Hi all,
My dad was diagnosed with stage 1 lung cancer. he just has a surgery they removed it all, but the doctor says it has spread a bit to lymph nodes, so its stage 11. He would need chemo. Im getting really panicky can anyone please tell me what to expect. Will he be fine. Does chemo work? does anyone have any kind of information please.
Thanks
span

Hi Span,
Welcome,so glad you have found us,I dont think you could have come to a better place for friendship and support.I am so sorry to hear about your Dad,there are so many here that can share with you their experiences that will certainly help you in your search for information and support.
Does chemo work?well your Dad and I do share similar experiences,I had neo-adjuvant chemo to shrink my tumour,which if successful would,reduce its size to allow it to be operable,well happy to tell you, this chemo certainly worked, which led me to having a upper right lobectomy in January 2009.
Since my surgery,I have required no further treatment,my oncologist told me to expect 15-20 years if not a cure.It is my hope that my oncologist's prediction for me turns out to be accurate.Unfortunately I was'nt given a diploma of guarantee about having many years in front of me,who does get such a diploma,with cancer or not?.
The staging of your Dads cancer,as with mine,is early,and he has every chance of a having many years cancer free.Please pass on to your Dad my very best wishes,along with an invite to join us here.In my experience,the start of my cancer journey was most difficult to cope with psychologically,I found it difficult to sleep at night,seemingly not having any light at the end of the tunnel,but gradually,with the passage of time,support of my family and friends,my jangled nerves began to settle,arriving here,I began to realise,maybe I do have a future after all?.Today I have found my old pre dx self,and enjoying my life to the full.Sorry if my post seems to be a bit disjointed,its just gone 3.30am here,I' ve just woke up for a bathroom visit and could'nt resist a wee peek at the posts here.Goodnight,God Bless.

_________________
Regards,
Eric Byrne

To read my story, please follow the link : http://lungevity.org/l_community/viewtopic.php?t=43268

Welcome. Sorry you need to be here but your Dad will be the better for it. Lots of love and support here as well as shared experiences. The stage cancer you describe is definitely cureable and the follow-up chemo is standard for his case as you describe it. In fact, my sister had a similar dx last spring, finished her rounds of chemo and is doing fine. Let us know when you find out what chemo he will be getting. There is sure to be someone here who can tell you what he might expect in terms of side-effect. We do stress, however, that everyone is different and responds differently. Hang in there.

Judy in KW

_________________
Cytology report on fluid removed from lung after pleural effusion and pneumonia Sep 07 showed adenocarcinoma cells. Dx IIIb NSCLC Oct '07 at MDACC, Orlando. Fol 6 rounds Taxol/Carboplatin/Avastin and 2 Avastin, CT/PET 4/1/08 pleural thickening gone and no active cancer cells. 11/3/08 STILL NEVD. CT/PET/MRI 5/4/09 Cancer back, still in the pleura and chest wall, small amt of fluid, all in left lung.
5/11/09 Start on Alimta every three weeks.
7/13/10 Had Alimta on road in Corning NY.
8/24/09 Scans show some improvement. Continue on Alimta.
9/14/09 Chemo on road in Mt Holly NJ.
10/6/09 Started regular Alimta infusions in Key West.
11/3/09 CT and PET scans showed significant improvement. Some issues already resolved.
2/3/2010 No evidence of residual or recurrent disease. NED! Stay on Alimta.
5/6/10 Am considering myself still NED until/unless proven otherwise in July. Rabid radiologist thinks he sees something suggestive of similar to some abdominal cancer. No light up on the PET. Am hoping for the best. Stay on Alimta and scan in 9 wks instead of 3 mos.
7/8/10 Chest CT unchanged (NED Feb '10). Infiltration in the region of the omentum is probably slightly more prominent than before. Diverticulosis requiring antibiotics.
Jul, Aug, Sep, continued Alimta in Corning NY, Portsmouth OH and Mt Holly NJ.
10/14/10 Chest CT unchanged from Feb '10. Findings likely representing progressive nodular peritonal carcinomatosis in the midabdomen. Treatment changed to Tarceva started in Nov.
12/15/10 Chest CT unchanged. Abdomen changes compatible with peritoneal carcinomatosis again identified with mild progression noted.
3/16/11 CT chest unchanged. CT abdomen progression ascites (fluid). Progression of soft tissues nodularity on the peritoneal surface anteriorly with diffuse omental involvement.
4/13-15/11 Hospitalized at MDA. Removed 4 1/2 litres (8-9 lbs) of fluid from abdomen 4/14. Started on taxotere before release on 4/15.
5/16/11 Hospitalized for fever, neutropenic. Treated with intravenous antibiotic and antiviral. Given blood transfusion. Note that KW Cancer Center did not give me my Neulasta shot after my chemo on May 6. Onc had me cancel my 5/26 chemo until after my scan on Jun 6. Was discharged on oxygen. Test w/Dr Gerth 5/26 indicated I could go off sitting and sleeping O. Will do walking test 6/2.
6/2 Did not get requisite numbers on walking test. Left for Orlando 6/5 still on oxygen.
6/6/11 MRI normal; CT stable. Taxotere and Neulasta at MDA 6/7 and 6/8.
6/13/11 Appointment with Dr Olham in KW. Off oxygen week of 6/16.
8/8/11 CT scan showed stable with perhaps some lessening of fluid. Stay on Taxotere.
10/10/11 CT chest still clear, CT abdominal lining stable. Stay on taxotere.
12/19/11 CT chest clear, CT abdominal lining stable, MRI clear. Stay on taxotere.

