Near-complete pathological response !

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ocstacy
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Near-complete pathological response !

Postby ocstacy » Tue Nov 14, 2017 7:06 pm

Wanted to share that my mom's oncologist mentioned to us today that her tumor shrunk so much from the neoadjuvant therapy & LAR surgery that there was little to take out during surgery. I think she mentioned .55 something .and out of the 27 lymph nodes, none were affected. I was hoping for Complete Pathological Response but she said Near Complete Pathological Response! I have never heard of that. I am still very happy with the results. I was on a conference call when they talked to me so I couldn't hear the exact details but will read the results when I get home! She will need to start the Xeloda for 6 months for clean up chemo. We were handed the "Life after Cancer" pamphlet yesterday! I will update more when I find out more! Thanks for all of your support! XO :D :mrgreen: :D
Caregiver/daughter to dear mother age 78, dx 5/09/17 because of me!! :wink:
Rectal CA Stage 3 low-grade adenocarcinoma- 6 cm
Neoadjuvant start 7/10/17 ended 08/16/17
3D Lap. surgery @ Keck USC, Dr. Sang Lee 10/17/17 temp ileostomy
11/1 hospitalized abscess/hernia - home 11/06/17 antibiotics
NO LYMPHS INVOLVED! NEAR PATHOLOGICAL RESPONSE! YAY! :shock:
Took her last chemo med 05/10/18! Ileo reversal 07/24/18
1st BM after reversal 07/25/18 Anal Fissure 8/15/18
Me:1st Colonoscopy age 38. 08/17 Benign polp.

DarknessEmbraced
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Facebook Username: Riann Fletcher
Location: New Brunswick, Canada

Re: Near-complete pathological response !

Postby DarknessEmbraced » Tue Nov 14, 2017 7:09 pm

Wonderful news! :) I hope your Mom's chemo goes well!*hugs*
Diagnosed 10/28/14, age 36
Colon Resection 11/20/14, LAR (no illeo)
Stage 2a colon cancer, T3NOMO
Lymph-vascular invasion undetermined
0/22 lymph nodes
No chemo, no radiation
Clear Colonoscopy 04/29/15
NED 10/20/15
Ischemic Colitis 01/21/16
NED 11/10/16
CT Scan moved up due to high CEA 08/21/17
NED 09/25/17
NED 12/21/18
Clear colonoscopy 09/23/19
Clear 5 year scans 11/21/19- Considered cured! :)

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Robino1
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Location: Florida

Re: Near-complete pathological response !

Postby Robino1 » Tue Nov 14, 2017 7:19 pm

Such good news especially after all the crap she went through to get to this point. Congratulations to your mom and to You!! :D
At 54 2014 1st colonoscopy colon cancer detect
Colon resect margins clear. No chemo Stage II
2017
Distend abd, pain in intestines.
CT scan seeding & Ascites
Lap diag - cancer on the omentum
CEA 217; 219
FOLFOX started 6/17
CEA 202
8/29/17 CT melting of tumor.
Latest CT scan shows 2 new tumors and return of ascites.
CEA: (2017)9/30 -109; 10/12 -99.1; 11/4 -90.7; 11/30 -70.7; 12/14 -83.4; (2018)1/4 -73.3; 2/1-84.2; 89.2; 89.8; 88.5; 81.8: 93.5; 107; 119
BRAF V600e

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susie0915
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Facebook Username: Susan DeGrazia Hostetter
Location: Michigan

Re: Near-complete pathological response !

Postby susie0915 » Tue Nov 14, 2017 8:59 pm

Very good news. Hope all goes well with her chemo.
58 yrs old Dx @ 55
5/15 DX T3N0MO
6/15 5 wks chemo/rad
7/15 sigmoidoscopy/only scar tissue left
8/15 PET scan NED
9/15 LAR
0/24 nodes
10/15 blockage. surgery,early ileo rev, c-diff inf :(
12/15 6 rds of xelox
5/16 CT lung scarring/inflammation
9/16 clear colonoscopy
4/17 C 4mm lung nod
10/17 pel/abd CT NED
11/17 CEA<.5
1/18 CT/Lung no change in 4mm nodule
5/18 CEA<.5, CT pel/abd/lung NED
11/18 CEA .6
5/19 CT NED, CEA <.5
10/19 Clear colonscopy
11/19 CEA <.5

menreeq
Posts: 70
Joined: Fri Jun 30, 2017 10:26 am

Re: Near-complete pathological response !

