Any Stage IV's that have been cured?

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Guest

Re: Any Stage IV's that have been cured?

Postby Guest » Tue Sep 09, 2008 12:30 pm

This is one of my favorite articles about surviving metastatic colon cancer

http://jco.ascopubs.org/cgi/content/full/23/9/1799

John

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fourT's
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Re: Any Stage IV's that have been cured?

Postby fourT's » Tue Sep 09, 2008 2:26 pm

My husband's Pet came back in July with "no active malignancy" of the liver after just 4 treatments. He had another Pet last week and we see the onc. tomorrow to see if any changes. Liver resection is planned for 10/7/08 to make sure it's all out. Our onc. has said the best chance for a "cure" is to have the liver resection. I have faith that this will all work out but still do get scared about our future and dealing with all of this. I told my husband that I will get him this shirt when he is NED!

http://shop.cafepress.com/design/6123532
Husband dx 4/08 @ 38
Stage IV
colon resect 4/08/liver resect 10/08
11/09 NED-3/10 colo-pleural fistula/ileo
6/10 ileo rev
3/13 mets to peritoneum/HIPEC
Chemo since 9/14
wife/18 yr dau/14 yr son-Loves God!

Guest

Re: Any Stage IV's that have been cured?

Postby Guest » Tue Sep 09, 2008 4:30 pm

I have been NED for 9 months of which I am quite grateful and will have a scan at the end of the month.

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justme123
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Re: Any Stage IV's that have been cured?

Postby justme123 » Tue Sep 09, 2008 6:45 pm

Anita in seattle wrote:Hi,
I hope everyone who is ned and stage 4 writes in. I am going on my 3 yr annv of remission . I have my scans later this month. This is the first time i have gone 5 months. I had 8 tumors in liver and 3 cut and 5 rfa at the same time.

My last scan should 7 stable no growth. I of course freaked because there should just be 5 but no ones worried looking back on scans they have been there 2 yrs or more. Of course I worry since only 5 were rfa. So Im nervous and Im losing alot of the people I started out with to this tragic disease.

I maybe cured but I guess uncomfortable with the label and feel bad for everyone else not so fortunate as myself. But write in I feel like Im in need of a stage 4 reunion group. I love offering support and have been doing alot with new stage 4 but I need to recharge my batteries with other people in remisson along time who are stage 4 its lonely here at times..
Anita April 2007 Colondar

Dear Anita,
I am glad to find you here. Little did you know that you have been my inspiration since I was diagnosed with Stage 4 colon cancer in November 2007. I had googled "stage 4 colon cancer survivors" back then and your name and story came up. You reminded me of myself. I was 49 years old with 3 children, 11, 12 and 20. You beat it and I was determined that I would too. So when they attached my pump, I hit the road and walked 4 miles with it on saying," I'm gonna beat this. Anita did it and I can too!" So I'm glad to find you again and to know that you are still well. If you ever wonder how much you matter, please know that you've meant the world to me. I have been off chemo since April and though there are 2 lesions on my liver, they didn't glow on March's PET and hopefully won't glow on Sept. 29. I am confused about lesions being there at all. I want the doctor to follow up with a CT to make sure that they are not growing even if the PET comes back clean. I hope he'll agree.
Thanks for being here,
Nancy

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Re: Any Stage IV's that have been cured?

Postby Monique » Tue Sep 09, 2008 10:23 pm

I posted these links a couple of years ago.

Writers Donald Hall and Alan Bennett beat stage IV colon cancer. Alan Bennett writes about his ordeal in his latest book.

-Monique

http://waywiser-press.com/imprints/hall.html

http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-enter ... 08326.html

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Re: Any Stage IV's that have been cured?

