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Radiation worked tumor shrunk!! No need for 2nd chemo round


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So my mom was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer with a brain met. She underwent surgery for the brain and removed the small tumor they decided not to do preventative radiation and so far the brain is all clear. They then did radiation on the lung and after that started the first round of chemo planning to do round 2 afterwards. She has only had 1 treatment (her second is today) and the MRI shows an enormous shrink! They are only finishing round 1 as a preventative measure and have canceled round 2 because the dr feels that with the lymph nodes clear and the tumor shrinking at a rapid pace that she will be NED by the end of the 4 weeks. Is this even possible!? With all the stories I've read and statistics out there could she beat this so easily with little side effects???? I can't even believe it. From January 2nd 2008 to now the doctor says we caught it just in time to knock it out. Has anyone ever heard a story like this!?

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No but all the survivors on this site say don't listen to the negatives or the stats that go with the dx. What a fabulous story! I understand you must feel like it's too good to be true but enjoy. Your mom must be over the moon. Or is she skeptical too? I hope not.

Judy in Key West

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Would you be so kind as to do all of us a favor and please find out what KIND of lung cancer your mom has? Are you sure this is Non Small Cell Lung Cancer? And if so, what kind is it? That information is SO HELPFUL for us to help you and for us to understand the facts of what your mom is dealing with. It'll also be helpful for you to know.

Then would you please be so kind as to complete your (MY PROFILE) go to the top of any page and click onto MY PROFILE scroll down to Signature and type in the Kind of lung cancer your mom has, the stage, the treatments and add in the dates with all that.

Its really helpful for all of us to be able to see a profile rather then look back at all your past messages. :wink: Thank you.

I have never heard (not that it can't happen) of doctor's saying someone will be NED in 4 weeks time. :shock::?

I'm confused if your mom had a second line of chemo or not? What chemo/chemos are they giving her? You said they only were going to do one round, and then you mention they are doing the second round today. They usually have a protocal that they follow when doing chemo. Is she getting or did she get radiation daily? If so, how many radiation treatments did she get? I'm sorry if I am asking goofy questions, it's just confusing to me what they are doing with your mom. I'm just trying to figure things out enable to help you and answer your questions.

Are the Doctor's telling you she will be NED in 4 weeks or is She telling you this? Do you go with her for her treatments or to the doctor with her?

I have never heard a doctor that would say, "they caught it just in time a(stage IV) to knock it out."

This is very odd to me. I guess I would say, I have never heard a story like this. I went back and read and re-read all your posts and I'm confused!! :?

Maybe we can all figure this out together. We need Clear information to do this.

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Paperback: I'm a new member too and I know how overwhelming it can be to do the profile. For me it meant living the finding out all over again but I eventually got to it. Although doctor's may not say exactly the things you're quoting them as saying about your mom's prognosis, we do interpret the way we sometimes need to hear things at the moment to stay hopeful faced with a III or IV dx.

When I asked the doctor how long I'd be on Avastin and she said "until the disease progresses or the person gets tired of doing it," and she confirmed it would be every three weeks for the indefinite period, I went numb. When I went home, I "heard" it over and over and freaked. Down the line when I had processed it, I started recalling other things she said that were more hopeful: Well, we haven't seen the CT/PET yet. I also recalled the reply of a PA to the Thoracic surgeon when I first got the IIIB dx. I asked (because she was standing beside me as people were bustling around) is this a lifelong thing? She said it could be or they could go in there and zap it (later learned this was related to what one chemo nurse called "heavy duty stuff" I was getting) and then she (the oncologist) could follow you.

Take it one day at a time. Probably the first thing is to find out what kind of cancer your mom has and particularly whether it is small cell or nonsmall cell. That tells you a lot about the character of the cancer. It was one of the first things I learned when I found out I had cancer--that an adenocarcinoma. I didn't even know the significance of the terms at the time.

Do make sure someone goes to visits with your mom. I've been advised many times to have someone take notes or take a recorder and know it's good advice but haven't followed it yet. It all good advice but we do things in our own good time when we are confronted with this disease. You or whomever goes with your mom will probably have this clarified by the doctor her next visit. In the meantime, don't focus on the specifics of the message and just assume that it was probably positive.

You're in my thoughts during these turbulent times.

Judy in Key West

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Hey,

Well after brain surgery my mom received 11 days of targeted radiation to the lung. Then after that she started her first day of chemo. When they reviewed her MRI they said that the tumor shrunk between 40-60% and that the effects of the radiation will likely shrink it entirely while the chemo will be preventetive killing all of the hidden cancer in her body that an mri cant see. She is getting the chemo weekly and just finished her second day she is off for a week then continues for I think 2 more. Obviously the doctor doesn't think she is going to go into remission forever, he said that the radiation has been shrinking the only tumor she has left so significantly that by the end of the chemo that tumor should not be apparent which would mean that she has NED. He originally wanted to do another round of chemo for 4 or 6 weeks i cant remember. But he doesn't feel it will be needed because this initial 4 weeks should be enough of a preventative measure. I was there and this is what he's telling me.

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Oh and it's NSCLC. I'll have to find out what type of chemo it is my mom has it written down but I do know that I've read about a drug called Tarveca (sp?) on the boards and asked about it but the doc said he was giving her a different drug with similar effects that he considered more effective. I mean, should I be skeptical? She was diagnosed January 2nd went through brain surgery radiation and chemo, she's on oxygen and tons of pills but breathing ok and feels alright. No pnemonia no lung collapse no hair loss few side effects. Is it supposed to spread or something? Does everyone have complications? I know her blood tests had some problem with her liver count but the doc said it was likely a side effect and pursued more chemo anyway. She eats, she walks, in fact she bored out of her mind just sitting there. Is this all short lived?

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paperback: I was on another site and saw this and immediately thought of you. Keep looking for the specifics of your mom's situation. They may not be the same but here's more hope:

"James was diagnosed 6 months (to the day!) ago, with stage 3B NSCLC. He did 4 rounds of chemo (Carbo, Taxol, Atavastin) and then 3 weeks of IMRT. At MDA, they don't use the term remission, but our oncologist was shocked and extremely happy with his progress. She was going to do another round of chemo, but with these great results she no longer feels it is necessary. We are now in what I can only call the maintenance stage of every 3 months scans."

I know it's giving me hope with my IIIB.

Judy in Key West

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