My father was diagonsed 9 months ago with stage 4 lung cancer, he has had 5 rounds of chemo, and just completed his third round of "maintenance" chemo as the oncologist has described. His last cscan 6 weeks ago showed that apparently the cancer did not spread sa they could see, we will be getting the results of a petscan this wed 4th.
My y concern is that there has been such a DRASTIC visible deterioration in his well being. He has no appetite and has lost 14 lbs in about 10 wks, he cannot stay awake longer than a couple of hours here or there, constant nose bleeds, terrible hip and shoulder pain and extremely labored breathing. Is it somewhat safe to assume this is the result of the chemo, or when cancer does move these are the signs?
He recently had to have a blood transfusion, prior to getting a b12 shot do to his hemoglobin being so low. We are personally getting pessimistic about the results of the petscan this week as seeing him like this is looking less possitive everyday. In anyones experience, can this all be the result of the chemo. thank you so much!
tom
Already a member? Sign in
Welcome to Inspire!
What - Inspire is a place where you can connect with people who share your health concerns and find information and advice in groups sponsored by organizations you know and trust.
Why - As a member you can use Inspire to let friends and family know how you're doing, contact others who share your health concerns, receive personalized updates and information about participating in surveys and clinical trials, and more.
How - Joining Inspire is completely free and usually takes less than a minute. Join now!
question symptoms
- By betterdays
- Posted November 1, 2009 at 9:10 am · 2 replies
- In Non-small cell lung cancer - Stage IV
- Shared with the public
Explore topics in this discussion:
2 replies
- Oldest first
- Newest first
- By pw
- Posted November 1, 2009 at 9:59 am
- Report post
I think it can totally be related to the chemo. Most chemo drugs have a cumulative affect that eventually catch up with you. My husband was stable with his CT scans for a long time but continued to lose weight and be tired because he just had no appetite or was too tired to eat. Sometimes just a 2-3 week break from the chemo seemed to regenerate that stuff. Don't get discouraged!
- By cards7up
- Posted November 1, 2009 at 2:38 pm
- Report post
Hi, what was your father receiving for chemo? You also said he received maintenance, was this also another chemo? As PW said, it is cumlative and some people handle it better than others. Did he take folic acid along with the B12 shots? With chemo, you have to stay very hydrated, at least 3 litres a day. Food is not as important as fluids during chemo. Try some whey protein in shakes, adding fruit, etc. Good luck and take care, JC
Add to the discussion