Good news from doctor visit

[Gail10]

Well I found only good news on my check up after surgery. First my stage is type 1 second the type of cancer is adenocarcinoma non-small cell. I will be seeing a oncologist after the surgeon check up in two weeks.

The surgeon mentioned precautionary chemo. He said he felt the oncologist would suggest it and it would be a good idea. I read here that some of you have had this treatment. What was your deciding reason for having this treatment and for those who chose not to, what is your reason to not have this treatment?

I will be getting into this informations as well on my own( but I would like to hear from the people who have, like me, the ultimate fact of choosing what you need to do to survive.

I feel better today then yesterday. I am still taking 1 vicodin every 6 hours but I am not feeling guilty about it anymore. Thanks guys. By the way I still have that cough but the doctor said to let it be for another week and call him if I still have it after next Tuesday. Let you know. Gail10

[recce101]

Hi, Gail:

As you can see from my profile, our histories and situations are different but we do have the same flavor of cancer, adenocarcinoma. I started this trip already in Stage IIIB or IV, depending on who was asked, and was not a candidate for surgery. But if I were in your position, knowing what I know today and facing the same choice that you are facing, I would choose the chemo. I'll toss out a few somewhat random reasons for that choice.

1. The doctor who did your surgery thinks it's a good idea. I wonder why? Something he saw during the surgery? Something he's learned from previous cases similar to yours? A gut feeling? Or simply an abundance of caution? Even if it's just the latter, I believe that approach is MUCH better that the surgeon who comes in saying "I got it all, you don't need chemo." That's about as comforting as getting complex driving directions to an unfamiliar spot which end with "You can't miss it!"

2. Although all known traces of cancer may have been removed, there's still a chance that a few cells might be floating around in your bloodstream looking for a home. Chemo is a systemic therapy designed to zap those cells.

3. Chemo is a much more tolerable therapy now than it was a number of years ago, when most of the horror stories we've heard originated. They may have been true back then, but they're no longer true except in rare cases. While some of the more effective chemo agents would still cause serious side effects if given alone, they are now routinely preceded by other drugs specifically designed to counter the most bothersome of those side effects.

So essentially, if it were me, and I was fairly healthy in most respects, I'd go in with the assumption that I'd take the chemo unless I heard something unanticipated that convinced me otherwise.

Again, just my opinion. Obviously you're going to make your own decision. Best wishes and Aloha,

Ned

[beatlemike]

Im glad for your good news Gail.I had the choice also and I took it.They say it improves your cure odds so I figure I wanna improve my odds of it not returning.Mike

[barbvh]

Hi Gail,

As you can see below, I am recently post-op right lower lobectomy. I saw my oncologist last week and no chemo is recommended. I have stage 1a adenocarcinoma, lymph nodes clear, nodule was only 1.2cm. From what I am learning with early stage the recommendation for chemo or not depends on the size of the nodule/mass and whether the lymph nodes are clear. My oncolgist said my surgeon went to great lengths to be sure that there was no lymph node involvement.

All docs are different and if you trust yours that is what is most important. Ask questions as to why or why not. Second opinions are always an option.

Good Luck to you!

[chloesmom]

I had stage 1B and chose to do the chemo. Now, more studies have shown there is a better survival (not a lot, but I'll take every edge I can get) if stage 1B and up surgical patients get adjuvant chemo.

I just decided that I needed to do everything I could possibly do to prevent fighting that battle again, so chemo was a no-brainer for me.

Chemo has it's downside, that's for sure, but the treatments were not that bad, and I was determined. The only lasting side effect I have is some hearing loss and totally fried veins on my hand, which makes a CT scan a little difficult now.

Given the same choice again, I'd do the same thing. It's a personal decision though, and you have to do whatever makes you comfortable.

