EC with mets to liver and lymph nodes

marilynvp47
marilynvp47 Member Posts: 10
edited March 2014 in Esophageal Cancer #1
My husband had been scheduled for surgery on 7/21/08, but after another MRI and liver biopsy, it was cancelled. He now has mets to liver and lymph glands. He will start a different kind of chemo this Friday, 8/08/08. Has anyone been through this or knows of someone that has? I am wondering how they are doing.

Comments

  • kdonnelly
    kdonnelly Member Posts: 1
    #2
    EC w/ met
    Marilyn:

    I had surgery that was aborted in March due to met's to my liver. I remained "NED" until August & have recently started my second round of chemo (the first was December-Jan). To date, there is no involvement of my lymph nodes (that I am aware of).

    Other than the eating issues, which I had prior to my initial diagnosis & seem to come and go with the "changing of the moon", I seem to be tolerating the new chemo fairly well & am optimistic that we can at some point return to the No Evidence of Disease (NED) stage at some point in the future.

    I hope this helps - - -

    KD
  • marilynvp47
    marilynvp47 Member Posts: 10
    #3
    kdonnelly said:

    EC w/ met
    Marilyn:

    I had surgery that was aborted in March due to met's to my liver. I remained "NED" until August & have recently started my second round of chemo (the first was December-Jan). To date, there is no involvement of my lymph nodes (that I am aware of).

    Other than the eating issues, which I had prior to my initial diagnosis & seem to come and go with the "changing of the moon", I seem to be tolerating the new chemo fairly well & am optimistic that we can at some point return to the No Evidence of Disease (NED) stage at some point in the future.

    I hope this helps - - -

    KD

    EC s/mets
    Thank you for your reply. May I ask what what chemo you were last on? My husband is now on Taxotere and Xeloda. You seem to have done quite well for several months! I hope this chemo works for you so that you will be NED again soon.
    Good luck to you
    Marilyn
  • jeanmod
    jeanmod Member Posts: 1
    #4
    ec with mets to liver and stomach
    My husband was just diagnosed with ec - stage four. He will start chemo a week from Monday. We have not been given alot of encouragement. His chemo regiment will be Oxaliplatin, 5-FU, Leucovorinn. Has anyone had experience with this chemo. What do we expect. This has mets to liver and stomach. Any help or encouragement would be appreciated..
  • judyloo
    judyloo Member Posts: 40
    #5
    jeanmod said:

    ec with mets to liver and stomach
    My husband was just diagnosed with ec - stage four. He will start chemo a week from Monday. We have not been given alot of encouragement. His chemo regiment will be Oxaliplatin, 5-FU, Leucovorinn. Has anyone had experience with this chemo. What do we expect. This has mets to liver and stomach. Any help or encouragement would be appreciated..

    Chemo
    Seems like everyones chemo regimen is a bit different depending on the Stage; however, my husband had dose dense cisplatin & 5fu. The ONC nurses who administered the chemo were wonderful in abating his symptoms, between the meds (ativan??) that sent him peacefully to lala land in front of their windows and great drugs for the nausea (thankfully they worked so well he never had a big problem with that). That was the BIG dose then he came home with a bag attached 24/7 for one week in the beginning of TX and then at the end. He was getting daily RT concurrently with the chemo. The only nasty side effect were mouth sores which affected his drinking and eating soooo much he lost over 50lbs and did have to go into the hospital for fluids, calories and pain control. That side effect was unexpected and wicked bad but in about 1-11/2 weeks went away. So we knew it was self limiting - but I wish we had the peg tube for feedings put in prior to starting chemo knowing NOW what I did not know then. His hair did NOT come out (no idea why) but the fatigue was profound and he did rest/sleep alot. I think one of the biggest things that got him (& me ) through that was the support/contact from family and friends - you just cannot go through it alone. When times get bad you will need to be his advocate with people because he may not have the strength or (like Steve with the mouth sores) the ability to communicate verbally. Again everyones symptoms on chemo maybe different but that was ours in a nut shell. The chemo & rt DID kill the cancer cells we found out on the path report after his surgery - up until then we did not know. So do not give up and do not give in - there is hope and miracles in this world enough to go around for everyone. May God bless you both,

