squamous cell lung cancer

Orchid46
Orchid46 Member Posts: 1
edited March 2014 in Lung Cancer #1
Hi
my husband has stage 11 lung cancer, he has had one lung removed about 3 years ago and it has now returned. He is on Tarceva, but his oncologist is saying no radiation and the tumour is inoperable does anyone every had a situation like this?

Comments

  • jagged
    jagged Member Posts: 55
    Hi Orchid46.

    I have both lungs and my cancer is inoperable. There is a tumor entwind in the main branch of the lung airways, with metastasis to both the lower lobe and to the other lung. No fun. I am early enough in this game that, so far, my quality of life is still good.

    Tarceva is a very good drug for late stage lung cancer. It can literally add years. It does not work for everyone. I do hope it works for your husband.

    --jag
  • dierksc
    dierksc Member Posts: 7
    squamos
    I am so sorry to hear of the return of your cancer. I am 53 years old and was diadnosed with this disease in April. I had the upper lobe of my lung removed. I still have pain in my back and I am frightened all the time. How did you get through this. I must also say my father died two weeks before my diagnosis of throat cancer, my brother threeyears ago of melonoma and my mom nine years ago of acute mylongenous leukemia-my entire immediate family gone. perhaps you can shed some light. I am not great on the computer but I am trying God Bless You
  • soccerfreaks
    soccerfreaks Member Posts: 2,788 Member
    dierksc said:

    squamos
    I am so sorry to hear of the return of your cancer. I am 53 years old and was diadnosed with this disease in April. I had the upper lobe of my lung removed. I still have pain in my back and I am frightened all the time. How did you get through this. I must also say my father died two weeks before my diagnosis of throat cancer, my brother threeyears ago of melonoma and my mom nine years ago of acute mylongenous leukemia-my entire immediate family gone. perhaps you can shed some light. I am not great on the computer but I am trying God Bless You

    squamous cell v small cell
    dierksc: Please be advised that everyone's situation with cancer seems to be at least a bit different, and there is dramatic difference in some cases.

    With respect to what you have written, you should be comforted somewhat with the knowledge that squamous cell is a non-small cell cancer. Small cell lung cancer is considered much more aggressive. The fact they performed the lobectomy on you indicates, at least with limited information given, that yours is isolated or appears to have BEEN isolated to one lobe at time of diagnosis and that the docs therefore had some strong hope of ridding you of it by ridding you of its home in that upper lobe.

    It has now been some six months since your surgery, and I would expect that you have been receiving checkups, bloodwork, perhaps CAT scans, every three months, minimally. If you have been or are taking follow-on chemotherapy, the blood work is being or was being done even more regularly. If they have not found any lingering cancer in this six months, that is the beginning of very hopeful news for you!

    I cannot give you false hope, however: it happens that it takes a whole lot of cancer cells to get enough of them together to even show up, from what I understand, and so they may still be in there somewhere lingering. Still, it is good news for now, may continue to be good news, and you should enjoy the good news, live with the good news, and not allow the cancer to take over other parts of your life.

    What I mean is that while we all retain some fear of a recurrence, even when pronounced NED (no evidence of disease) or cancer-free, we cannot let the fear rule us. The cancer takes what it must, and we cannot permit it to have more.

    That said, anxiety and even depression or not uncommon effects of cancer, its treatment, and even its 'announcement'. If you feel it will help you with your fears, do not hesitate to seek professional help. Your doctors should be quite aware of this common experience among survivors and more than happy to provide a referral.

    Otherwise, I would advise you to return your focus to those things that made you happiest prior to the diagnosis, and maybe even find new activities to take on, in celebration of your survival and perhaps in honor of your parents and brother.

    As for the back pain, I understand that this is fairly common as well, and may last for some time. I had a VATS procedure when my lower right lobe was removed at the end of January this year, and did not experience prolonged pain, but I have heard many stories about folks that received different surgeries who DO experience such pain. Please advise your doctors about this if you have not yet done so. Pain management, to my mind, is critical to your success in survivorship. You should be able to live without that pain, and they should be able to help you do so. Any good doctor knows that pain management is vital!

    In the meantime, best wishes for complete recovery.

    Hope and humor!

    Take care.

    Joe
  • dierksc
    dierksc Member Posts: 7
    happiness
    Joe, First off I hope you recieve this! Thank-You so much for responding to me. I am very grateful. I was wondering if you ever were a smoker? I was and I know I created my own medical problem. Believe or not I have had a few cigarettes since my surgery. I am ashamed. I am taking chantix right now and it is working. I hope that today is a very special day for you because you are obviously are a special and smart guy! God speed, Nancy
  • soccerfreaks
    soccerfreaks Member Posts: 2,788 Member
    dierksc said:

    happiness
    Joe, First off I hope you recieve this! Thank-You so much for responding to me. I am very grateful. I was wondering if you ever were a smoker? I was and I know I created my own medical problem. Believe or not I have had a few cigarettes since my surgery. I am ashamed. I am taking chantix right now and it is working. I hope that today is a very special day for you because you are obviously are a special and smart guy! God speed, Nancy

    smoking etc
    Nancy, thank you for the kind words.

    Yes, I was a smoker. It cost me part of my tongue and neck as well as that right lung lobe, although you could hardly notice, they did such a good job with putting me back together again.

    Like you, I considered that I created my condition. I have come to have some ambivalence about that. And I do believe strongly in one fact: the tobacco companies were complicit in my cancer, and I darned sure am not going to allow them to profit any more by buying more of their poison sticks. That, if losing bodies part were not enough, is quite sufficient to keep me from smoking.

