been easy, but it has been survivable. I have a quality of life at the moment that I am contented with and able to cope with.

I am due to undergo surgery in the next 5 weeks, 2 more weeks of the 5-FU through the bottle infusion and then time to recover and then the surgery.

I honestly believe that there will be no tumor and that the surgery is just cleaning up the mess and making sure the little buggars do not come back. I know I am very lucky, it was diagnosed very early and I have been given the best oncological approach available.

All in all I can say, although this journey hasn't been a lot of fun, I have coped very well taking each day as it comes, good or bad. I have an extremely positive outlook that I will be cured after the surgery. They do however plan to give me another 3 cycle chemo (9 weeks) treatment, which I am willing to go ahead with, and then I am sure I will be cancer free. I refused to have radiotherapy as the risks far outweighed the projected benefits, and they are cutting that area out anyway.

I have lost weight through the side effects of the chemo, but once the bottle it taken off in 2 weeks, I intend to eat like a horse and gain a few more kilos to ensure I have more strength to fight after the surgery.

So I know I am very lucky, but just want to let everyone know how well I am coping and how well the treatment is working. Thought we could all do with a newbie who is coping very well and looking forward to a cure.