My father was diagnosed with 4 stage lung cancer

[TinaMDA]

Hi everyone,

My father was diagnosed with lung cancer stage 4 (metastasized to the bones) back in February.  After two chemotherapies his health condition worsened, meanwhile his mutation test came back positive for BRAF V-600 mutation.  Unfortunately during chemo he developed blood clots.  At the moment he is taking the two combination pills from my understanding it blocks the proteins from dividing too fast.  He is also receiving the injections to stop the blood from clogging.  (I can’t remember the names of the pills and injections. I can write them later if needed.). Anyhow i wonder if there is something more that we can do for him?  Do doctors operate on metastatic lung cancer?  Do the blood clots go away?  He is 55 years old, has no bone fractures, his health improved since taking the pills.  Now that he is feeling stronger I was wondering if there is something more to do to kill the cancer (if possible).

My father is undergoing treatment in Europe, his doctor speaks French (which I don’t speak fluently).  

Thank you for your time,

cristina 

[Tom Galli]

Cristina,

Welcome here.  I'm very sorry to learn of your dad's condition.

Do doctors operate on metastatic (stage 4) lung cancer?  No, not normally, at least in the US.  But, there are forms of precision radiation that are used to address multiple tumors or masses in the body.  These are called Image Guided Radiation Therapy (IMRT) and Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT) and there is more information about these types of radiation here. (Read the side arrow titled: What are the different types of external beam radiation therapy).  I'm sure they have these types of treatments in France but they would likely be called by different names.

If your dad has a BRAF V-600 mutation, he likely has non small cell lung cancer with a subtype of adenocarcinoma.  His BRAF V-600 mutation will allow treatment using two targeted therapy drugs: dabrafenib (Tafinlar® and trametinib (Mekinist®.  These could be the "two combination pills" he is taking. These pills are very effective in treating tumors with a BRAF V-600 mutation.

When I was thought to have blood clots after surgery, I was injected with a drug called Lovenox.  It is a blood thiner and it does cause the clotting to stop.  

I hope I've answered your questions.  Feel free to ask away if you have more. 

Stay the course.

Tom 

[BridgetO]

Hi Tina and welcome.

I'm sorry to hear about your father's cancer. I'm not well informed about BRAF-V-600. It looks like Tom is-- he's knowledgeable about a lot of things having to do with cancer. I don't have anything to add, except to add my well-wishes for your father and for you.

Bridget O