Not a good day. Dad has non-small cell carcinoma (less aggressive type than small-cell). I have put a few links below for further information about this type of cancer. It is speculated that that it started in the lower lobe of his left lung and that he has had it for 4-5 years. He is in stage 4 - which means it is in his entire body, including his liver, lungs, lymph nodes, bones and bone marrow are involved - it is not curable. All they can do is try to control it, make him comfortable and try to buy him more time.
He started Chemo today - a cocktail of three different kinds:
- Gemzar - used to treat lung caner. prevents cells from making DNA/RNA. Stops growth of caner cell, causing cells to die.
- Paraplatin - used to treat lung cancer. stops the growth of cancer cells
- Zometa - Treats solid tumors (such as in the bones) Stops the cancer from breaking down the bone tissue, stops the cancer cells from growing therefore preventing new tumors in bone.
He will also get a shot of Newlasta on the Saturday morning following his chemo every week. This drug helps your body make more white blood cells to help protect you against chemotherapy-related complications like infection.
He will have four chemo treatments - one today, one next Friday, one week off, then two more fridays. After this they will do another CT scan to see if it helped at all. The Dr. said 40% of people respond to chemo. He said best case scenario is if Chemo helps, they could give Dad upto a year or a year and a half. Worst case, if Dad does not respond to Chemo, he will have approx. 4-6 months. If he does not respond to the chemo, the Dr. said he has a few "back-up" plans, including trying to find a clinical trial somewhere. Right now, he is getting his Chemo outpatient at the Cancer & Hemotology Centers of West Michigan. He is doing the best he can and intends on fighting hard.
So, as I said before - keep him in your thoughts and prayers. I will continue update with his progress and such. This is the hardest thing I have ever typed.
Links to info:
non-small cell carcinoma - this link has information ranging from general info about thi type of cancer to the explaination of the 4 stages of this cancer
National Cancer Institute links:
-overview on type of cancer
http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/pdq/treatment/non-small-cell-lung/patient
-about chemotherapy
http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/chemotherapy-and-you/page2
1 comment:
You and your entire family are in our thoughts in this trying time. We are hoping for the best possible outcome and if there is anything we can do to be supportive, please let us know.
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