colorectal spread to liver

danplace
danplace Member Posts: 4
edited March 2014 in Colorectal Cancer #1
My mom (75) was diagnosed with Colorectal cancer that has spread to her liver (extensive). The doctor has recommended folfox through port to attempt to slow spread and maybe reverse. If this works the next stop would be chemo directly pumped to liver. 75% plus of her liver has mets. She has lost weight (20 lbs in last 2 months 165 to 145) and is fatigued even before the chemo has started. Any thoughts on what she might expect? She is supposed to receive 4 treatments over the next two months. thank you, dan

Comments

  • Buzzard
    Buzzard Member Posts: 3,043 Member
    #2
    Dan, if you want honesty........
    what does your mom want to do ? first off she will most likely go through radiation treatment with a 5fu fanny pack and then surgery for the colorectal cancer. Then most likely will do the Folfox(oxaliplatin/leucouvorin/5fu (fanny pack again) . The chemo directly into her liver I think is most likely the HAI pump that is implanted into the body to direct chemo straight into the liver, (I hope i am telling you right if not someone else will chime in in a few minutes). I went from 212 to 182 in about 5 weeks but gained it all back plus some.
    My question is, this will most likely take a year just for the colorectal side of it and then there will be the liver to then contend with. The folfox is no picnic at all and is hard on even the youngest patient. I know you understand what I am referring to and I simply just want you to understand what all this will entail. The Folfox will deplete most all of her strength but nausea and neuropathy and other side effects will be rough as well. Its completely doable, don't get me wrong I would hope that she can sail through this without a hitch, I just want you to understand what will go on through this journey. Her age is what matters to me the most...Its a very tiring journey, but not one that can't be done. If she is wanting to go for it then I'd say all ahead full. Its simply a matter of how she feels now and if shes ready for a long and tiring battle.....Bless you for being her caregiver and Bless her for having such a great son.....Good luck in you decisions.....Buzzard
  • Julie 44
    Julie 44 Member Posts: 476 Member
    #3
    Buzzard said:

    Dan, if you want honesty........
    what does your mom want to do ? first off she will most likely go through radiation treatment with a 5fu fanny pack and then surgery for the colorectal cancer. Then most likely will do the Folfox(oxaliplatin/leucouvorin/5fu (fanny pack again) . The chemo directly into her liver I think is most likely the HAI pump that is implanted into the body to direct chemo straight into the liver, (I hope i am telling you right if not someone else will chime in in a few minutes). I went from 212 to 182 in about 5 weeks but gained it all back plus some.
    My question is, this will most likely take a year just for the colorectal side of it and then there will be the liver to then contend with. The folfox is no picnic at all and is hard on even the youngest patient. I know you understand what I am referring to and I simply just want you to understand what all this will entail. The Folfox will deplete most all of her strength but nausea and neuropathy and other side effects will be rough as well. Its completely doable, don't get me wrong I would hope that she can sail through this without a hitch, I just want you to understand what will go on through this journey. Her age is what matters to me the most...Its a very tiring journey, but not one that can't be done. If she is wanting to go for it then I'd say all ahead full. Its simply a matter of how she feels now and if shes ready for a long and tiring battle.....Bless you for being her caregiver and Bless her for having such a great son.....Good luck in you decisions.....Buzzard

    Treatment
    Hey Dan,
    Like Buzzard said it is not easy but doable...I went through 12 rounds of Folfox,Oxy,Lucavarin.(can't spell) The Oxy was very hard to deal with..You get terrible neuropathy in your hands and feet.You need to wear gloves to go in the fridge,or if you go outside in cooler weather she will need to cover her nose and mouth..MAKE SURE HER FEET AND HANDS STAY WARM..Tell her not to eat or drink ANYTHING cold it will hurt like hell...The doc can give her anti nausia meds also magic mouthwash for sores in her mouth...I also don't mean to scare you but she needs to be prepared because knowledge is power...Keep on researching and asking questions you need all the info you can get..It does get very overwhelming so keep a notebook and write down all the questions and answers you get..Also keep a file for all of her paperwork cause you never know when you will need a copy of something...Good luck with everything and keep coming here because we have all been there and done that.....JULIE
  • dianetavegia
    dianetavegia Member Posts: 1,942 Member
    #4
    I would have to ask....
    What type 75 year old is your mom? My mother is a very healthy almost 78 year old who spent 35 days in Europe this summer. She looks and acts like a woman in her 50's. However, I have friends at church who are in their 70's who are little old ladies....

    Read Buzzard's post again and then allow your mother to decide if she's up for the fight.

