Is clean up chemo given after VATS?

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teri3
Posts: 405
Joined: Fri Jan 09, 2015 11:03 am

Is clean up chemo given after VATS?

Postby teri3 » Wed Apr 05, 2017 7:31 pm

Sometimes I'm a little slow...blame it on chemobrain lol. Put I was scheduled yesterday for VATS to remove Lefty the pesky lung met April 10 and then Righty is gone the beginning of May. My thoracic surgeon said nothing about clean up chemo after surgery. Do they do clean up chemo after VATS?
Thanks,
Teri
58 yrs old female
MSS KRAS mutation G12V
adenocarcinoma sigmoid colon dx 11-14
sigmoidectomy 11-14
Stage 3A
3 out of 20 lymph nodes involved
started FolFox 1-27-15
11 rounds FOLFOX last one 6-30-2015
7-29-2015 PET clear
5-14-2016 CT 2 nodules one in each lung
Confirmed pulmonary metastasis stage 4
FOLFIRi + Avistin started 8-16 11 rounds complete 12-16
CT 12-16 nodules shrunk chemo break wait and see :?
CT growth
VATS l lung 4 10 17
VATS r lung 4 24 17
CT 2 nodules r up and l low :(

User avatar
CRguy
Posts: 10473
Joined: Sun Feb 10, 2008 6:00 pm

Re: Is clean up chemo given after VATS?

Postby CRguy » Wed Apr 05, 2017 7:51 pm

Yes, sometimes.
often called "pseudoadjuvant" chemo, I did FOLFOX after my VATS resection for the lung met,
having only had Xeloda for both neoadjuvant chemoradiation pre-op and adjuvant chemo post-op.

"pseudoadjuvant" chemo was considered controversial at the time => WOT ???? who ME ... controversial :shock: :mrgreen:
and there are ongoing debates about Yes do it, or
No, just do vigilant follow up monitoring ...
will depend upon your Onc actually, since you have already had chemo to get you to the VATS ... they may just monitor ????

The surgeon should just slice and dice and then let the Oncs do their thing.... JMO !

Best wishes
CRguy
Caregiver x 4
Stage IV A rectal cancer/lung met
17 Year survivor
my life is an ongoing totally randomized UNcontrolled experiment with N=1 !
Review of my Journey so far

teri3
Posts: 405
Joined: Fri Jan 09, 2015 11:03 am

Re: Is clean up chemo given after VATS?

Postby teri3 » Wed Apr 05, 2017 7:58 pm

:shock: you controversial (gasp) I'm hoping no chemo but if I have to I have to. Got the big wedding this Summer! I'd like to not be exhausted for that. I had to cancel my oncologist appointment today it was the same as my surgery. I'll reschedule .
Thanks
Teri
58 yrs old female
MSS KRAS mutation G12V
adenocarcinoma sigmoid colon dx 11-14
sigmoidectomy 11-14
Stage 3A
3 out of 20 lymph nodes involved
started FolFox 1-27-15
11 rounds FOLFOX last one 6-30-2015
7-29-2015 PET clear
5-14-2016 CT 2 nodules one in each lung
Confirmed pulmonary metastasis stage 4
FOLFIRi + Avistin started 8-16 11 rounds complete 12-16
CT 12-16 nodules shrunk chemo break wait and see :?
CT growth
VATS l lung 4 10 17
VATS r lung 4 24 17
CT 2 nodules r up and l low :(

kiwiinoz
Posts: 1170
Joined: Thu Jan 03, 2013 11:44 pm

Re: Is clean up chemo given after VATS?

Postby kiwiinoz » Wed Apr 05, 2017 11:28 pm

Teri
I was fortunate :?: to be diagnosed with a lung met so never had the chance to have chemo prior to my cancer metastasizing, thus I was never in the dilemma that you are now.
As you can see from my signature I was given a choice, entirely my own, of what to do. I had looked at a number of studies prior to meeting my Onc and being given the choice I assumed I would and they were all pretty much saying that the jury was out on chemo. There were no great differences between the disease free survival rates, and the overall survival rates in the groups that had chemo and those that didn't.
My caveat on this was I was focusing pretty much on those that had lung mets only and not liver lung etc.
I chose to have the chemo, and whilst it was not much fun having chemo for what poses as a winter in Sydney (Australia) I am glad I did it.
Please take your time and chose as you need to be comfortable with your choice no matter what the outcome.
Your oncologist can also change the infusion dates to meet such events as a wedding, so if you did chose to go with chemo it doesn't preclude you from going to the wedding. You could time the infusions so that you could go on your "good" week assuming you went with a sort of FOLFOX combination on a fortnightly basis.
Cheers
Kiwi
Stage IV Rectal Cancer (39 Year old male at dx)
pT3N0M1 (wish that was M0)
Diagnosed 05 Dec 2012
LAR 05 Jan 2013
VATS 27 Feb 2013
FOLOFX April 2013 - Sep 2013
Clear Scan 03 Dec 2013 - August 2020
Port Out 26 March 2015

