Talk me through this....my sister...

[Gracie]

She's been diagnosed with Stage 3 Lung Cancer and has had tests all week to see if there is any someplace else. Today I went over with food and to visit and I noticed she slurred her words a couple of times. I know I'm not a Dr. but it scared the shi_ out of me. Please tell me it's nothing I should be overly concerned about. I've been crying all afternoon. Thanks.

[SandraL]

Hi Gracie. There may be many reasons why she slurred her words. Maybe just sheer exhaustion from all of this. it she has Stage 3 then that means I think that it has not metasticized to her brain...so it doesn't sound to me that the slurring is in anyway related to the cancer. I am sorry you have to go through this along with her but she is lucky to have such a kind sister. Once she starts treatment things will start to look brighter and the crying will lessen. I promise. Take care

Sandra

[Faith711]

Gracie

My heart goes out to you and your sister... I know exactly how you feel because my sister was diagnosed as well. Her first oncologist wasn't even going to do a brain CT or MRI because she wasn't having any symptoms - I asked him about it. Luckily we switched oncologists and he did one because she did have brain mets and the other oncologist was going to put her on avastin which she shouldn't be on with active brain mets. Just make sure she gets her brain checked before they start the chemo! Sandra is right.. things do get better once all the testing is done and you start treatment. We're all here for you.

[Gracie]

Thank you guys. I thought the tests she had this week were to see if she had mets anywhere. She had MRI, PET scan, CT scans, etc. Would they have known already? She had a biopsy and several other tests before the diagnosis.

Faith, I'm very sorry about your sister. I am devestated at the thought of losing mine. My heart goes out to you.

[Muriel]

I'm sorry to be the "alarmist" in the group, but I really feel that I should say this.

Slurred speech can be caused by many health problems other than brain mets. Some of these conditions are very, very serious.

If she was slurring words very often when you were there, or if she is still doing it, I think she should go to the ER NOW. Better safe than sorry.

On the brighter side, if she is taking anti-anxiety meds or pain meds, they could be responsible for it, too.

Muriel

[Gracie]

Thanks Muriel. She only did it twice while I was there, on the same word but I thought it was strange and out of character. She is exhausted with all of the tests this week and she hasn't been sleeping well. She may be on anti-anxiety meds - I know she's been taking something to help her sleep. I'll keep an eye on it.

[Janet B]

Gracie - I was also going to suggest, like Muriel, that maybe your sister is on meds of some kind. Anti anxiety meds or sleep meds might be causing this. Check that out with her tomorrow. In the mean time - remember to breathe,

prayers for you and your sister - Janet

[Connie B]

Does your sister live alone? Has she seen an Onc Doc yet? Do you have a list of all her meds? It's very important to get as much information as to what is going on with her as possible. Did she tell you what kind of tests they ran on her this last week?

Did they do a Brain MRI? Did they do a PET scan? Did they do a CT scan? Did they do a Bone scan?

These are the test that are part of the protocal for lung cancer patients. Sadly enough, sometimes we have to take notes.

All this imformation is helpful for you and for us to help you. Does your sister have any other health issues?

Anti Anxiety meds can make a person loopy and or tired.

Keep us posted.

[Gracie]

"Connie B"]Does your sister live alone?

No, she lives with her husband.

Has she seen an Onc Doc yet? Yes, she's seeking a second opinion on Monday.

Do you have a list of all her meds? I don't. She takes meds for MS, a condition she has also. I know she is taking something to help her sleep but I don't know what.

It's very important to get as much information as to what is going on with her as possible. Did she tell you what kind of tests they ran on her this last week?

Did they do a Brain MRI? Did they do a PET scan? Did they do a CT scan? Did they do a Bone scan?

These are the test that are part of the protocal for lung cancer patients. Sadly enough, sometimes we have to take notes.

Yes, she had all of these I believe. She had something done yesterday that made her "radioactive" she said - so I couldn't bring my son by today.

All this imformation is helpful for you and for us to help you. Does your sister have any other health issues?

Yes, she has MS, and has had it for several years.

Anti Anxiety meds can make a person loopy and or tired.

