Stage 4 colon cancer continue…

tphan52
tphan52 Member Posts: 4 Member
edited May 2022 in Colorectal Cancer #1

Thanks so much for your support from another thread…I’ve asked his primary doctor to help speed up the process. He tried but no luck. I’ve been calling and planning to keep calling several time a day to see if any cancellations pops up. I’m also planning to get 2nd opinion from UCI colorectal surgeon to see what they think and also to clear the pathway for clinical trials that they offer. Another thing that scares me is cancers run in his Dad’s side. He lost 2 of his aunts for cancers. One is lung cancer and the other is stomach cancer. It is a very scary time for us and I wish I could do more to help ease his worries… Anyways, thanks so much again for all your help. I’ll update you guys as it progresses.

here is my original thread if anyone interested:

I’m new here. My husband is 50 years old and he just had his colonoscopy on 05/04/22. 2 weeks ago he had abdominal pain, vomit, and spike fever…lead to ER and CT scan. They found a big tumor near the rectum and sigmoid. It’s 95% blockage, so they couldn’t scan any further. Chest CT is clear but they found 2 spots on his liver. So, it’s stage 4…still waiting for biopsy results. He just did MRI and he will do PET scan on the 17th then oncologist and colorectal consult. We have Kaiser insurance. The staff are very nice but I wish they would move things faster. My husband and I are in shocked and devastated. It happened so quick and so unexpected. We have 3 small kids, and our hearts break for them.

Comments

  • tphan52
    tphan52 Member Posts: 4 Member
    edited May 2022 #2

    Hi, we just saw oncologist for my husband stage 4 colon cancer yesterday. Since it’s most likely cancerous on 2 spots of the liver, he wanted to start chemotherapy (Avastin/CAPOX) after PET scan (5/18) to suppress the cancer and to shrink the tumor. The colorectal surgeon consult on 05/19. Then liver biopsy on 05/25. He said no radiation because it’s a moving target now and possible surgery later in the future (though I can’t imagine since he has 95% blockage). He suggested to get 2nd opinion after the liver biopsy as I requested the referral from him. Does it sound like a good plan? I’m new and trying to learn as much as possible in a very short time for my husband. Can anyone lives through colon cancer stage 4 email directly to me please? (Mrs. Tru?) . [Content removed by CSN Support Team] Thanks so much! Kim

  • SnapDragon2
    SnapDragon2 Member Posts: 720 Member
    #3

    Always get 2nd-3rd consults and compare strategies for the best outcome.

  • Wadsdan777
    Wadsdan777 Member Posts: 20 Member
    #4

    its a lot of info to process at once, thats forsure.


    Get the results of the test - which will provide good info to make decisions on a path forward, one thing at a time is all you can do.

    Outside looking in comment, yes stage 4 is not what anyone wants to hear, however with only 2 spots showing up on his liver, i would suspect surgery may be a good possibility to remove the primary and hopefully the mets on the liver, i believe its safe to say there are options for your husband


    keep us posted

  • Wadsdan777
    Wadsdan777 Member Posts: 20 Member
    #5


  • Jennifer7000
    Jennifer7000 Member Posts: 7 Member
    #6

    Hi,

    That's very sad, I'm so sorry.

    I too have stage 4 colon. I'm 44. I was diagnosed when I was 39.

    Everything seems so overwhelming now, but after some time and some experience with the process and the doctors and how things go you will manage to get some perspective and get organised better.

    Everything seems way too slow. That's true. Sometimes afterwards you realise that there was no point in rushing and it didn't matter to get stressed about it. And sometimes you just feel that you want something more urgently.

    If you have zero control over the speed of something, one thing you can do is follow a parallel path at the same time. This means you are busy with something else useful while you are waiting for something.

    I always thought there was one diagnosis and one answer. But there's not. It so complex and there are so many different opinions and treatments. Which is scary, but also good because it means you can really investigate and research things yourself. 2nd opinions, different types of doctors who provide personalised cancer care, lots of testing they can do to find out the exact characteristics of the cancer and then possibly more available treatment options. Try and looks for trials, try and get into contact with other doctors as they all know different things.

    I would never suggest replacing traditional treatment with anything weird, I've dpne it all, chemo, radiation, surgery, targeted drugs. But there are also all kinds of things you can potentially do and look into in addition to regular treatments. But you need to do research, always be transparent with your oncologist, and always be pushing and researching.

    And yes I agree with the other commenter too. It serious, but don't lose hope, there are definitely options!

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