    Still, if the smoke is far enough away, it lures me like an expensive woman's perfume (not the woman, the perfume :)).

    Good luck with quitting! Try to remember that those companies have profited - KNOWINGLY - from you cancer, and maybe that will give you greater incentive to break the next cig in half before you light it.

    Take care,

    Joe
  • marybear
    marybear Member Posts: 64

    smoking etc
    Nancy, thank you for the kind words.

    Yes, I was a smoker. It cost me part of my tongue and neck as well as that right lung lobe, although you could hardly notice, they did such a good job with putting me back together again.

    Like you, I considered that I created my condition. I have come to have some ambivalence about that. And I do believe strongly in one fact: the tobacco companies were complicit in my cancer, and I darned sure am not going to allow them to profit any more by buying more of their poison sticks. That, if losing bodies part were not enough, is quite sufficient to keep me from smoking.

    Still, if the smoke is far enough away, it lures me like an expensive woman's perfume (not the woman, the perfume :)).

    Good luck with quitting! Try to remember that those companies have profited - KNOWINGLY - from you cancer, and maybe that will give you greater incentive to break the next cig in half before you light it.

    Take care,

    Joe

    lung cancer and Tarceva
    hi joe spoke to you in the chatroom a while ago how are you doing i wanted to update you on my husband joe who has stage 4 nscl squanomous lung cancer He did the one treatment of taxol and cisplatin 6 hours back on august 14,08 he was fine for a week then boom he couldnd walk and had 103 fever called ambulance he was in hospital 2 weeks heart went into arrythmia had to get 4 shots of neuvesta for 4 days straight whit e count at admission was 0.44 not good we decided no more chemo because of heart but he is taking tarceva for 3 weeks now no side effects or rash or diahrea did last cat scan on sept 23,08 it showed tumor got larger in right lung new nodule in right lung and 2 new ones in left lung and one on the spleen we will do another cat scan in 2 months to see if Tarceva is helping at all thank you for being there for me take care hope to see you in the chatroom
    mary and joe
  • dierksc
    dierksc Member Posts: 7
    no subject
    Good Morning Joe!!! Thank-you so much for responding. You are a wise man. I believe the chantix has overcome my sick need for nicotine. I do not get on the computer often as I am working full time and I seem to run out of time for computer. I am walking regularly. By the time i am done I am ready to go to bed to start all over again. I am not complaining as I am lucky for my health right now and I am lucky to have my job. Actually I am writing this just to say Hi and wish you a very nice day Thanks again, nancy
  • dierksc
    dierksc Member Posts: 7
    no subject
    Good Morning Joe, I hope all is well with you today! I am off today so I wanted to say hello and to tell you I do think you are a very wise man and have much to offer to all those with questions and fears. Keep up the nice responses and Have a Great Day. Nancy
  • elouella
    elouella Member Posts: 9
    dierksc said:

    squamos
    I am so sorry to hear of the return of your cancer. I am 53 years old and was diadnosed with this disease in April. I had the upper lobe of my lung removed. I still have pain in my back and I am frightened all the time. How did you get through this. I must also say my father died two weeks before my diagnosis of throat cancer, my brother threeyears ago of melonoma and my mom nine years ago of acute mylongenous leukemia-my entire immediate family gone. perhaps you can shed some light. I am not great on the computer but I am trying God Bless You

    Lung and throat cancer
    Hi, I too have had throat cancer well Larnyx and now stage 2 lung ca. I speak with a servox device, am taking carboplatin and taxol, just finished round 4 . hopefully last of chemo.
  • dierksc
    dierksc Member Posts: 7
    dierksc said:

    no subject
    Good Morning Joe, I hope all is well with you today! I am off today so I wanted to say hello and to tell you I do think you are a very wise man and have much to offer to all those with questions and fears. Keep up the nice responses and Have a Great Day. Nancy

    no subject
    It has been a while since I have been on the computer. Just wondering how youare doig and how you are feeling? I just had an x-ray and my lung looks good. In Apirl I will have one year under my belt. I sometimes wonder if and when the cancer will return. It is a hard thing to completely shed. Especially in the mind. I am very lucky and try to realize that every day. Hope this finds you well and to let you know you are thought about often.
    My best
    Nancy
  • dierksc
    dierksc Member Posts: 7
    dierksc said:

    no subject
    Good Morning Joe, I hope all is well with you today! I am off today so I wanted to say hello and to tell you I do think you are a very wise man and have much to offer to all those with questions and fears. Keep up the nice responses and Have a Great Day. Nancy

    no subject
    It has been a while since I have been on the computer. Just wondering how youare doig and how you are feeling? I just had an x-ray and my lung looks good. In Apirl I will have one year under my belt. I sometimes wonder if and when the cancer will return. It is a hard thing to completely shed. Especially in the mind. I am very lucky and try to realize that every day. Hope this finds you well and to let you know you are thought about often.
    My best
    Nancy
  • dierksc
    dierksc Member Posts: 7
    dierksc said:

    no subject
    Good Morning Joe, I hope all is well with you today! I am off today so I wanted to say hello and to tell you I do think you are a very wise man and have much to offer to all those with questions and fears. Keep up the nice responses and Have a Great Day. Nancy

    no subject
    It has been a while since I have been on the computer. Just wondering how youare doig and how you are feeling? I just had an x-ray and my lung looks good. In Apirl I will have one year under my belt. I sometimes wonder if and when the cancer will return. It is a hard thing to completely shed. Especially in the mind. I am very lucky and try to realize that every day. Hope this finds you well and to let you know you are thought about often.
    My best
    Nancy
  • This comment has been removed by the Moderator