My mom, my best friend, is having a recurrence after 6 years of remission--just need to talk about i

faithinmom
faithinmom Member Posts: 4
edited March 2014 in Ovarian Cancer #1
with those who understand. After reading some of the stories on here--I understand how truly blessed we've been that my Mom has felt so good for so long. She started having what we thought were bouts of bronchitis in August. She ended up in the emergency room in October with extreme shortness of breath and they sent her to a pulmonologist who ran a PET scan and MRI and found out that she had a tumor pushing on her bronchus. They also found 2 lymph nodes with tumors--but luckily they were very close to the primary tumor. Unfortunately, the tumor is right up against the carotid so she can't have it surgically removed. She is getting radiation daily and chemo every Monday--carboplatin and taxol. If she hadn't had the shortness of breath they probably wouldn't have found this so soon. At first we thought it was lung cancer--which scared the crap out of me because I knew how tough it was to beat. But luckily her oncologist was suspicious of the lung cancer diagnosis and sent it for confirmation and found out they were ovarian cancer cells. The first 2 chemo treatments she got were lung cancer drugs and much nastier so I'm glad she doesn't have to have those--carboplatin and taxol are nasty enough.

She had debulking surgery and 8 rounds of carboplatin and taxol in 2003-2004. She hasn't had to have any treatment and has had low CA-125 levels ever since.

The sad part is that I just moved home in October after living in Denmark for the last 10 years. I'm so thankful I'm here now so I can help her as much as possible. This woman is my hero. She shows such strength and determination. She and my Dad are raising my niece (4) and nephew (6), who is autistic, both children of my younger sister who had them too young and while on drugs. These children are amazing. The therapists and teachers say that the only reason they are doing so well is because of my parents' intervention in their lives. My husband and I are doing all we can to help. My Mom loves Christmas so we went over last weekend and got all of her Christmas things out of the attic and put them out. We take the kids for sleepovers and try to help with them also. I just feel so inadequate. Mom's esophagus is constricting and she is suffering a lot of pain due to the radiation. Her hair is falling out--which we knew was coming after her last experience with cancer. She is exhausted. I just feel like I'm not doing enough. I wish I could go through this for her. I just can't lose her. I've had infertility problems for the past 8 years--and I want her to be here to see the grandbaby I pray that I'll have for her.

I've done some research and I know that it's important that the carboplatin and taxol worked so well the first time. Has anyone ever heard of a situation like this where the radiation and chemo got rid of the tumors. I now know that Mom will never be completely free of ovarian cancer--but I hope that she can have many years ahead of her.

Comments

  • Cafewoman53
    Cafewoman53 Member Posts: 735 Member
    #2
    faithinmom
    Your name says it all,faith in Mom, thats the best thing you can give her your love and support. I know I wouldn't want to face this struggle without my daughters.
    Good Luck she can fight this !
    Colleen
  • lindaprocopio
    lindaprocopio Member Posts: 1,980 Member
    #3
    What a BLESSING that she enjoyed a 6-year remission!
    You have every reason to be optimistic for your mother. That long remission allows her to come back to carbo/taxol as if she'd never taken it before; it will be just as effective as it was the first time after this long break. And she comes into this recurrence significantly better battle-ready, rather than beaten down from the series of alternative chemos most of us would have had to take during the 6 years she was on a chemo break. Carbo/taxol is the gold standard; the chemo with the best chance of success. To be able to return to that is wonderful.

    All that being said, the 1st recurrence is almost more heartbreaking than the initial diagnosis. I remember thinking that it was like attending my own funeral to have each of my family and friends break down sobbing in my arms when they got the news of my 1st recurrence a little over a year ago. But then everyone gets their game face on, and I can hardly ever even get away with playing the 'cancer card' anymore to get out of things I don't want to do! HA! (((((((Hugs))))))). I'm so so sorry that you and your mom have to go through this. Please pop over to the uterine cancer board of this website and post about the radiation there, as many with uterine cancer have radiation treatments and can perhaps give you some insight into that.
  • faithinmom
    faithinmom Member Posts: 4
    #4
    lindaprocopio said:

    What a BLESSING that she enjoyed a 6-year remission!
    You have every reason to be optimistic for your mother. That long remission allows her to come back to carbo/taxol as if she'd never taken it before; it will be just as effective as it was the first time after this long break. And she comes into this recurrence significantly better battle-ready, rather than beaten down from the series of alternative chemos most of us would have had to take during the 6 years she was on a chemo break. Carbo/taxol is the gold standard; the chemo with the best chance of success. To be able to return to that is wonderful.

    All that being said, the 1st recurrence is almost more heartbreaking than the initial diagnosis. I remember thinking that it was like attending my own funeral to have each of my family and friends break down sobbing in my arms when they got the news of my 1st recurrence a little over a year ago. But then everyone gets their game face on, and I can hardly ever even get away with playing the 'cancer card' anymore to get out of things I don't want to do! HA! (((((((Hugs))))))). I'm so so sorry that you and your mom have to go through this. Please pop over to the uterine cancer board of this website and post about the radiation there, as many with uterine cancer have radiation treatments and can perhaps give you some insight into that.

    Thank you both so much. It
    Thank you both so much. It helps to hear that my hope is not unfounded :) She is going to have at least 3 more rounds of chemo and she is getting a CT scan on Thursday to see how everything is going with her radiation. From reading elsewhere on this board I was able to tell her why she is having pain when she was told by her radiologist that she wouldn't. I am hoping we can get her on this board after we get her computer fixed. I think it would help her a lot. She is an amazing woman who makes me proud to be her daughter.

    I am sorry that some of you are also going through this and I wish that no one would have to face cancer. No one deserves this in their lives.
  • Lisa13Q
    Lisa13Q Member Posts: 677
    #5
    Dear Faith
    So Sorry to hear the news about your Mom..My Mom is going through her first recurrance as well....Thye have a number of great drugs to attack the first recurrance nowadays so I hope she's getting treatment at an up to date place. I was really bummed when I first heard about my Mom, but you will get through it....and a new fight begins. As my firend, Barbara53 says, "the Long and Winding Road"....We never know what to expect sometimes it's not so good and then sometimes not so bad...Keep us posted....

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