Postby menreeq » Tue Nov 14, 2017 11:07 pm

Great news!! Woohoo!
Stage IIA rectosigmoid CC (T3N0M0)
Dx 6/5/17 @age 41ls
Workup: c-scope, EUS, rectal MRI, CT C/A/P
AdenoCA 5.5cm, WHO Grade 2, 0/22 LN, no distant mets
CEA 1.9 (6/5/17), 0.8 (2/28/18), 1.0 (9/17/18), 1.1 (4/16/19), 1.0 (9/24/19), 1.7 (7/8/20)
No lymphovasc/perineural invasion, clear margins
MSI intact, OncotypeDx RS 7
Lap sig colectomy 6/23/17, no ileo/colostomy
Genetics neg for mutations, 4 VUS
Xeloda monotherapy 8/13/17-1/22/18
PET/CT 3/21/18 NED
CT C/A/P 9/17/18 NED, 3/8/19 NED, 9/19/19 NED, 5/13/20 NED

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ocstacy
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Re: Near-complete pathological response !

Postby ocstacy » Wed Nov 15, 2017 4:04 am

Such good news especially after all the crap she went through to get to this point. Congratulations to your mom and to You!! :D


Thank you so much! Yes, I totally agree!! A lot of Crappy and scary moments. I was happy to be next to her the whole entire way. I never thought it would be such a bumpy and crazy road.Surgery recovery was probably the toughest and then the hernia/abscess hospitalization scare. The stuff they don't tell you about but luckily she got on antibiotics! I am very happy (so far) with the choices I made for my mom with her doctors and specialists. Hope you are all healing well and doing well. :D
Caregiver/daughter to dear mother age 78, dx 5/09/17 because of me!! :wink:
Rectal CA Stage 3 low-grade adenocarcinoma- 6 cm
Neoadjuvant start 7/10/17 ended 08/16/17
3D Lap. surgery @ Keck USC, Dr. Sang Lee 10/17/17 temp ileostomy
11/1 hospitalized abscess/hernia - home 11/06/17 antibiotics
NO LYMPHS INVOLVED! NEAR PATHOLOGICAL RESPONSE! YAY! :shock:
Took her last chemo med 05/10/18! Ileo reversal 07/24/18
1st BM after reversal 07/25/18 Anal Fissure 8/15/18
Me:1st Colonoscopy age 38. 08/17 Benign polp.

NHMike
Posts: 2555
Joined: Fri Jul 21, 2017 3:43 am

Re: Near-complete pathological response !

Postby NHMike » Wed Nov 15, 2017 7:14 am

It’s great news for her and you. Both of you have gone through a lot thus year.
6/17: ER rectal bleeding; Colonoscopy
7/17: 3B rectal. T3N1bM0. 5.2 4.5 4.3 cm. Lymphs: 6 x 4 mm, 8 x 6, 5 x 5
7/17-9/17: Xeloda radiation
7/5: CEA 2.7; 8/16: 1.9; 11/30: 0.6; 12/20 1.4; 1/10 1.8; 1/31 2.2; 2/28 2.6; 4/10 2.8; 5/1 2.8; 5/29 3.2; 7/13 4.5; 8/9 2.8, 2/12 1.2
MSS, KRAS G12D
10/17: 2.7 2.2 1.6 cm (-90%). Lymphs: 3 x 3 mm (-62.5%), 4 x 3 (-75%), 5 x 3 (-40%). 5.1 CM from AV
10/17: LAR, Temp Ileostomy, Path Complete Response
CapeOx (8) 12/17-6/18
7/18: Reversal, Port Removal
2/19: Clean CT

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ocstacy
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Re: Near-complete pathological response !

Postby ocstacy » Fri Nov 17, 2017 12:42 am

it’s great news for her and you. Both of you have gone through a lot thus year.


