Postby LeonW » Tue Jul 18, 2017 5:25 am
Hi PPD,
You haven't added detail to your signature (yet?), so I don't know how similar we are.
At Dx I was assigned palliative, despite only a few (2) liver mets. Reason was their size - too big for resection. Attacking the colon tumor was the only thing feasible, then. I still have bad memories of the introductory talks with an overly empathetic palliative nurse who felt sssoooo sssoooorrryyy. Doesn't work work me. I need facts; will deal with the coping details myself. I need info to define expectations / my roles in it all; what I can/need to do myself; realizing that I need to rely on my docs as I simply don't have their knowledge. Luckily I (also then) had an open and honest onc who fully gave all info I needed. She promised fully bet on going for *aggressive* adjuvant chemo, despite these mets.
When liver was attacked 9 mos later, there were no living cancer cells left. Capox had given 100% result - on hindsight all the jazz about the liver resection surgery *might* not have been necessary after all (haha).
My take on it all is that we've just been somewhat unlucky to draw a bad straw; there are too many straws to get cancer. To kick the beast we need the opposite - good fortune; the problem is that these are not so plentyful so rare. To me, prospects percentages are not verdicts, just an indication of how much/little good luck is needed.
My advice: hope for luck and don't forget to live in the mean time. Make sure you celebrate every small win on the road ahead
Best wishes, Leon
Last edited by
LeonW on Wed Jul 19, 2017 8:31 am, edited 1 time in total.
Dec 2012 - CC 2 unresect liver mets, CEA 41.8 (MM 65yrs)
Jan 2013 - colectomy @ spleen 2/26 nodes IVa T3N1bM1a
Feb-Jul - 1x Xelox-7x Xelox/Avastin, shrinkage from #3
Aug - 2x PV embolization (both failed)
Sep 2013 - R liver resect, 25d hosp (liver failure/delirium, lung emboli, encephalopathy), no living cancer (pCR)
2014/15 - recovery, scopy: 2 polyps
2016 - new town/life
2018, scopy: 2 polyps
2018/20 low (1.0-1.4) CEAs/clean CTs: 4x2014, 6x2015-17, 3x2018-20
next June 2021!