Dear Eric and Judy,
I really feel very touched by your responses. Cant thank you guys enough. May god bless you all. Will keep you updated. Thanks again lot of love
Sapna

Hi sapna and welcome. You can see at the bottom of my post my dx and treatment. I also was stage 2b in 2005. This last Dec. I was told my scan still looks good.My thoughts and prayers for your Dad and family. I know its scary but hopefully your Dad will be with you for many years yet.

_________________
Dxed nslc stage2b,Aug.05 had right lung and 17 nodes removed which 2 had shown to be effected.August 27,05 had surgery redone again to stop bleeding. Started chemo sept.05 as a precaustioary. Have 3 month visit followups and have been ned so far and am hoping and praying to stay that way.Grade3 squamous cell type(T2,N1,Mo)tumor 10.5 cemtimeters,1 peribronchial node and 1 10R node involved

thankyou so much mike. That helps. Im at the hospital trying to keep him postivebecause he keeps going in and out of depression and messages like this from survivors like you and your warmth really helps and is really appreciated.
Thankyou and may god bless you
love sapna

once he starts the chemo i gets a little rough but the thought that the healing process is taking place is helpful. I think the fact that he was able to have surgery speaks volumes about his chances for a Full recovery from this! can not definitely say cured, because not the expert but could say pretty good odds an manageable though! Surgery is a big milestone! Chemo will help a lot but that also is a tough road but a short one !!

_________________
April/03 My Wife Deborah, age 46, diagnosed adenocarcinoma NSCLC
1/20/2006 Admitted to hospital Respiratory distress
1/23/2006 Ran to the light and is waiting for us to be rejoined in the Kingdom Of Heaven Her journey is Over but mine lingers on for Now!!!
4/23/07 DEb is joined in Peace by her Puppy Dawg Daisy from Cancer
8/30/07 Got new Pup named Mocha!!

"No matter hnow much it hurts, No matter how alone you feel, Your friends will help you get through anything!!"
Scrubs!!!!Yes the comedy show!!!

The Reason I advocate
If you would like to see our family photos Click on this link!
http://deborah-wallin.memory-of.com/

My memory-of Link is good to go now if you want to see it!!

hi all,
Just found out its stage 4 not 2. Doctors have said chemo and radio. just very shocked. I feel its not really happening its all a dream. Please tell me someone out there who has had stage 4 and are still well.
Please im so scared i feel like ill be waking up and its a bad dream. My dad is such a fighter and to see him like this kills me. I dont know what to say to him what to do. i dont want to do internet search because it all sounds scary i want to know real life storied. At the moment im in the hospital with dad feel so strange like im just going to wake up any minute.
help

I know how scary things are right now. Try going through the good news and the inspiration forums also! once the treatments are starting and you see some relief things will change!! It is ok to be scared for now because this is the fight of your dads life!! When you see results the fear goes away and you get the feeling that it will be ok after all!!

Prayers thoughts and positive energy to you and family right now!!

_________________
April/03 My Wife Deborah, age 46, diagnosed adenocarcinoma NSCLC
1/20/2006 Admitted to hospital Respiratory distress
1/23/2006 Ran to the light and is waiting for us to be rejoined in the Kingdom Of Heaven Her journey is Over but mine lingers on for Now!!!
4/23/07 DEb is joined in Peace by her Puppy Dawg Daisy from Cancer
8/30/07 Got new Pup named Mocha!!

"No matter hnow much it hurts, No matter how alone you feel, Your friends will help you get through anything!!"
Scrubs!!!!Yes the comedy show!!!

The Reason I advocate
If you would like to see our family photos Click on this link!
http://deborah-wallin.memory-of.com/

My memory-of Link is good to go now if you want to see it!!

Thanks randy....

span/sapna (sapnathakur),

What specific type of lung cancer is it? Adenocarcinoma? Squamous cell? Large cell? Small cell? something else? (Note: non-small cell lung cancer [NSCLC] is a category, not a specific type.) The specific type is important to determining drug options and odds of certain tests being useful.

Best hopes,

Craig

_________________
- Stage IV never-smoker ROS1-driven m-BAC indolent adenocarcinoma
- Xalkori (crizotinib)-for-ROS1 trial at MGH, Boston
- from PA/NJ area, USA
- Unaffiliated patient advocate of educating and empowering patients to seek the best available treatments for their specific lung cancer based on current clinical research.

Hi there,
I just wanted to say that the beginning of a lung cancer diagnosis is so very scary. But, as days and weeks go by, things become clearer and once a treatment plan is in place, it has seemed so much easier to cope for so many of us.

Just know you are not alone with your fears and uncertainty. We've all been there with this and are here to help.

Good luck and stay in touch,
Cindy

_________________
age 56
surgery 6/20/03, stage 1B, upper left lobectomy
started adjuvant chemo on 08/14/03
3 cycles--cisplatin/gemzar
finished chemo 11/6/03
now 9 years post-lobectomy, annual x-ray and follow-up with surgeon
follow-up with oncologist every year/bloodwork and clinical exam

2001 early stage breast cancer/surgery and radiation only, no chemo needed. Mammograms once a year,

Just passed 11 year mark for the breast cancer and 9 year mark for the lung