    God Bless,
    Diane
  • danplace
    danplace Member Posts: 4
    #5
    thank you
    thanks to all of you for your kindness and your thoughtful insights. my mom has been fatigued for awhile (due to the cancer) so her fight has been beaten down somewhat. the cancer specialist in ny has told her that her liver is too compromised to perform surgery on her colon or her liver (or to even think about it in the near term). however, the doctor has told my mother that the liver can regenerate itself. the doctor's game plan is to do the general chemo and see how my mom's liver responds. if it doesn't respond well then the doctor told us to make her comfortable as her time will be limited. however, the doctor believes it should have a positive effect. if it does have the effect the doctor is looking for, the next step would be chemo directly into the liver (the doctor is highly focused on the liver). surgery on the colon and liver would be somewhere down the road (as the doctor has stated - if we reach this point then the general chemo and specifically directed chemo has worked and this would be good news). it sounds as if the chemo itself is going to be very rough but we will take it one day at a time. god bless all of you, kind regards, dan
  • PhillieG
    PhillieG Member Posts: 4,866 Member
    #6
    Buzz knows Best
    He raises some valid points. The treatments certainly are doable but it's not real easy at times. If she is getting chemo, definitely go with the port. It is so much easier on the veins. I had a similar diagnosis it seems but I was 46 at the time (I'm 52 now) and they did 6 months chemo (FOLFOX with Avastin) then surgery to remove some of the tumors in my liver (they removed 65% of it) and part of my colon and a few other things. During that time they installed the HAI pump and then I got chemo directly to my liver while still getting other chemo systemically (all over via the post). It worked like a charm for my liver and colon. I have had no recurrence of cancer in those areas at all. It was a rough operation though and the chemo leading up to it was tough too.
    You know your Mom best Dan.
    I hope my information is of some help.
    -phil
  • danplace
    danplace Member Posts: 4
    #7
    PhillieG said:

    Buzz knows Best
    He raises some valid points. The treatments certainly are doable but it's not real easy at times. If she is getting chemo, definitely go with the port. It is so much easier on the veins. I had a similar diagnosis it seems but I was 46 at the time (I'm 52 now) and they did 6 months chemo (FOLFOX with Avastin) then surgery to remove some of the tumors in my liver (they removed 65% of it) and part of my colon and a few other things. During that time they installed the HAI pump and then I got chemo directly to my liver while still getting other chemo systemically (all over via the post). It worked like a charm for my liver and colon. I have had no recurrence of cancer in those areas at all. It was a rough operation though and the chemo leading up to it was tough too.
    You know your Mom best Dan.
    I hope my information is of some help.
    -phil

    thanks
    thanks phil...she starts chemo on monday...
  • ADKer
    ADKer Member Posts: 147
    #8
    danplace said:

    thanks
    thanks phil...she starts chemo on monday...

    side effects
    As everyone has said, the side effects vary from person to person. I have not done intravenous 5FU, which I know causes fatigue pretty universally but is generally doable. I have done oxaliplatin and I was at the very light end of the side effect scale. I really had only the strong sensitivity to cold that ends as soon as the chemo ends. Because the chemo was successful in decreasing dramatically the tumor load in my liver, I actually felt stronger and stronger as the chemo was given to me. I developed moderate neuropathy after about 5 months of oxaliplatin but it has gradually improved in the 15 months since I stopped oxaliplatin to the point that I hardly notice the slight numbness in my toes.

    Best wishes to your mother.
  • JDuke
    JDuke Member Posts: 438
    #9
    PhillieG said:

    Buzz knows Best
    He raises some valid points. The treatments certainly are doable but it's not real easy at times. If she is getting chemo, definitely go with the port. It is so much easier on the veins. I had a similar diagnosis it seems but I was 46 at the time (I'm 52 now) and they did 6 months chemo (FOLFOX with Avastin) then surgery to remove some of the tumors in my liver (they removed 65% of it) and part of my colon and a few other things. During that time they installed the HAI pump and then I got chemo directly to my liver while still getting other chemo systemically (all over via the post). It worked like a charm for my liver and colon. I have had no recurrence of cancer in those areas at all. It was a rough operation though and the chemo leading up to it was tough too.
    You know your Mom best Dan.
    I hope my information is of some help.
    -phil

    Gives Me Hope
    Phil,
    I am wandering around the internet trying to find some comfort in communicating with others that have been through this emotional whirlwind called cancer. I can't tell you how uplifting your post to Dan was. I was treated with radiochemotherapy (5FU and Mitomyacin and five weeks of radiation) last year for anal cancer. Results were excellent. Clear PET, Flexsigmoid and biopsies in Nov. and April. I had a PET scan at the end of October and now have a liver metastases. Good news is that it appears to be just one tumor and it is only 2 cm. I am just in the beginning stages of sorting out the options for treatment. I have read a lot on the internet and have felt very discouraged by the statistics for the new diagnosis. The fact that you have survived the chemo and surgery to remove the tumors so inspires me. Thank you for taking the time to post so that people like me can find something to be optimistic about. Positive thoughts are healing thoughts.
    Blessings,
    Joanne
  • lizdeli
    lizdeli Member Posts: 569 Member
    #10
    JDuke said:

    Gives Me Hope
    Phil,
    I am wandering around the internet trying to find some comfort in communicating with others that have been through this emotional whirlwind called cancer. I can't tell you how uplifting your post to Dan was. I was treated with radiochemotherapy (5FU and Mitomyacin and five weeks of radiation) last year for anal cancer. Results were excellent. Clear PET, Flexsigmoid and biopsies in Nov. and April. I had a PET scan at the end of October and now have a liver metastases. Good news is that it appears to be just one tumor and it is only 2 cm. I am just in the beginning stages of sorting out the options for treatment. I have read a lot on the internet and have felt very discouraged by the statistics for the new diagnosis. The fact that you have survived the chemo and surgery to remove the tumors so inspires me. Thank you for taking the time to post so that people like me can find something to be optimistic about. Positive thoughts are healing thoughts.
    Blessings,
    Joanne

    Anal Cancer Support
    Joanne
    Here is a link to a site that has a lot of support for people going through anal cancer treatment. There are also many survivors helping us "newbies" through the process. This CSN site is okay, but many times anal and colon cancers are mixed in with the responses. As I posted earlier, they are two different cancers.

