No, you're not alone...just reach out

Eaglemama,

You are not alone. I have lung cancer also. 

I don't have lung cancer but my husband does I will help if I can you are not alone

Hello No you are not alone....

 

I hope to get to know some of you on here, this is my first post.. My Daddy has cancer stage 4 we just found out today.. he will start his chemo next week..

 

 

I feel alone, scared, mad, disappointed, selfish, cheated, angry, tearful (all the time).  My husband was diagnosed last week with lung cancer, was hospitalized for his biopsy (terribly painful).  He is in stage 4.  He is only 63, and we had years of plans in front of us.  We are home, watching movies and not really saying much.   I am trying to be cheerful, helpful, talk to people on the phone, care for him, and my chest is killing me it is so tight.  This is a nightmare.  It is like the walking dead.  I don't know if we will come out the other side.  He starts chemo next week, after a brain scan.  I don't know how I can go on without him. 

My mother was diagnoses with stage 4 extensive small cell cancer. You are not alone.

You are not alone. My husband has recently been diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer and he is only 49 years young. He has had a cough for the last 8 months and they have told him it was just allergies. When the pulmonary doctor was told of the lump near his neck he decided it was time for CT scan and biopsy. I am planning for the worst and hoping for the best. We will try everything we can to fight this off and we have made some plans to travel and continue to make memories. We look for hope everywhere we can.

Hello,

My husband was re-diagnosed late April this year with stage IV bladder cancer metastatic which involved one kidney, several lympnodes and numberous tumors in both lungs.  Like yourself this was all "way to fast."  After the biopsy first to the kidneys then the lungs, the pathologist's report confirmed that the cancer orginated in the bladder.  The only option presented was chemotherapy, introduced every monday for three weeks and one week off.  If my memory serves me correctly (I'm glad I'm typing this so I can recollect), the first infusion was carboplatin and gemzar, the second week same.  When we returned for the third treatment his blood platlets were to low to receive treatment, subsequently delaying infusion that week.  We returned the following week, the day after Memorial Holiday and was introduced without (mind you) being informed that his medication was being changed to Cisplatin, and Gemzar which took the better part of all day to receive.  By Thursday the same week, he developed pain in first the left leg, and then the right leg starting from groin area that traveled down to his toes. 

Well we got through the weekend and the pain appear to have subsided and he started feeling better but then it was time for another treatment.  Tuesday, we asked for a cain to assist with walking, this time we were given gemzar with took all of an hour total but before we could get out the door of the Hospital (VA) his leg started hurting again. The pain stopped long enough for us to sit down to eat lunch at O'Nami's (San Diego) returned home and... I'll be dam, I thought that I would lay down before going in to work, already late and while he was taking off his clothing the pain resurfaced full force and what I witnessed I have not doubt in my mind was a level "10" very excruciating pain.  This was at 3pm and this man wasn't able to sleep until 11pm that night.  He described this paint as a charlie horse that continued to worsen without relief.  After numberous trips (4) to E.R. a MRI, and a Sonogram which resulted being undiagnosed. Continually being sent home with Vicodin which brought no relief whatsoever.  I've never seen a grown man cry as much as I have seen my husband and has spent countless nights (one month to be exact) unable to sleep comfortably without being awaken by the pain.  Finally, finally after calling his doctor one morning verbalizing my discuss with the care he was receiving regarding pain did his oncologist decide to admit. 

He was admitted on Wednesday, a CT Scan was performed on Thursday and surgery scheduled for Friday.  Friday came and from the results of another scan or x-ray they noticed a scar on his heart and thought that maybe he suffered a heart attack recently.  If you can imagine increased our fear and did delay the surgery for the blood clot that was found in in groin area.  That weekend he dealt with the pain and was scheduled for surgery that Monday early...well, I called him from work at 1pm and he was still laying there in pain.  After work I returned to the hospital to find him in ICU, he told me that "The doctor's" came into his room to get him (how fortunate is he) and rolled into surgery.  However, he was suppose to receive a bypass where the clot was, instead they opted to just clean it out.  He continued to experience pain which is typical after surgery and they could finally hear blood flowing through his right foot..a good sign. 

