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I just want to take a moment and thank this wonderful group! While I have most likely dodged a bullet, I have found your help and support invaluable while getting it figured out. I hope you all fully realize what a great thing it is you do here.

The pulmonologist doesn't agree about the nodule being spiculated after the second CT scan (high res this time). The nodule has not changed in appearance or size. He is certain that it is benign. He thinks it is a granuloma that is probably related to a common infection in the area I grew up. I am scheduled for another CT in 9 months just to be certain. That will be followed with one in 12 months. That is better news than I was expecting to hear.

Liveurlife, I understand the shock. My mom went from Stage 1 before surgery to a 3a during surgery (they found more cancer during surgery). It was a punch to the gut. But with today's advancements in treatment, a late stage diagnosis does not carry the death sentence it once did a few years ago. My mom is 4 years out of her original diagnosis. Yes it came back, and yes she had to have more treatment, but she is out of treatment and is NED (no evidence of disease). I can't venture to guess what the cause of your husband's pleural effusion was, my mom had a few bouts with pleural effusions although none were found to have cancers cells in them. I totally get your anger and feeling of powerlessness. I think we all feel it whether we are the one with cancer or the caregiver. It's a normal part of the process of being diagnosed with a serious condition. But as I said before, there has been great advancements in treatment which gives us all HOPE. The good news is that your husband will benefit from these treatment advances. It sounds like your husband will receive the current standard of care for late stage diagnoses. It was just 3 years ago when my mom was told her best bet for treating her lung cancer recurrence was Keytruda + carbo + alimta (it has just been "approved" 1 month prior to her diagnosis). Many, many people have benefited from this treatment combo, including my mom. She responded so well that she only had to receive 6 doses of keytruda + chemo before she went to keytruda only. Her treatment was not a walk in the park, but she regularly says that when her lung cancer comes back, she would definitely do it all again. I kept track of my mom's story here on the forums. You can read it here. I came here looking for HOPE and I found it. I hope you are able to do the same. Take Care, Steff

I hope your husband feels better and recoups from the respiratory virus. You can always ask to change up some of the chemo drugs. I had a successful lobectomy and wedge resection and then started chemo about 4 weeks after surgery. While I think the lung healing has stalled a bit (the surgeon said it would). I did read through the drugs the doctor recommended. Instead of Cisplatin (his first recommendation) I went with Carboplatin as it has less side effects and is not as wicked as the Cisplatin. Yes, I have had some fatigue but overall I had no problem with the Carboplatin. Also had Taxol ..only side effects hair loss and now some neuropathy in my feet and hands. Because of the neuropathy my last 2 cycles we are changing the Taxol to Gemzar and hopefully there will be bad side effects. The moral of the story is that You have the option to look at different chemo drugs and ask questions. Don't focus on the worst of the side effects unless there is an underlying condition that worries you. Look at the overall and common and go with what you may be most comfortable with. You can always change up the chemo drugs or say stop treatment.

I'm so sorry to hear that your husband progressed so quickly. LUNGevity has a few services that can help support you both. The HELPLine is staffed with oncologist social workers and can help you manage your emotional, financial, and support challenges. LifeLine is a peer-to-peer mentoring program that will match patients and/or caregivers with someone who is the same age, gender and going through similar treatment. It's one on on so you can communicate via email or phone, however you are the most comfortable. There are also clinical trial finders and clinical trial ambassadors if that is something your husband is considering. Information about clinical trials can be found here: https://lungevity.org/for-patients-caregivers/lung-cancer-101/treatment-options/clinical-trials Did they do biomarker testing?