    Give this other site a try: http://www.rare-cancer.org/forum/viewforum.php?f=121

    Click on the introduce yourself section. Hope to see you there.

    Liz
  • Shayenne
    Shayenne Member Posts: 2,342
    #11
    lizdeli said:

    Anal Cancer Support
    Joanne
    Here is a link to a site that has a lot of support for people going through anal cancer treatment. There are also many survivors helping us "newbies" through the process. This CSN site is okay, but many times anal and colon cancers are mixed in with the responses. As I posted earlier, they are two different cancers.

    Give this other site a try: http://www.rare-cancer.org/forum/viewforum.php?f=121

    Click on the introduce yourself section. Hope to see you there.

    Liz

    I have
    Stage 4 and multiple mets to my liver as well which surgery isn't an option yet, I have had about 16 rounds of Folfiri with Avastin, no radiation, but the Folfiri has shrunk my tumors vastly they said. They are taking me off Irinotecan after 3 more, giving my body a break from it, and stablize the disease with just Avastin and 5fu, until it's not working anymore, every 3 weeks. They said if it stops working at stabilizing, then they will look at the other options, but the chemo was working really well, and though I've had alot of blockages and hospitalizations through it, it's getting better, and I don't have as much fatigue with it anymore, I think my body has gotten used to it.

    I lost alot of weight as well at first, but the chemo helps, and I am now back up to 135 from 113 in just a couple months...eating alot, but keeping my weight stable at that now, I was eating wayyy to much sugar, but have cut alot out where I don't want to gain too much LOL..

    How did you moms chemo go? she started today?? let us know :) I wish her good luck, and will be praying for her!

    Hugsss!
    ~Donna
  • danplace
    danplace Member Posts: 4
    #12
    Shayenne said:

    I have
    Stage 4 and multiple mets to my liver as well which surgery isn't an option yet, I have had about 16 rounds of Folfiri with Avastin, no radiation, but the Folfiri has shrunk my tumors vastly they said. They are taking me off Irinotecan after 3 more, giving my body a break from it, and stablize the disease with just Avastin and 5fu, until it's not working anymore, every 3 weeks. They said if it stops working at stabilizing, then they will look at the other options, but the chemo was working really well, and though I've had alot of blockages and hospitalizations through it, it's getting better, and I don't have as much fatigue with it anymore, I think my body has gotten used to it.

    I lost alot of weight as well at first, but the chemo helps, and I am now back up to 135 from 113 in just a couple months...eating alot, but keeping my weight stable at that now, I was eating wayyy to much sugar, but have cut alot out where I don't want to gain too much LOL..

    How did you moms chemo go? she started today?? let us know :) I wish her good luck, and will be praying for her!

    Hugsss!
    ~Donna

    update
    thank you everyone for your insights, kind words and prayers. mom had her first chemo last monday and went home with 2 days of portable chemo. she did real well given the circumstances. she had few side effects but has been more tired and still does not want to eat much. her next treatment is this monday. she was peaceful today and felt a little less stressed.

    sorry i did not update earlier but i have been staying with her and she has no internet at her house.

    god bless...fran's son dan
  • Shayenne
    Shayenne Member Posts: 2,342
    #13
    danplace said:

    update
    thank you everyone for your insights, kind words and prayers. mom had her first chemo last monday and went home with 2 days of portable chemo. she did real well given the circumstances. she had few side effects but has been more tired and still does not want to eat much. her next treatment is this monday. she was peaceful today and felt a little less stressed.

    sorry i did not update earlier but i have been staying with her and she has no internet at her house.

    god bless...fran's son dan

    Heyas Dan!!
    I'm so glad you checked in! I know how exhausting the chemo can be, usually the day after my disconnect is when I'm wore out the most, but lately, I haven't been feeling the fatigue till later, sometimes even a week later, and the chemo nurse said that was normal. I hope she is on some good anti-nausea pills. Saltines helped me when my tummy was upset as well. She'll bounce back to herself after awhile, maybe still a little tired, but I felt going outside alittle helped wake me up as well. I hope she does better each time goes, she'll get used to it after awhile.

    It's very awesome of you to be taking care of her as well. There's nothing more precious then a son's love for his mom, and standing by her through all this. You are a very special person indeed. Tell Fran I said Hi, and she needs to eat!!

    Hugsss!
    ~Donna

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