MichelleZP Posted July 13, 2003 Share Posted July 13, 2003 Well last night he could not breathe or quit coughing so we took him in and he was admitted for pneumonia. This is his third time in the hospital in that past 6 weeks. He is so thin, so fraile... What are the stats on patients w/stage four NSCLC fighting pneumonia and winning the fight? I just worry this is what is going to do him in! I don't know if he is strong enough to fight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kimblanchard Posted July 13, 2003 Share Posted July 13, 2003 deleting all posts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Wood Posted July 13, 2003 Share Posted July 13, 2003 Michelle, I can't answer about pneumonia, but my wife had something equally dangerous especially when undergoing treatment -- septic shock due to staph infection. She was in intensive care for five days and in a regular room at the hospital for seven more days in December. She was critical at one point, but she came through fine. She has been out of the hopsital since. Just finished her treatments, and now on maintenance program to prevent LC return. I pointed out to her when she came through the septic shock that this proved she could fight the disease. Wish you and your husband all the best. The hospital should be able to heal his pneumonia. Don Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shelliemacs Posted July 13, 2003 Share Posted July 13, 2003 Michelle My thoughts and prayers are with you and your husband through this battle. It can be won. dont think negative. I will pray harder for you and him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
norme Posted July 13, 2003 Share Posted July 13, 2003 Michelle, So so sorry that your husband is back in the hospital. Hopefully with all the medications they can use for pneumonia he will get through this too. I saw in your signature about your husband being on a feeding tube. Is he still on it. My husband chose not to do that when he was going through all that swallowing trouble. At one of the BA tests for swallowing, a therapist told him to bend his chin down to his neck when he swallows so that no liquid could go into his lungs, that he didn't want pneumonia caused from that. If your husband is not on the feeding tube anymore, have him try that when he swallows liquids. That might have been what happened. God Bless both of you... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MichelleZP Posted July 13, 2003 Author Share Posted July 13, 2003 Christina871, What was the Dx they gave to you and your husband? Was it the spread of cancer that masked as pneumonia? Hi all, Thank you for the replies. I really appreciate this board being here. I feel understood here. I have been so supportive and so positive all through my husband's cancer, despite his onc. telling me he was only treating him for palliative care - I chose hope, I believed in miracles. I guess there comes a point where you can just tell when being realistic must take over, and I am at that point now. I STILL believe in miracles, and I always will. I refuse to grieve now as this is not the time to grieve, this is the time to LIVE. People ask me how I can cope with this - how I can work, shop, eat, carry on, well, simply put - I refuse to grieve RIGHT NOW. My husband is still w/us. Well I just spoke to the doctor on call for my husband's onc. and he said they are doing an MRI in the morning as one of my husband's eyeballs is sunken in and he is not dehydrated. They feel a recurrence of the brain cancer is what that is all about. My husband had mets to his brain but three weeks of radiation therapy took care of that - but that was over a year ago. He also needs a CAT scan of his chest in the morning to see if this "pneumonia" is indeed "pneumonia" or mets to the right lung masking as pneumonia. The onc. feels it IS cancer, but a CAT scan will tell us if this is so. (sigh) I also TOLD THEM, I didn't ask, I TOLD THEM I want my husband to eat FOOD...he is still on that feeding tube as they said he can die from silent aspiration if he attempted to eat/drink by mouth. WELL I asked about the chin tuck (thanks norme for telling me about this) technique and they said they will look into it. They said when he has hospice he will be able to eat if he chooses to eat, for pleasure. If he can have puree food that is better than nothing - he longs to taste food. He is over the 8 cans of Ultracal and/or Boost via his tube per day. So, that is what I know now. Tomorrow is a new day w/more answers. Thank you all for the support, the info, and the prayers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kimblanchard Posted July 14, 2003 Share Posted July 14, 2003 deleting all posts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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