just need a shoulder and goood advice...

janann37
janann37 Member Posts: 3
edited March 2014 in Lung Cancer #1
my mother in law is 54 recently diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer. Has had 3 chemo treatments...ready for her PET scan in a few weeks, but is having the most horrible time with eating. Nothing tastes good, nothing smells appetizing, nothing......she has fallen twice in her house this week because she is soo weak. She is having a blood transfusion tomorrow. Will this help her with getting more energy? Can anyone suggest any types of food to eat? she has done the boost, for about a couple days. tonight she was craving a ice cream cone and believe me cravings have not been part of her vocabulary lately---so we ran out and got her a large cone! loved it!!! Glad to see her smile...There isnt a cancer support group near where we live except for up in the city, but they're during the day and i work. I need someone to talk to so i can help explain little things to her and get her spirits up! any advice would be welcoming....thanks!

Comments

  • southernboy823
    southernboy823 Member Posts: 2
    #2
    I have to be honest, I
    I have to be honest, I really have no advice I can give as my mom was just recently diagnosed also. She had her first round of chemo this week and will start the radiation soon. I do know that the chemo has made my mom very week and sometimes she does not have much of an appetite. But through it all she has managed to keep her spirits up. I wish you all the best.

    Aaron
  • soccerfreaks
    soccerfreaks Member Posts: 2,788 Member
    #3
    helping
    As you will have discovered, hopefully, by the time you read this, the blood transfusion should do wonders for mom in terms of energy, at least for a few days.

    In the meantime, a lot of folks report that chemotherapy makes food taste metallic, copper-ish, some say. If she has a hankering for ice cream and related products, I would suggest combining her ensure with ice cream, blending it into a milk shake, for example, thus providing her the taste she desires along with some of the protein and nutrients she needs.

    I am a 53-year old head and neck cancer survivor as well as a lung cancer survivor, now NED (No Evidence of Disease). It is doable! And even if it is stage IV and, in the doctors' words, 'incurable', there are many survivors of stage IV lung cancer who describe their conditions now as 'manageable', which is to say, they are extending their lives, with quality, while submitting to various treatments, and with well-earned confidence that they have many productive years ahead of them.

    Cancer, I mean to say, is not the death sentence we are inadvertently taught that it is. Yes, it will take some of us, but it will not take all of us. There are a lot of folks on this site who are proof of that.

    I wish your mother in law and her family the very best.

    Take care,

    Joe
  • janann37
    janann37 Member Posts: 3
    #4
    soccerfreaks said:

    helping
    As you will have discovered, hopefully, by the time you read this, the blood transfusion should do wonders for mom in terms of energy, at least for a few days.

    In the meantime, a lot of folks report that chemotherapy makes food taste metallic, copper-ish, some say. If she has a hankering for ice cream and related products, I would suggest combining her ensure with ice cream, blending it into a milk shake, for example, thus providing her the taste she desires along with some of the protein and nutrients she needs.

    I am a 53-year old head and neck cancer survivor as well as a lung cancer survivor, now NED (No Evidence of Disease). It is doable! And even if it is stage IV and, in the doctors' words, 'incurable', there are many survivors of stage IV lung cancer who describe their conditions now as 'manageable', which is to say, they are extending their lives, with quality, while submitting to various treatments, and with well-earned confidence that they have many productive years ahead of them.

    Cancer, I mean to say, is not the death sentence we are inadvertently taught that it is. Yes, it will take some of us, but it will not take all of us. There are a lot of folks on this site who are proof of that.

    I wish your mother in law and her family the very best.

    Take care,

    Joe

    you just made me cry!! Thank
    you just made me cry!! Thank you for the inspiring words! This site has helped me see that there are survivors in stage four :) I will keep posting and maybe get some answers my mother in law is looking for that she can't find. Have a great day!
  • Ma64
    Ma64 Member Posts: 15
    #5
    Lung cancer stage 4
    I am a NSCLc patient~stage 4. The American Cancer society can send you information regarding foods to eat and provide a support counselor via telephone. Call them. I know it is so helpful to have someone to talk you in addition to the written material.
    Good luck to both of you! I will pray for both of you1
  • janann37
    janann37 Member Posts: 3
    #6
    Ma64 said:

    Lung cancer stage 4
    I am a NSCLc patient~stage 4. The American Cancer society can send you information regarding foods to eat and provide a support counselor via telephone. Call them. I know it is so helpful to have someone to talk you in addition to the written material.
    Good luck to both of you! I will pray for both of you1

    thank you! I will do that!

    thank you! I will do that!
  • squirrell
    squirrell Member Posts: 3
    #7
    been there
    my husband has had the same reaction to the chemo. we found out that ensure frozen wasn't all bad-he also can eat tapioca pudding and other instant puddings.also our dr. suggested instant breakfast especially when put in the blender with ice cream. hope this helps you.my prayers to you and your family .
  • cobra1122
    cobra1122 Member Posts: 244
    #8
    Your Mother in Law
    As it seems most everything that you can do has been covered by the other post, soccerfreaks advice is some that should be truly heeded, he has given very good and useful. The only advice that I can give is positive attitude and support, it truly does work to help in the battle with cancer.
    If you read my bio, you will understand that I have been fighting this battle and consider my self a survivor because I am still here, outliving every diangosis that I have been given. Cancer treatments have improved the quality and quanity of life for many of us stricken with a disease that once was a sure death sentence. But as Soccerfreaks pointed out there are quite a few long time survivors and no one can say for sure what the outcome will be.
    Just stay positive, no matter how hard and help her stay positive. I used the boost milkshakes with an egg mixed in, till I got more of an appetitie back. But there are many suppliments out there, just dont expect everything you hear or read to be completely the truth, sometimes suppliments make claims that just arent the truth. Keep following some of the advice you get here on this site, taylored to her needs, and never be afraid to ask, the people here are a God send of answers.

    Our prayers and Best Wishes to your Mother in Law, You and Your family,
    Dan and Margi Harmon

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