teri3
Posts: 405
Joined: Fri Jan 09, 2015 11:03 am

Re: Is clean up chemo given after VATS?

Postby teri3 » Thu Apr 06, 2017 11:42 am

Thanks kiwiinoz. I can't find much on this topic to research. I'm trying to not do chemo at least until September. I handle chemo well but the fatigue kills me. Even on my good weeks I'm tired. But you have to do what you have to do :D
58 yrs old female
MSS KRAS mutation G12V
adenocarcinoma sigmoid colon dx 11-14
sigmoidectomy 11-14
Stage 3A
3 out of 20 lymph nodes involved
started FolFox 1-27-15
11 rounds FOLFOX last one 6-30-2015
7-29-2015 PET clear
5-14-2016 CT 2 nodules one in each lung
Confirmed pulmonary metastasis stage 4
FOLFIRi + Avistin started 8-16 11 rounds complete 12-16
CT 12-16 nodules shrunk chemo break wait and see :?
CT growth
VATS l lung 4 10 17
VATS r lung 4 24 17
CT 2 nodules r up and l low :(

Swimmer22
Posts: 49
Joined: Mon Oct 24, 2011 7:25 am

Re: Is clean up chemo given after VATS?

Postby Swimmer22 » Thu Apr 06, 2017 2:30 pm

Yes- for me...I did 6 Folfolx treatments after vats. Best of luck!
12/10 - Rectal Cancer Stage IV
1/11 - Lung Met- VATS
3/11 - Folflox begin 6 tx.
7/11- 28 tx. chemoradiation
9/11 - LAR Surgery (Complete response to Chemo)
10/11- 12tx. of Folfiri Mop-up
7/12 - Ostomy reversed
NED since 9/1/11
3/13 -Port Removed

teri3
Posts: 405
Joined: Fri Jan 09, 2015 11:03 am

Re: Is clean up chemo given after VATS?

Postby teri3 » Fri Apr 07, 2017 1:11 pm

Thank you swimmer22! I will talk to my oncologist and thoracic surgeon.
Teri
58 yrs old female
MSS KRAS mutation G12V
adenocarcinoma sigmoid colon dx 11-14
sigmoidectomy 11-14
Stage 3A
3 out of 20 lymph nodes involved
started FolFox 1-27-15
11 rounds FOLFOX last one 6-30-2015
7-29-2015 PET clear
5-14-2016 CT 2 nodules one in each lung
Confirmed pulmonary metastasis stage 4
FOLFIRi + Avistin started 8-16 11 rounds complete 12-16
CT 12-16 nodules shrunk chemo break wait and see :?
CT growth
VATS l lung 4 10 17
VATS r lung 4 24 17
CT 2 nodules r up and l low :(

User avatar
betsydoglover
Posts: 978
Joined: Mon Aug 14, 2006 2:31 pm
Facebook Username: Betsy Lindh Williams
Location: Maryland - outside DC

Re: Is clean up chemo given after VATS?

Postby betsydoglover » Fri Apr 07, 2017 6:36 pm

I had VATS in April 2009. My oncologist wanted me to do Xeloda + Avastin. I could have turned it down, but I decided I couldn't live with myself if I had a recurrence and hadn't done everything I could have.

The thing to remember about chemo is that you can always stop - it's not a forever decision.

Good luck,
Betsy
diag. Stage IV, 5/05, liver met
lap sigmoid colectomy, 6/05
6 cycles Xeloda/oxaliplatin/Avastin (NED after 2)
11/08 9x13mm right lower lobe lung nodule; removed via VATS 4/09
NED
6 cycles Xeloda + Avastin
Avastin only 10/09-5/11
Still NED 06/18


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