I will check into this. Thank you

Keep us posted.

[fillise]

Gracie,

Between the time my mom had her first scan after starting chemo and when she got the results, she started having blurry vision and lightheadedness. Scared the life out of me (her too). She has ocular migranes (migranes with the aura but without the headance pain). Of course we forgot all about that but after she got the good news from her scan she hasn't experienced another one.

So it very well could be exhauston and stress!

Susan

[J.C.]

Gracie,

In your answer to Muriel

you mentioned that your

sister had trouble with the

same word two times

is it a new word about lc or test?

or one about a subject that cause her

some anxiety?

Be alert and you could mention it when

you go for the second opinion.

Good luck.

Jackie

[Gracie]

"J.C."]Gracie,

In your answer to Muriel

you mentioned that your

sister had trouble with the

same word two times

is it a new word about lc or test?

or one about a subject that cause her

some anxiety?

Be alert and you could mention it when

you go for the second opinion.

Good luck.

Jackie

Hi Jackie,

Yes, it was a new word about LC. Non cell something. Thanks.

[Connie B]

Could it have been Non Small Cell Adenocarcinoma? Or Non Small Cell Sqaumaous Carcinoma? I had a heck of a time learning how to say some of these words.

If you go over to the side of any page here at LCSC and click on "know the facts" you can scroll through and see the types of lung cancers. There are different kinds of lung cancer.

These words are NOT easy for anyone to pronounce.

I'm sorry to be asking you 100 questions, but as I said, the more information we have the better WE can HELP YOU! When filling out your PROFILE make sure you add that your sister has MS also. All this adds into her treatments and her care. I'm glad she has a husband to help her. It sounded from your messages that she was alone.

I am adding this information that I just found in the LC Survivors Forum for you below:

Understanding cancer means knowing it’s more than one disease

Although there are many kinds of cancer, they all start because of out-of-control growth of abnormal cells. Normal body cells grow, divide and die in an orderly fashion. Because cancer cells continue to grow and divide, they are different from normal cells. Instead of dying, they outlive normal cells and continue to form new abnormal cells.

Cancer cells develop because of damage to DNA, which directs all activities in each cell. When DNA becomes damaged, the body is usually able to repair it. In cancer cells, however, the damaged DNA is not repaired. People can inherit damaged DNA, which accounts for the approximately 10 percent of inherited cancers. More often, though, a person’s DNA becomes damaged by exposure to something in the environment or random cellular events.

Most cancers originate almost anywhere in the body and usually form as a solid tumor, while others, such as leukemia and myeloma, are sometimes referred to as liquid tumors (see illustration). These cancer cells involve the blood and blood-forming organs (bone marrow) and circulate through other tissues, where they grow.

The different types of cancer include:

Carcinomas: The most common type of cancer, these tumors arise from the cells that cover external and internal body surfaces. The most frequent cancers of this type in the United States are lung, breast and colon cancer.

Sarcomas: Cancers that arise from cells found in the supporting tissues of the body, such as bone, cartilage, fat, connective tissue and muscle.

Lymphomas: Cancers that arise in the lymph nodes and tissues of the body’s immune system.

Leukemias: Cancers of the immature blood cells that grow in the bone marrow and tend to accumulate in large numbers in the bloodstream.

The place where a cancer starts is called the primary site. From there, it can spread (metastasize) to other parts of the body. Regardless of where a cancer may spread, it is always named for the place it began. For instance, breast cancer that spreads to the liver is still called breast cancer, not liver cancer.

Different types of cancer can behave very differently. For example, lung cancer and breast cancer are very different diseases. They grow at different rates and respond to different treatments. That is why people with cancer need treatment that is aimed at their particular kind of cancer.

Not all tumors are malignant (cancerous). Benign, or noncancerous, tumors do not spread to other parts of the body and, with very rare exceptions, are not life-threatening.

During the second half of the 20th century, scientists uncovered many of the intricacies of cancer and developed the technology to pinpoint the exact site of the damage to a specific gene, which has had a tremendous impact on the types of therapies now available.

Adapted with permission of the American Cancer Society