Thank you very much. Thank goodness for these support groups, I would be so lost without this group. I don't have time to go in person and I think the online groups are more convenient. I am am online girl! How did your temp ileostomy going? Hopefully you are doing well. My mom is doing better with it, finally. I think we will give it a nick name..lol. She calls it "Cheengis" :wink:
Last edited by ocstacy on Mon Nov 20, 2017 2:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
Caregiver/daughter to dear mother age 78, dx 5/09/17 because of me!! :wink:
Rectal CA Stage 3 low-grade adenocarcinoma- 6 cm
Neoadjuvant start 7/10/17 ended 08/16/17
3D Lap. surgery @ Keck USC, Dr. Sang Lee 10/17/17 temp ileostomy
11/1 hospitalized abscess/hernia - home 11/06/17 antibiotics
NO LYMPHS INVOLVED! NEAR PATHOLOGICAL RESPONSE! YAY! :shock:
Took her last chemo med 05/10/18! Ileo reversal 07/24/18
1st BM after reversal 07/25/18 Anal Fissure 8/15/18
Me:1st Colonoscopy age 38. 08/17 Benign polp.

NHMike
Posts: 2555
Joined: Fri Jul 21, 2017 3:43 am

Re: Near-complete pathological response !

Postby NHMike » Fri Nov 17, 2017 5:38 am

ocstacy wrote:
it’s great news for her and you. Both of you have gone through a lot thus year.


Thank you very much. Thank goodness for these support groups, I would be so lost without this group. I don't have time to go in person and I think the online groups are more convenient. I am am online girl! How did your temp ileostomy going? Hopefully you are doing well. My mom is doing better with it. :wink:


Things are going somewhat better. I'm changing the bag every four hours. It means waking up twice during the night but it means peace of mind that the bag won't leak. The most important thing is putting the tape over the vent when I shower. I'm on day five of the current bag and it doesn't fill up with gas as I've been careful about the vent. My mistake was showering without the tape and that caused the vent to fail and so the bag filled up with gas. If I didn't release the gas while emptying the bag, the pressure would build up which caused the leak.

So I have a solution but it's not ideal right now.
6/17: ER rectal bleeding; Colonoscopy
7/17: 3B rectal. T3N1bM0. 5.2 4.5 4.3 cm. Lymphs: 6 x 4 mm, 8 x 6, 5 x 5
7/17-9/17: Xeloda radiation
7/5: CEA 2.7; 8/16: 1.9; 11/30: 0.6; 12/20 1.4; 1/10 1.8; 1/31 2.2; 2/28 2.6; 4/10 2.8; 5/1 2.8; 5/29 3.2; 7/13 4.5; 8/9 2.8, 2/12 1.2
MSS, KRAS G12D
10/17: 2.7 2.2 1.6 cm (-90%). Lymphs: 3 x 3 mm (-62.5%), 4 x 3 (-75%), 5 x 3 (-40%). 5.1 CM from AV
10/17: LAR, Temp Ileostomy, Path Complete Response
CapeOx (8) 12/17-6/18
7/18: Reversal, Port Removal
2/19: Clean CT

Aqx99
Posts: 403
Joined: Fri Mar 31, 2017 7:28 am
Facebook Username: aqx99
Location: Pfafftown, NC

Re: Near-complete pathological response !

Postby Aqx99 » Fri Nov 17, 2017 8:25 am

ocstacy wrote:
it’s great news for her and you. Both of you have gone through a lot thus year.


