29 y/o guy with a recurrence with in 1.5 years

[Oyster Beast]

I was originally dx with stage III colorectal cancer on April 28, 2004. I had sudden severe bleeding which was the result of a tumor that had burst... The mass was the size of a grapefruit and they took a piece of my colon. Following surgery I had nine months of FOLFOX treatment in addition to 49 days of radiation.

Since I have maintained a pretty healthy (and somewhat boring) lifestyle... I work out regularly, eat organic, and all the other good stuff.

After about a year following my last chemo treatment I got my routine CT scan which revealed 2 cancerous lymph nodes above the area I was treated. A PET scan was ordered followed by various peeks inside my bum followed by a lymph node dissection on Jan. 19, 2006.

Two days ago I had a meeting with my dr.'s who recommended that I start FULFURY chemo. Based on the lack of data for someone of my age with no family history and the pattern of recurrence they feel that this is the best option because if the cancer comes back a third time it will probably be in one of my major organs (liver, lungs). They can not be certain if any microscopic cancer cells remain in my body, nor if chemo will make a difference.

My GF did some research and found that people in my age group (30 and younger) have a different biological make up than do older people in their 50'-60's and should be treated like a pediatric patient. Cancer in younger people is less responsive to treatment and therefore chemo treatment
needs to be more aggressive because the body can take the abuse better than an older person.

Few Questions: Anyone share my experience? Any advice? Has anyone heard of different treatments? Has anyone either heard of or been treated more aggressively because of young age.

Hit me, everything is appreciated...

[Guest]

Hi oyster,
Sorry to hear that you have a recurrence. The question that I ask is why does it recur at the site so often ,especiallly in the first 18 mos. I do know that cancer is hard to detect in fatty tissue ,particularly at the base of the flange that connects the colon to the body. Perhaps some docs are a little obsessed with saving tissue and don't give them selves enough clear margins on either side of the ca(I would be happy to take about a foot either side). The other thing that worries me is that when a gastrenterologists finds a ca during a scope, how thoroughly do they check the rest of the colon?. I haven't heard anything to suggest that ca in younger patients is harder to treat. I have heard that ca in younger people is more likely to be genetic rather than as an exposure to carcenogens. Another oncologist suggested that in his opinion the more aggressive the ca the better it responds to chemo. I was stage 3 ,6/13 nodes bad. I had 5FU/leucovorin,till it nearly killed me ,then finished off on 5Fu levamisole(an old old regime) for 48 sessions ,and have been clear for over 8 years,.Good luck with the treatment ,may this be the last you see of ca,best wishes Ron.

[Dot]

Hi Oyster;
In October 2005,
My husband was diagnosed with stage IV CC. He is 39 y/o with no real family history. Because of his age they can be agressive with him in treatment. I don't agree that people 30 or in their 20's should be treated as a pediatric patient. In young patients their bodies are still growing and changing and their response to things are different. People in the 20's, 30's etc don't usually have other conditions that older people have like heart disease, vascular disease, diabetes, hypertension, etc. and their bodies can tolerated the awful side effects that these strong chemo drugs have. Avastin is a great drug to cut off the blood supply to tumors, but an older person with vascular disease may not be able to tolerate it because their vessels already have damage. My husband is 39 and a diabetic since he was 17y/o. Luckily so far he is able to tolerate an agressive chemo plan. He does have some side effects, but he is able to tolerate them. He has to avoid cold drinks & food for the week he gets chemo, he takes drugs for the nausea for 3 days he is on chemo every other week, etc. Hope this info helps. You need to fight this with everything you can.

[Oyster Beast]

Thanks Dot... Did your husband have any surgery to remove any part of his colon?