I feel so good but have stage IV - is this common?

[stoydc]

My dad has been recently dx with STage IV lung cancer - is it common to feel so good and be stage IV? We are trying to decide whether to take chemo or not - fearing that chemo will decrease his quality of life and possibly even shorten it since it can be so toxic. What has been your experience if you know someone with stage IV lung cancer? shirley

[Donna G]

Shirley the sad thing about lung cancer is that usually there are no early symptoms, if there were, people would be diagnosed early , treated early and most would be cured. Some day I pray that it will be diagnosed early! Most people today really do not have major problems caused by the chemo. With new meds available for nausea, meds to boost blood counts etc even the elderly tolerate chemo pretty well. The decision to take treatment has to be your dad's . This decision needs to be well informed though I believe. Keep us posted. Donna G

[dadstimeon]

Hi Shirley,

Sorry to hear about your father and welcome aboard. No two people react the same. That's great your father feels so good. I too was diagnosed at Stage IV (BAC) with mets (also bloodstream) in May of 2002 and worked until Jan 2003 until I could not do it anymore. Although being fatigued and tired are my only problems with my disease to date. No pain or discomfort. Limited to what I can do. Take medication to help with the fatigue. Not a cure all, but helps. I had few problems with chemo in terms of side (2 platelet transfusion and I think I missed one treatment due to low platelet counts) effects. Did not lose my hair or appetite. Was fatigued and tired but was that also when not on chemo. Had great success and I’m now on Iressa for maintenance. As Donna mentioned they have come a long way with chemo and medications to help with side effects. Everyone reacts differently to it. Of course it is a personal choice one makes about treatments and should be respected regardless what direction one goes in. Stay positive and focused. Be pro-active. Research, research and more research everything you can. Stay with us. Nicest people here with lots of knowledge and caring. Everyone here has a story to tell that helps in our battle with this terrible disease. I find this board very comforting in dealing coping and battling my disease also. Hope this helps. Peace, take care and God Bless.

Rich

[The Power Of People Helping People / The Power Of Knowledge / The Power Of God / The Power Of Believing / The Power Of Positive Thinking / The Power Of Never Taking No For An Answer / The Power Of Laughter / United We Stand, Divided We Fall / That’s The Key]

https://cissecure.nci.nih.gov/ncipubs (NCI Publications Locator)

http://www.rfalung.com (Radio Frequency Ablation Of Lung Cancer)

http://www.lungcancercoalition.org (Global Lung Cancer Coalition)

http://www.plwc.org/plwc/MainConstructo ... 008,00.asp (PLWC Feature: Financial Support Resources)

http://www.usnews.com/usnews/nycu/healt ... hqcanc.htm (Best Hospitals)

https://www.alcase.org/advocacy/sign_the_petition.html (Advocacy /Sign the Petition)

http://www.cancersymptoms.org (Oncology Nursing Society)

http://www.plwc.org/plwc/MainConstructo ... 08,00.html (Questions to Ask the Doctor)

http://www.alcase.org/education/publica ... reath.html (With Every Breath A Lung Cancer Guidebook / From ALCASE / A Wealth Of Information / Free)

http://www.cancersurvivaltoolbox.org (The Cancer Survival Toolbox / Free / From NCCS)

http://www.centerwatch.com (Clinical Trails Listing Service / Center Watch)

http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&editi ... ung+cancer (Lung Cancer In The News)

http://www.thewellnesscommunity.org/pro ... /guide.asp (The Wellness Community / National Cancer Support, Education And Support / Free)

http://www.drugs.com (Drug Information Online)

http://www.alcase.org (ALCASE / Alliance For Lung Cancer Advocacy, Support, Education)

http://www.nlm.nih.gov (Unites States / National Library Of Medicine)

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/encyclopedia.html (Health Information / Medical Encyclopedia)

http://www.google.com (Great Search Engine)

http://blochcancer.org (R.A. Bloch Cancer Foundation, Inc. / Please read: A Letter to all newly diagnosed cancer patients)

http://www.cancer.org (American Cancer Society)

http://www.cancer.gov (Cancer Information Service / NCI)

http://www.cancerresearchcenter.org (Cancer Research Center)

http://www.aicr.org (American Institute for Cancer Research; Nutrition Hotline / AICR)

http://www.cancerhopenetwork.org (Cancer Hope Network)

http://www.acor.org (Association of Cancer Online Resources / Free Online Lifeline For Everyone Affected By Cancer & Related Disorders)

http://www.meds.com/lung/lunginfo.html (Lung Cancer Information Library)

http://www.lungusa.org (American Lung Association)

http://www.ama-assn.org (American Medical Association)

http://www.docguide.com/news/content.ns ... g%20Cancer (Doctor’s Guide / Lung Cancer)

http://www.healthfinder.gov/Scripts/Sea ... ?topic=506 (Healthfinder)

http://www.medicinenet.com/Lung_Cancer/article.htm (Medicine Net)

http://www.cancerindex.org/clinks2l.htm (Cancer Index / Lung Cancer Resources Directory)

http://www.nfcr.org/site/PageServer?pag ... ncers_lung (National Foundation For Cancer Research)

http://www.patientadvocate.org (Patient Advocate Foundation)

http://www.lungcanceronline.org/effects ... fects.html (Lung Cancer Online / Hematologic (Blood) Effects)

http://www.cancerlinks.org/lung.html (Lung Cancer Links)

http://www.cancer-free.com (Cancer Free Connections)

http://www.healthinsite.gov.au/topics/C ... ung_cancer (Health Insite)

http://www.lungcancerclaims.com (Lung Cancer / Lung Cancer Information Page)

http://www.cancerlifecenter.com/engine. ... =dictionar (Cancer Life Center/ Cancer Dictionary)

http://www.canceryellowpages.com/Resour ... G%20CANCER (Cancer yellow Pages)

http://icare.org (ICARE / The International Cancer Alliance)

http://www.vh.org/index.html (Virtual Hospital)

http://www.lungcanceronline.org/support/financial.html (Lung Cancer Online / Financial, Legal & Insurance Issues)

http://cancernews.healthology.com/focus ... cancernews (Cancer News)

[DeanCarl]

Shirley,

The word "common" simply doesn't apply to this disease. I know of a member here around my own age that is stage IV and still works every day, runs in 5k's, and, in general, has NO symptoms what so ever. I, on the other hand, am Stage IIIA and just got HAMMERED. I am 100% disabled, can only walk short distances and need oxygen for ANY type of exertion. I have a lot of muscle weakness and quite a bit of muscle pain. When the symptoms finally hit (the docs explained the tumor could have been growing in my lung for 8 to 15 YEARS!) they hit HARD.

Everybody is different.

My suggestion is everytime you see your Dad and he's up and out there enjoying life, say a little "thank you" to God and ENJOY this time!

I left a message for your Dad about what I think about the decision he is facing.

Dean