Postby Traybug » Wed Sep 10, 2008 7:12 am

From what I gathered seeing my brother go through treatments for stage IV, a "cure" seems very dependent on the location of the cancer and the amount of spread. My brother had spread to the liver and they referred to his liver as being "peppered" with cancer. Hundreds of tiny tumors all over the place that did not make him a candidate for resection or hepatic artery infusion. It seems that if his cancer was a little more isolated as far as distant mets, he could have possibly been resected where a "cure" or even just a long remission could have been more probable. Take solace in knowing that every cancer case be it stage IV or any other, is so individual and different that I think it is hard to say if a cure is possible. I think history proves that a cure is not probable but not impossible. Nothing is EVER impossible. Good luck to you and keep the faith!

Tracey

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Re: Any Stage IV's that have been cured?

Postby Gaelen » Wed Sep 10, 2008 9:07 am

Monique wrote:Writers Donald Hall and Alan Bennett beat stage IV colon cancer. Alan Bennett writes about his ordeal in his latest book.


In Bennett's own words, from an article published in 2005: "Yet it is the fight against cancer that has surprised the arts community. Many people who knew him were not even aware he had the disease. "I did not see cancer as a way of dramatising my life," wrote Bennett, 71. He added he was surprised even now "to be around" and cannot believe his luck will hold. While he is "cheerful" he does not dare "rejoice" or think he is cured."

One annoying detail most writers share--they are seldom comfortable with inaccuracies in language. ;)
Be in harmony with your expectations. - Life Out Loud
4/04: dx'd @48 StageIV RectalCA w/9 liver mets. 8 chemos, 4 surgeries, last remission 34 mos.
2/11 recurrence R lung, spinal bone mets - chemo, RFA lung mets
4/12 stopped treatment

Guest

Re: Any Stage IV's that have been cured?

Postby Guest » Wed Sep 10, 2008 11:00 am

He may not think he is cured but I do. If he has not had any cancer in 15 years I'm quite comfortable calling him cured.

I guess that would be the main point of the subject "Any Stage IV's that have been cured?" It is to inspire with facts.

Cured or not the results are the same. He has lived his life for a very long time with a stage IV diagnosis "cheerfully"

I works for me!!

RMD

Re: Any Stage IV's that have been cured?

Postby RMD » Wed Sep 10, 2008 3:33 pm

hmmm

SuzePortland

Re: Any Stage IV's that have been cured?

Postby SuzePortland » Wed Sep 10, 2008 7:24 pm

Although oncs use the term cure and its variants,as in surgery with curative intent, they shy away from saying anyone is actually cured. I think you have to die of some other cause before they will say, retroactively, well s/he must have been cured. The five year mark is a very good sign, but only time will tell if you were really cured. But like everyone else, I will take as many years of ned, or remission, or what ever as I can get. Suze

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Re: Any Stage IV's that have been cured?

Postby tcolitti » Wed Sep 10, 2008 8:05 pm

Hi all,

I have to chime in here for this topic. I don't know if I will ever call myself "cured", I think of myself as a stage IV survivor living with cancer. There is always a realistic chance of recurrence. I don't dwell as much to this end but, I do have a healthy respect for the randomness of the beast. I enjoy every new day I am given and try to LIVE life. I understand where I have been (thanks to this board and it's members), and am thankfull for second chances. If the doctors wish to call this "cured" and it helps to start tipping the scales of statisics that everybody clings to, then that is fine maybe we can start showing positive things with stats and people will hold onto HOPE, and BELIEVE there is a positive end to this beast. As for me I am on a new mission of telling my story, so that people will see this is preventable, treatable, and BEATABLE. Starting with this years Colondar I want to spread my story so that others may have hope of the same result that I have had.

I wish all touched by this terrible disease Courage, Hope, and Health. Keep fighting.

Todd
Never give up HOPE and Always BELIEVE!
DX Age 35 1999
Stage IV CC with mets to liver (4lesions)
Colon & Liver resection (both lobes), removed appendix and gall bladder
5fu/leucovorin
2009 COLONDAR Model

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cptmac
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Re: Any Stage IV's that have been cured?

