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BarbLu

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Hi I’m a newbie. In July a very small tumor was found in my lung (found by accident) since I had no symptoms. I’m actually a 21 year Lymphoma patient and have a routine CT scan to make sure everything was ok. Well thank God I had the scan because they found lung cancer, stage 1a adenocarcinoma. By the way, never smoked a cigarette in my life! Anyway after doing the needle biopsy, I had 3/4 of my left lobe removed on August 29. They also removed about 5 lymph nodes, which were thankfully all clean! My prognosis is good, no further treatment needed, only CT scans every 6 months. It’s been about 7 weeks since surgery and I still am not back to myself! I still have some chest pain and do get a little winded. I feel like I should be all better by now, but the recuperation is taking longer than I anticipated. I guess I need to be patient!

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Hi BarbLu,

Welcome.  Happy to hear they caught it so early! 

I also am a never smoker and surprise! turned out anyone with lungs is at risk for lung cancer (who knew, right? I didn't).

Although I stopped taking any pain killer 3 week post surgery (they removed my entire right lung) cuz I'm stubborn as a bull and a little (a lot) nuts 😜, everyone's body recovers differently, so, I'd say be patient and kind to yourself as you recuperate from the surgery.  Before you know it, you'll get there!

Let us know if any questions... lots of folks here with years of experiences...

MB

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Hi @BarbLu.  I had a full upper right lobe lobectomy on February 28.  Much the same as you.  Found by accident.  Stage 1A.  No follow up treatment after surgery.  It took me about three months to get back to full lung function.  I still have some numbness and some discomfort around the incision area.  It does get better.  If you aren’t using it do the spirometer often, walk and exercise as much as possible.  You will improve.  

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Curt, thanks very much for responding because I really needed to hear from someone that went through this. Since I look the same, some people can’t believe that I still have pain and am not fully recovered. I almost feel embarrassed or weird based on these reactions. I want to be 100% better but I’m still not there and I was getting concerned that it’s taking a longer time than I expected. It’s good to hear from others that it can take several months. Glad I found this forum! 😀

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Hi BarbLu and welcome. My situation was similar to yours. My lung cancer (adenocarcinoma 1a) was also found by accident in a routine scan to watch for metastases from a prior cancer. I had a lower right lobectomy by VATS 3 yeas ago.   It takes a while to recover- a functioning part of your body has been removed. Be patient with yourself ! Ignore those silly people who think they know how your recovery should be!  If pain is restricting your activities or concerning you a lot, you could talk to your doc about it. There are different sources of pain- some people have ongoing pain for a while around their incisions and there may be some remedy for that. Some on these forums use Salonpas pain patches, I think. I haven't had ongoing pain- but as I said, we're all different. I have developed a mild chronic bronchitis and my breathing sounds funny at times, at least to me. So this is my new normal, i think.

Hang in there, relax, be kind to yourself.

Bridget O

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Thanks BridgetO. I will just take the time I need and hopefully will start to feel better soon. I now know that it is a slow process! 

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BarbLu

like Curt I had a full lobectomy (lower right).  And I’ll say it took 2-3 months for me to get back to near normal.  I still get some numbness and discomfort from the incisions but i understand that will fade-away over time as well. 

During recovery I walked a lot and did light exercises. I also used the spirometer often and practiced  deep breathing.   

Some people heal more quickly than others so don’t be too concerned about timeframe.  As long as you’re doing healthy things you’ll get there.  

We’re all pulling for you. 

Lou

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  • 3 weeks later...

Hi BarbLu

Like you my cancer was found by accident and I had my upper left lobe removed. Because my "spot" was close to a blood vessel it was Staged 1b. It takes time to recover but you will get there. My surgery was in September 2007 and have been all clear since.

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