What to do...

UncleBuddy
UncleBuddy Member Posts: 1,019 Member
in Colorectal Cancer #1

We went to the onc and the liver surgeon to see if there is anything other than chemo that we can do for my brother.

Both doctors said that it is ultimately up to my brother, but it looks like in order to do the surgery, ablation or embolization, my brother would have to come off blood thinners and chemo. For surgery, it could be as long as a couple of months off of chemo. Since my brother had clots and almost died, he is reluctant to risk doing anything other than the chemo right now. He still has the lung nodules which haven't grown, but they haven't shrunk either. They have remained stable. 

Can any of you tell me if you had complication from these procedures? It seems to be risky without having the opportunity for a cure. The doctor said we can revisit this later on if he wants. If, for instance, the lung nodules disappear, removing the liver tumor may be a good idea. I don't know if that will ever happen, but it's good to know that he has other options on the table. I appreciate that the team is working together in his best interest. They didn't push us either way, just gave us the facts. I could tell the onc was worried about him doing any of the procedures because of how bad he was with his clotting issues. She is always very upbeat and tells us that if he ever chnges his miind, we can talk about all his options.

Well, I guess it was good news and bad. I am glad he is doing what he feels comfortable doing, but I am still worried about this disease getting worse down the line.

Thanks for listening. I needed to get this out. Smile

Lin

Comments

  • Lovekitties
    Lovekitties Member Posts: 3,364 Member
    #2
    The usual quandry

    It is unfortunate that one must come off chemo for months in order to have surgery, but that seems to be the case when not an emergency.

    If it were me I would be most concerned about coming off the blood thinner given his history and the fact that if a problem arose too soon after surgery, they might not be able to add it back.

    If the doctors believe a wait and see approach is a viable one, I think I would pick that, in the hopes that additional chemo time will have a positive impact on his tumors.  With close monitoring, there should still be time to opt for the surgery.

    You are doing all the right things and getting all the info possible.  One thing you must absolutely understand, you can NOT second guess any decisions made for one approach over the other.  We each make our choices with the best info we know at the time.

    Wishing you and Uncle Buddy best results on whichever plan.

    Hugs,

    Marie who loves kitties

     

  • UncleBuddy
    UncleBuddy Member Posts: 1,019 Member
    #3
    Lovekitties said:

    The usual quandry

    It is unfortunate that one must come off chemo for months in order to have surgery, but that seems to be the case when not an emergency.

    If it were me I would be most concerned about coming off the blood thinner given his history and the fact that if a problem arose too soon after surgery, they might not be able to add it back.

    If the doctors believe a wait and see approach is a viable one, I think I would pick that, in the hopes that additional chemo time will have a positive impact on his tumors.  With close monitoring, there should still be time to opt for the surgery.

    You are doing all the right things and getting all the info possible.  One thing you must absolutely understand, you can NOT second guess any decisions made for one approach over the other.  We each make our choices with the best info we know at the time.

    Wishing you and Uncle Buddy best results on whichever plan.

    Hugs,

    Marie who loves kitties

     

    Thanks Marie!

    I was impressed that the surgeon wasn't pushing the surgery. I'm glad we went and got all the information. His clotting issues have been under control with Xarelto, which was his last resort. None of the other blood thinners worked for him. I have a nurse going to his apartment twice a week to check for swelling, bruisng, or any other complications, so for now things are going well for him. He feels that he has quality of life right now, so I think this decision is good for him.

    Thanks for your encouragement.

    Lin

  • janderson1964
    janderson1964 Member Posts: 2,215 Member
    #4
    I have had 3 liver surgeries

    I have had 3 liver surgeries and most recently radioembolization without any complications. I have had 3 blood clots but they all happened months after surgery while iwas on chemo so i dont think clots were a real issue for me like they are for your brother.

    I will say thatni did have to srop chemo for a while to do the radioembolization. As a consequence all 3 spots grew some. Ironically the liver spot has now shrunk to where it was before i stopped chemo one month after the embolization. The hope is the liver tumor will continue to shrink for a few more months.

    I am not sure if i helped you at all.

  • Nana b
    Nana b Member Posts: 3,030 Member
    #5
    UncleBuddy said:

    Thanks Marie!

    I was impressed that the surgeon wasn't pushing the surgery. I'm glad we went and got all the information. His clotting issues have been under control with Xarelto, which was his last resort. None of the other blood thinners worked for him. I have a nurse going to his apartment twice a week to check for swelling, bruisng, or any other complications, so for now things are going well for him. He feels that he has quality of life right now, so I think this decision is good for him.

    Thanks for your encouragement.

    Lin

    My husband is on blood

    My husband is on blood thinners and he is having an angiogram next Thursday, where they go through the groin. Same access point as chemoemobilzation.  I'm sure they will probably stop blood thinners a week before. I'll let you know how it goes. 

  • UncleBuddy
    UncleBuddy Member Posts: 1,019 Member
    #6
    Nana b said:

    My husband is on blood

    My husband is on blood thinners and he is having an angiogram next Thursday, where they go through the groin. Same access point as chemoemobilzation.  I'm sure they will probably stop blood thinners a week before. I'll let you know how it goes. 

    Nana

    Let me know how his procedure goes. I hope it goes smoothly.

    Yes, they said chemoembolization goes through the groin as well. Last time my brother had clots in the lungs, we almost lost him. They also left a small wire inside him which was close to the heart. We had a rough last few months of 2013. He ended up having fluid around the heart a few weeks after the surgery, so he had to go back into the hospital to have that removed (that's when they found the wire). He ended up having a mild heart attack during this time, so I can't blame him for not wanting to do any of these procedures.

    Thanks.

    Lin

     

  • UncleBuddy
    UncleBuddy Member Posts: 1,019 Member
    #7
    janderson1964 said:

    I have had 3 liver surgeries

    I have had 3 liver surgeries and most recently radioembolization without any complications. I have had 3 blood clots but they all happened months after surgery while iwas on chemo so i dont think clots were a real issue for me like they are for your brother.

    I will say thatni did have to srop chemo for a while to do the radioembolization. As a consequence all 3 spots grew some. Ironically the liver spot has now shrunk to where it was before i stopped chemo one month after the embolization. The hope is the liver tumor will continue to shrink for a few more months.

    I am not sure if i helped you at all.

    Jeff

    That's what the doctors are afraid of. The lung nodules are stable right now. They haven't grown or shrunk. They are afraid of growth if they take him off the chemo. 

    His clotting issues are a problem. They had to install an IVC filter to help with the clots and they placed him on a blood thinner called Xarelto. He had no issues when they had taken the port out during those months after he had finished the chemo back in 2012. We thought he was cured back then because he was only 2a at the time. He went less than a year and his CEA went up so she scanned him and saw that it spread to his lungs and liver. I beieve he has 7 or 8 nodules in his lungs. Since a couple of them are in really difficult places to get, they had decided to do chemo to see if it will help. So far, no change, which I guess is good because at least they didn't grow. My brother almost decided to stop all treatment last year because he came so close to death. His doctor asked him if he wanted to try a lower dose of chemo and that's where we are at right now. I think since he has quality of life, he's not going to change his treatment. He feels fine, just makes a lot of visits to the bathroom because of the surgery. He has never been the same since his surgery.

    I hope your tumors continue to shrink. 

    Lin

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