Thank you very much. Thank goodness for these support groups, I would be so lost without this group. I don't have time to go in person and I think the online groups are more convenient. I am am online girl! How did your temp ileostomy going? Hopefully you are doing well. My mom is doing better with it. :wink:


FYI, there is a support group chat every day at noonET on the Colorectal Cancer Alliance's website if you are interested. There is also a caregiver chat every Thursday at 1ET.

https://www.ccalliance.org/get-support/group-chat/
Anne, 40
Stage IIIB Rectal Cancer
T3N1bM0
2/21/17 Dx, Age 39
2/21/17 CEA 0.9
3/23/17 - 5/2/17 Chemoradiation, 28 treatments
6/14/17 Robotic LAR w/temp loop ileostomy, ovaries & fallopian tubes removed, 2/21 lymph nodes positive
7/24/17 - 12/18/17 CapeOx, 6 Cycles
7/24/17 Dx w/ovarian cancer
9/6/17 CA 125 11.1
11/27/17 CEA 2.6
12/5/17 CT NED
12/13/17 CEA 2.9
1/11/18 CA 125 8.6
1/23/18 Reversal
3/21/18 CT enlarged thymus
4/6/18 PET NED
7/10/18 CT NED
7/11/18 CEA 2.6
9/18 Bilateral Prophylactic Mastectomy

Aqx99
Posts: 403
Joined: Fri Mar 31, 2017 7:28 am
Facebook Username: aqx99
Location: Pfafftown, NC

Re: Near-complete pathological response !

Postby Aqx99 » Fri Nov 17, 2017 9:16 am

NHMike wrote:
ocstacy wrote:
it’s great news for her and you. Both of you have gone through a lot thus year.


Thank you very much. Thank goodness for these support groups, I would be so lost without this group. I don't have time to go in person and I think the online groups are more convenient. I am am online girl! How did your temp ileostomy going? Hopefully you are doing well. My mom is doing better with it. :wink:


Things are going somewhat better. I'm changing the bag every four hours. It means waking up twice during the night but it means peace of mind that the bag won't leak. The most important thing is putting the tape over the vent when I shower. I'm on day five of the current bag and it doesn't fill up with gas as I've been careful about the vent. My mistake was showering without the tape and that caused the vent to fail and so the bag filled up with gas. If I didn't release the gas while emptying the bag, the pressure would build up which caused the leak.

So I have a solution but it's not ideal right now.


I keep tape on my vent all the time. It is part of my prep procedure for changing pouches. My ostomy nurse started me on that because sometimes your output can get on the vent and leak through to your clothes.
Anne, 40
Stage IIIB Rectal Cancer
T3N1bM0
2/21/17 Dx, Age 39
2/21/17 CEA 0.9
3/23/17 - 5/2/17 Chemoradiation, 28 treatments
6/14/17 Robotic LAR w/temp loop ileostomy, ovaries & fallopian tubes removed, 2/21 lymph nodes positive
7/24/17 - 12/18/17 CapeOx, 6 Cycles
7/24/17 Dx w/ovarian cancer
9/6/17 CA 125 11.1
11/27/17 CEA 2.6
12/5/17 CT NED
12/13/17 CEA 2.9
1/11/18 CA 125 8.6
1/23/18 Reversal
3/21/18 CT enlarged thymus
4/6/18 PET NED
7/10/18 CT NED
7/11/18 CEA 2.6
9/18 Bilateral Prophylactic Mastectomy

SweetC80
Posts: 103
Joined: Fri Sep 01, 2017 1:28 pm

Re: Near-complete pathological response !

Postby SweetC80 » Fri Nov 17, 2017 9:37 am

Wow! What great news! I'm so happy to see this update!!
My Mom
12/16 Stage IIIb Rectal Ca CEA 1.2
1/17-2/17 Chemoradiation CEA 4.4
5/17 Entire Colon, Rectum & Anus removed Perm Ileostomy Bag
7/17 FOLFOX
9/17 Stage IVb 9cm Liver Met & 7mm Lung Nodule CEA 197
9/17 FOLFIRI CEA 160
10/17 Confirmed KRAS Pos CEA 210
11/17 Met growths Liver 10cm & Lung 8mm CEA 425
12/17 FOLFOX again Met growths Liver 13cm & Lung 1cm CEA 405
12/17 Xifaxan due to Hepatic Encephalopathy
12/17 New 2cm liver Met
1/18 CEA 992
2/8/18 Passed Peacefully

NHMike
Posts: 2555
Joined: Fri Jul 21, 2017 3:43 am

Re: Near-complete pathological response !

