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Chris


kimblanchard

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Hi everyone,

I just wanted to check in and give everyone an update on Chris. We have been in the hospital since Monday morning after I had to call 911 due to his extreme shortness of breath. The cancer has spread. His oncologist told us this morning that because the cancer is in his lymph nodes that it has spread to his right lung in very small spots ("lymphatic spread"?) without actually forming a tumor. He is very very weak and is not eating very much anymore. He is on a steady morphine drip and also adivan to help with the anxiety. His primary care physician told me yesterday morning that Chris only has a few days left. :cry: Today is July 10, it has been exactly one month since his diagnosis. I cannot believe this has happened so fast. We were told that if he did not seek any treatment he would have 3-6 months left and here we are seeking treatment and it is only one month later. :cry: He had one round of chemo in June and was due for another one this week but because he is so weak and the cancer has spread he must end this line of treatment. The doctors feel that the chemo is too dangerous and might actually kill him. We are still scheduled to go to Sloan on Tuesday, so here is the game plan. Chris has the option of starting Iressa immediately. However, if he starts Iressa before we go to Sloan, that may make him ineliglble for a clinical trial so we have decided to wait it out a few more days and arrange transportation to Sloan. If he decides sometime between now and Tues that he doesn't want to go to Sloan, he will be sent home and given Iressa. Chris is very strong willed and it angers me that his doctor is so negative (his primary care doctor). He wanted to increase the morphine yesterday morning and give up completely! :evil::evil: This morning I mentioned Iressa to him and he had never even heard of it!! :evil::evil: Chris is way too young to give up this soon. For now we are just hanging in and praying for the best. I am staying with him in the ospital day and night (I really think that helps). I have also arranged for a few close friends to visit. Even though he is so sick he is still "working". Chris is a very successful composer for film and television (6 emmys :D ) and most of his friends are also very successful musicians. He doesn't want the executive producer of the show he is working on to know that he is sick, so his close friend is "ghost writing" the music for him. I think it is so important for people to stay engaged in life because it gives them a reason to keep living. :D I will post if again if anything new happens. I really appreciate the support of this board. It is such a good source of information! :D

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Hi,

First I want to say that the doctors never really know how long someone has. They told us that mom had between 6 mo amd 18 mo, but settled on a year.

Maybe I am just not experienced enough in this process but why is the primary care doctor still involved? I would suggest not giving up too quickly. Listen with your heart and pray for guidence in all things. I will add my prayers to yours.

HUGS, Shelly

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My prayers are coming to you as well. Do that which feels right for both of you. I wish some of us lived close enough by so that we could walk in the door of his hospital room as living arguments to the negative attitude of Chris' Primary Care Physician.

I never lose hope...not for any of us.

Fay A.

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Christina,

I wish I could do something to help you, honey. You said Chris isn't eating much at all. It is very important for him to keep his nutrition up. I know some people on this board are on Megace to improve their appetite but we haven't had to go that route yet. You are both in my prayers.

Blessings to you,

Peg

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Christina, My heart breaks for you both. We are sending you guys extra prayers. Do not give up and don't let the negative Docs near Chris. I wish I knew why they feel that they have to continue to be negative. I think they should lay the cards on the table as they see them and then encourage the patient and family to go on with conviction. I believe there is only one God and he makes the rules. Keeping fighting don't give up miracles happen everyday. Carol

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Dear Christina,

My advice would be to call Sloan Kettering ASAP and ask to talk to a clinical trial nurse for Lung Cancer trials. I am awaiting word on one of 4 clinical trials that I am on a wait list for. My name was entered on the lists 2 weeks ago and today we were told it might be another 4 weeks! I don't know how Sloan Kettering works, but I did want to make you aware of this possible waiting period.

As far as IRESSA goes, I was told that you can tell whether or not it is working after about 15 days.

You are in a very difficult situation here. I think it's best to get as much info as you can from medical personnel before making final decisions about where Chris is going to be treated. For example, a question I might ask is--if Chris is too weak for regular chemo, why isn't he too weak for a clinical trial? Well, I am sure you can think of a million questions.

Good luck Christina.

Ada

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Christina,

I wanted to clarify what I said about IRESSA. I said "you can tell whether or not it is working" and I meant, the oncologist may be able to tell whether or not it is working by giving standard tests--like X-rays, CT scans. My point was that if it is going to work for a person, it is going to work quickly.

Ada

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