    Judyloo
  • marilynvp47
    marilynvp47 Member Posts: 10
    #6
    jeanmod said:

    ec with mets to liver and stomach
    My husband was just diagnosed with ec - stage four. He will start chemo a week from Monday. We have not been given alot of encouragement. His chemo regiment will be Oxaliplatin, 5-FU, Leucovorinn. Has anyone had experience with this chemo. What do we expect. This has mets to liver and stomach. Any help or encouragement would be appreciated..

    ec with mets to liver and stomach
    Hi jeanmod,
    I am sorry to hear of your husband's diagnosis. My husband is also Stage IV, with mets to liver, lymph nodes and a new found nodule in his lung. He was diagnosed in March, -08. My husband recently completed a series of Oxaliplatin, 5-FU (for only 2 days) and Leucovorin. This was his 3rd type of chemo. He seemed to do very well on this chemo, with being very tired as his only side effect. Last week, his CT scan showed the cancer has finally stopped spreading! We are thrilled! He will see his oncologist on 1-13-09 to discuss another type of chemo. He is having a lot of trouble vomitting mucus, not food. I just can't figure out what is causing this.
    We were not given much encouragement either, but you and your husband need to encourage yourselves and have a good 'support team' behind you. I do not want to give you false hope, but here are people who have beat this cancer, so do not give up. Live from day to day, enjoy times together and research this disease! Check this support group, and others, as we are all here to help each other.
    There is another wonderful support group that I check daily. It is "cancercompass.com" Questions and answers come in daily.
    My prayers are with you and your husband.
    Bless you.
    Marilyn
  • marilynvp47
    marilynvp47 Member Posts: 10
    #7
    judyloo said:

    Chemo
    Seems like everyones chemo regimen is a bit different depending on the Stage; however, my husband had dose dense cisplatin & 5fu. The ONC nurses who administered the chemo were wonderful in abating his symptoms, between the meds (ativan??) that sent him peacefully to lala land in front of their windows and great drugs for the nausea (thankfully they worked so well he never had a big problem with that). That was the BIG dose then he came home with a bag attached 24/7 for one week in the beginning of TX and then at the end. He was getting daily RT concurrently with the chemo. The only nasty side effect were mouth sores which affected his drinking and eating soooo much he lost over 50lbs and did have to go into the hospital for fluids, calories and pain control. That side effect was unexpected and wicked bad but in about 1-11/2 weeks went away. So we knew it was self limiting - but I wish we had the peg tube for feedings put in prior to starting chemo knowing NOW what I did not know then. His hair did NOT come out (no idea why) but the fatigue was profound and he did rest/sleep alot. I think one of the biggest things that got him (& me ) through that was the support/contact from family and friends - you just cannot go through it alone. When times get bad you will need to be his advocate with people because he may not have the strength or (like Steve with the mouth sores) the ability to communicate verbally. Again everyones symptoms on chemo maybe different but that was ours in a nut shell. The chemo & rt DID kill the cancer cells we found out on the path report after his surgery - up until then we did not know. So do not give up and do not give in - there is hope and miracles in this world enough to go around for everyone. May God bless you both,

    Judyloo

    CHEMO
    Judyloo,
    Thank you for your response. My husband was also on5-FU..24/7, and had terrible mouth sores as well. He lost about 20 lbs., but has gained it back and seems to be holding his weight. I am so happy to hear the chemo treatment killed the cancer cells. That is wonderful news! What stage was your husband in when he was diagnosed?
    We are not giving up! I have read too many story's about people surviving this and I think to myself, why can't my husband be one of them?!
    Stay strong, this can be a rocky road. I pray your husband will have a complete recovery!
    Marilyn
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    #8
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