Postby cptmac » Thu Sep 11, 2008 4:57 pm

[quote]Although oncs use the term cure and its variants,as in surgery with curative intent, they shy away from saying anyone is actually cured. [/quote]

Just as all of our diagnosises are different, all doctors are different. Each chose to use different words. When I asked my docs if Stage IV's could be cured, they said, as far as we're concerned, we've cured you. I was barely two years out at the time.

Some people don't get wrapped around the meaning of the words so much as other people. I've also met other cancer patients at lower stages who chose to believe that no matter what they do, their cancer will come back. I like the words that my doctors have used, that as far as their concerned, I'm cured. I've helped two other people, on another board who were initially told their was no hope. After six months of chatting, one finally sought another opinion and was told she could be cured. Another persons parent was in the ER and the ER docs said their was nothing more they could do. I told that person to contact a major cancer hospital. Her symptoms sounded similar to mine when I developed acistes in my abdomen. That doc from a major cancer hospital went to that er even though he didn't have priviledges and got her out. She is now under his care and told that he could cure her.

But just as we all have different DNA, we all have different opinions on our thoughts on this matter. My opinion is that I and others can be cured. I'm a strong advocate of getting a second opinion. I would not be here today, nor the others above, had they not sought other opinions. I would never tell anyone I didn't think they could be cured, nor would I ever say that Stage IV's can't be cured. I know that others have another opinion, and that is great. I'm glad to see that their have been so many Stage IV's, whether they consider themselves cured or not, survive with no evidence of disease, for such long periods of time.

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Re: Any Stage IV's that have been cured?

Postby missjv » Fri Sep 12, 2008 10:18 am

at this point i still believe i can be cured and my docs say they are treating me as curative so that is what is in my head and that is what keeps me going. people can throw out statistics all they want i just don't pay attention. im not stupid by any means i know how serious this disease is and i see what it has done to people but if you don't have hope then what else is there? if i went to the doc every couple months and told i was going to eventually die from this then that would change my attitude. right now i go to doc and they are very positive and tell me how good im doing so that gives me a fighting attitude. i feel im better off this way then being told statistics and life spans everytime i went for a check up just because someone else only lived 2 years doesn't mean the same will happen to me. there are no gaurantees anyways. who's to say i won't go out and get run over by a car? all stage 4 disease is not the same yet all groups of stage 4 are put into the statistical data which is bullcrap to me anyways. so there is my opinion on the subject matter.

missjv

tcolitti
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Re: Any Stage IV's that have been cured?

Postby tcolitti » Fri Sep 12, 2008 1:23 pm

missjv,

Very well put, and what an awesome attitude. I have no doubt you will do well.

Todd
Never give up HOPE and Always BELIEVE!
DX Age 35 1999
Stage IV CC with mets to liver (4lesions)
Colon & Liver resection (both lobes), removed appendix and gall bladder
5fu/leucovorin
2009 COLONDAR Model

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Re: Any Stage IV's that have been cured?

Postby missjv » Fri Sep 12, 2008 1:33 pm

thanks todd! i am currently ned and i have outlived what i was originally told i would. so instead of being dead 2 1/2 years after diagnosis i am ned so go figure. i have endured the liver resection the lung met removal countless rounds of chemo yet here i am off chemo 6 months now and as of last scan 2 weeks ago im showing no evidence of disease so anything is possible. look at you here all these yars later doing well and no signs of the beast and back when you were diagnosed alot of options that there are today were not available. thats why i get upset when people start spouting off statistics and such because we are all different and we all respond different. look at betsydoglover ned from chemo alone no surgery and that is rare but it does happen. until i am laying on my death bed hopefully with a large perscription of something good haha i refuse to belive that this will kill me. it is not denial it is my pigheadedness. i was always told i was a pain in the ass cause im so pigheaded well guess so far it has been a good thing.

missjv


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