Cindy

[ernrol]

Gail,

I did not have surgery but, I have done a lot of asking about why chemo after surgery. From what I can tell is the difference between stage 1 and stage IIIb or IV is if the cancer has spread. Unfortunately the cancer could possibly have spread and not be detected. Surgery or radiation only gets rid of the tumor that is in question. Chemo is the only treatment that may kill cancer cells that can not be detected. So if it were me I would always choose to do the chemo as a precaution.

Stay positive,

Ernie

[barbara5452]

Gail, if you will read my profile below I too was where you are now. I was not offered chemo as a precaution. I have a recurrence and have been told that if I would have taken chemo after my surgery chances are I would not be going through what I am now. My onc. said they were just now discovering that lc with no lymph involvement that had chemo after surgery has a better outcome. Good luck with your decision.

[jang]

Gail,

Barb is right. If it's Stage 1A, they haven't found where chemo is effective, so they probably won't give you that option. However, if it's Stage 1B, there is evidence that the chemo may be beneficial. I would talk it over with my doctor. I was Stage 1A, so didn't have any chemo. If I was Stage 1B, and they gave me the option of chemo, I would definitely have taken it. It's a personal decision for you to make, with your doctor's advice.

Good luck and congratulations on the Stage 1!!!

[nonni]

Hi Gail...first of all...congratulation's on Stage 1...apparently is was Stage 1b...I have not heard of any onc that has suggested chemo for 1A...even the top notch doctors at John Hopkins Hospital say NO CHEMO for stage 1A....

This was brought up before and our own Dr. West said...no..not recommended for 1A...

I was blessed to have 1A and my surgeon and onc said 'no chemo'....I strongly trust their judgement...but if you feel it would be benefical it is up to you...but I would get a couple opinions first....hope this helps...PamS/Nonni

[blaze100]

HI Gail, so far so good.

I had tiny margin and big tumor. Nodes were OK. So I did radiation and chemo even though surgeon said he thought he got it all - the small margin was too scary.

As far as the chemo goes, I decided if I passed on treatment and LC came back then I would never forgive myself. So I did chemo.

Now 6.5 years later my heart has been slightly damaged from the treatments, but lc has not returned.

It is tough decision, especially with your heart situation. Have you discussed chemo with heart docs?

Barb

[Connie B]

I know of several people who did preventitive chemo for early stage lung cancer. I was glad to see that the medical field started to offer it to early stage lc patients. There was a day they didn't! The people I know that did this are considered long term survivors and doing very well today.

It's totally up to you if you choose to do it or not. For me, I would go after this cancer with all that I could throw at it. To often we have seen early stage patients that never had an option to do chemo and months down the road found out there cancer was back and it was late stage. I know this sounds scary, but the truth is, lung cancer IS SCARY.

If it were MY LIFE I would go for it. In this case, MORE IS BETTER! And Yes I know there are NO guaranties, but at least this way you will know you tried everything they had to offer you right off the bat.

I was late stage LC and I did it all as you can see in my profile below. I'm not sorry I did.

Good luck to you.

I'm sorry I didn't read your profile until after I posted my message. I see you have a heart issue and it appears they are not sure if you have lung cancer or if your cancer came from somewhere else? That all makes a difference in what you do as far as your treatments go. So, as for what I said above, maybe just nix it for now and see what you find out.

Best of luck!

[Gail10]

Hi all, Well every thing seemed to be going well except for this dry cough. Had an x-ray Tuesday and the surgeon's office called and said I needed to get a CT done to see what was going on. Has anyone had this experience? I will have it done Friday won't have any results till Monday. I tried to follow Tuesdays live chat, but it was way to confusing. Thought I could ask then but this seems the easy way.

Thanks Gail10

[blaze100]

Hi Gail10, I don't remember having a cough after surgery but I think they do CT just to check things out AND to get a baseline established to compare to future scans. They start ordering the ctscans about every three months for first year or so.

Have you seen chemo onc yet?

Prayers for good CT results. And don't forget to take your xanex.

Barb

[dtay]

Thinking of you

Dawn