However on Tuesday, he received a new nurse and called me at work to report that he was told by this nurse that if he didn't allow her to put in another IV that he would be sent to hospice where he could just lay there to die.  Blah, blah, blah...of course when I got there we had a very nice conversation about believing a patient when there asked what level of pain their experiencing and whether or not it's believable.  He was sent home on Wednesday in pain, which only got increasingly worse instead of no pain.  He described this pain as needles and pins being put through his toes continually without relief.  6/25/07 just shy of a week since the surgery a visit to his oncologist, he was prescribed 10mgs of Methadone and 2mg of Diluadid...yippee!  This works as long as he takes it before it wears off, but the downside of it is the potential of being very dependent, he has low blood pressure, shortness of breath, appears dizzy and disoriented.  At least he is not in pain and has been able to sleep during the night for the most part? 

He is weighing the benefits of chemotherapy, since the CT scan only shown minimal progress for the most part the tumors are stable and there wasn't any word on his kidney's or lympnodes.  When I asked, his doctor's reply was "I'm not concerned with that."  His focus is on his lungs and he gave my husband a prognosis of maybe four months give or take.  His oncologist has even said that even if he did see an improvement that usually it's short lived.  His outlook doesn't appear good and I would like for him to at least live whatever amount of time he has left on this earth to be pain, fatigue, depression, and side effects from chemotherapy...free.  He asks for my opinion often regarding should he continue with chemotherapy, understandably he is not ready to die.  My response is that it's his decision and I will support him because I don't want to say stop or continue when the possibly exists that the results may not be favorable.  All of this is difficult.

Good luck and let's keep in touch.

Talldoll

Your only alone if you don't reach out and allow people and God to enter your life and help you through this!  My prayers go out to you and everyone else dealing with this feeling of loneliness.

     

no! TIM you are not alone, tomorrow I will be going for a pet scan,I have lung cancer.

 

Definitely not!!!  This is my second go-round with a parent that has lung cancer.  My mom died when I was 17 (diagnosed in 1985 but never got chemo/radiation just surgery) and I'm now 28 and my dad was diagnosed with Stage IIIB.  We start chemo this Friday (Gemzar and Carboplatin...also Avastin).  If anyone ever needs to talk.....lord knows that there are plenty of times that I need to.  Feel free to email me at heidball78@yahoo.com. 

No, I am willing to listen or talk anytime you want.  I just don't know how to answer my replies to the post I put on.....it said I had 15.  Can anyone tell me how to navigate this site please???   JO

No way are any of you alone!  I was diagnosed with Stage IIIB squamous non-small cell lung cancer last November.  I started 12 weeks of chemo and radiation treatment in February.  I dodged the bullet when it came to horrible side-efffects of the treatments.  I was sick three nights (each time two days after chemo), and became progressively more tired and somewhat weaker as the treatments went on, but it was nothing like the horror stories I'd heard.

In July, both the PET/CT scan and a biopsy showed that I was cancer free.  The next PET/CT scan, in October, showed a new 3 centimeter mass.  A needle biopsy came up negative, meaning the mass is probably inflammation from the radiation.  My next scan is in about 6 weeks.  If the mass has grown, it is most likely cancer.  If so, the treatment will most likely be radiation using a Cyber Knife, and different chemo.

There's nothing like not knowing.  But, hey, I beat the odds by surviving a year, and I'm feeling as well as I did before any of this started!  I'm looking forward to at least 5 more years (I'm only 63). I have the best caregiver in the world and I think all of this is harder on her than it is on me. I wish she'd reach out for more support, but there's no forcing something like that.

So, everybody, take care. I love reading the posts here.