Dad's Recurrence

[ocgal99]

Hey Guys! Really great to have found this forum.

 

My father, 70, was diagnosed with NSCLC 1B about two years ago. They found two masses, a larger one, I think about 6 or 7cm, behind his heart. The other one, I think maybe around 2cm or 3cm, was in his right lung. No mets. The surgeons removed the larger one, along with a little more than 1/2 of his left lung, while leaving the one in his right lung untouched (I'm not sure why). He was given 4 rounds of Cisplatin since it was 1B and that they will just have to monitor the smaller one.

 

Anyways, you guys know the drill. CAT scans every 3 months, then it's 6 months etc. we thought everything was under control until it wasn't. His last scan was in November 2016. However his latest scan showed that the one in his right lung grew and now his remaining left lung also has some cancer cells. PET scan shows no other mets.

 

We are just devastated. I couldn't stop crying bc we thought he had it under control and the thought of losing him so soon is just too much. All the feelings after the initial diagnosis came rushing back. Maybe even more amplified.

 

His onc will likely get him started on targeted therapies, along with blood-vessel blockers that stops the growth of cancer cells. Not sure which yet.

 

My question, has anybody had success using a combination of these? Also, are NSCLC more prone to recurrences? Or just certain mutations?

 

 

[BridgetO]

Hi ocgal,

Welcome here! Glad you found us. My cancer is 1A and I haven't experienced recurrences, so I can't help with your question. But there are plenty of folks on here who have had that experience and I'm sure you will hear from some of them and you'll find a lot of hope here, as well as information.  Best wishes to you and your dad. Hang in there!

Bridget

[Tom Galli]

Ocgal,

Welcome here.  Very sorry to hear of your dad's recurrence.  Unfortunately, lung cancer is very persistent.  I had 4 recurrences after treatment that produced "no evidence of disease" or NED, our desired end state.  Lung cancer is so persistent, the word cure is no longer used in the community, replaced by NED.  But, I've lived more than 13 years after the cyberknife surgery that finally controlled my lung cancer and if I can live, so can your dad.

Here is some information on lung cancer recurrence that might be useful.  Your dad has to buckle in for the long treatment game.  I gather his type of lung cancer is adenocarcinoma from your mention of targeted therapy.  This new therapy based on newly discovered biomarkers on the cancer cell has produced remarkable results for some. Here is more information on targeted therapy.

So you should look forward to a new treatment plan, hopefully taking advantage of targeted therapy.  The plan may include conventional chemotherapy paired with targeted therapy and perhaps include a form of radiation.  SBRT and IMRT radiation are newly developed techniques that are very potent.  Here is information on radiation treatment.  You might ask your father's medical oncologist about all of these possible treatment methods at his next consultation.

You'll have more questions and this is a good place to ask.

Stay the course.

Tom

[LexieCat]

I don't have any knowledge/experience to share, so just sending a hug.

[Susan Cornett]

I was diagnosed as stage IV in February 2016 and clicked along with NED scans until March of this year.  I'm currently fighting a recurrence.  The silver lining to all of those frequent scans is catching a recurrence early.  Your dad was also fortunate to have his initial diagnosis in an early stage.  That is a huge benefit in this fight.  

Keeping you both in my thoughts and prayers.