Pain in Left Arm

[jhllal]

My father, age 74, was diagnosed with NSLC, stage IV with lymph node involvement in neck and under his arms (left side) in June 2005. He is doing chemo once every 3 weeks for 18 weeks. He has been reacting well to the chemo - he is sick for about 2 days, but then starts feeling better.

He will have his 3rd chemo Tuesday of next week. This morning, he had a severe pain in his left arm. It went away about 45 minutes after taking Advil. The tumor in his lung is on the left side.

Anyone have any thoughts on the cause of the pain? He said that he is also taking medicine for cholestoral, and it could be due to that medicine.

Lynn

[Ry]

You need to call the doctor and make sure he doesn't have a blood clot. Pain in the left arm is also a sign of a heart problem. Good luck.

[Don Wood]

Ry is right on. Call the doctor right away. Don

[Nushka]

I agree. Call a doctor asap.

Nina

[dadstimeon]

As mentioned, best to call the doctor ASAP.

[jhllal]

My father is now in the hospital. They think it was a heart attack. (BTW, it was his right arm, not the left). He had an "alleged" heart attack in March of this year, months before the cancer diagnosis. At that time, his left arm hurt and he drove himself to the hospital. They said that a certain enzyme was slightly elevated, which would indicate a mild heart attack. There was very very mild damage and they could not tell whether the damage was recent. There was no blockage. He was put on heart medication and cholestoral medication.

They may not do further tests on him, heartwise, due to the chemo.

Will a heart attack affect my father's ability to tolerate the chemo?