Postby NHMike » Fri Nov 17, 2017 10:20 am

Aqx99 wrote:I keep tape on my vent all the time. It is part of my prep procedure for changing pouches. My ostomy nurse started me on that because sometimes your output can get on the vent and leak through to your clothes.


I haven't had that happen and have worried about it but I put a bunch of pillows so that my upper body is higher than my lower body to try to prevent spillback. I would hope that there is a liquid barrier preventing liquid from getting out but allow air to pass out, similar to how GoreTex works.
6/17: ER rectal bleeding; Colonoscopy
7/17: 3B rectal. T3N1bM0. 5.2 4.5 4.3 cm. Lymphs: 6 x 4 mm, 8 x 6, 5 x 5
7/17-9/17: Xeloda radiation
7/5: CEA 2.7; 8/16: 1.9; 11/30: 0.6; 12/20 1.4; 1/10 1.8; 1/31 2.2; 2/28 2.6; 4/10 2.8; 5/1 2.8; 5/29 3.2; 7/13 4.5; 8/9 2.8, 2/12 1.2
MSS, KRAS G12D
10/17: 2.7 2.2 1.6 cm (-90%). Lymphs: 3 x 3 mm (-62.5%), 4 x 3 (-75%), 5 x 3 (-40%). 5.1 CM from AV
10/17: LAR, Temp Ileostomy, Path Complete Response
CapeOx (8) 12/17-6/18
7/18: Reversal, Port Removal
2/19: Clean CT

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ocstacy
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Re: Near-complete pathological response !

Postby ocstacy » Sun Nov 19, 2017 12:51 am

My ostomy nurse started me on that because sometimes your output can get on the vent and leak through to your clothes.


Yes, that happened to my mommy. She was too scared and nervous to change the whole pouch herself so I helped her with the whole change. She is afraid to shower with it off, which the surgeon and nurses said it would be just fine if water hits it. I have been watching You-Tube videos and now we have a routine, where she uses chucks tucked in her pants as a leak guard, etc. She is a 1 1/4 circum. cut. I didn't know that they shrink to different sizes. I'm learning each day. My mom doesn't like it at all, but she needs to understand that her cancer is nearly gone. I have no idea when she will start the chemo again. Does she have to?
Caregiver/daughter to dear mother age 78, dx 5/09/17 because of me!! :wink:
Rectal CA Stage 3 low-grade adenocarcinoma- 6 cm
Neoadjuvant start 7/10/17 ended 08/16/17
3D Lap. surgery @ Keck USC, Dr. Sang Lee 10/17/17 temp ileostomy
11/1 hospitalized abscess/hernia - home 11/06/17 antibiotics
NO LYMPHS INVOLVED! NEAR PATHOLOGICAL RESPONSE! YAY! :shock:
Took her last chemo med 05/10/18! Ileo reversal 07/24/18
1st BM after reversal 07/25/18 Anal Fissure 8/15/18
Me:1st Colonoscopy age 38. 08/17 Benign polp.

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ocstacy
Posts: 264
Joined: Mon Jun 19, 2017 11:29 pm
Facebook Username: stacy

Re: Near-complete pathological response !

Postby ocstacy » Sun Nov 19, 2017 12:52 am

I keep tape on my vent all the time. It is part of my prep procedure for changing pouches. My ostomy nurse started me on that because sometimes your output can get on the vent and leak through to your clothes.


Good to know. Do you put the tape on it when you shower? We learn new things each day.
Caregiver/daughter to dear mother age 78, dx 5/09/17 because of me!! :wink:
Rectal CA Stage 3 low-grade adenocarcinoma- 6 cm
Neoadjuvant start 7/10/17 ended 08/16/17
3D Lap. surgery @ Keck USC, Dr. Sang Lee 10/17/17 temp ileostomy
11/1 hospitalized abscess/hernia - home 11/06/17 antibiotics
NO LYMPHS INVOLVED! NEAR PATHOLOGICAL RESPONSE! YAY! :shock:
Took her last chemo med 05/10/18! Ileo reversal 07/24/18
1st BM after reversal 07/25/18 Anal Fissure 8/15/18
Me:1st Colonoscopy age 38. 08/17 Benign polp.


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