Port return...

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Mohrfamily
Posts: 267
Joined: Tue May 22, 2018 4:04 pm

Port return...

Postby Mohrfamily » Sat May 18, 2019 4:44 am

DH has had a tough time this week (well EVERY other week is tough... No I guess just every one is but), when our cancer center tried to access his port this week they had a hard time getting a "flap" to open for the return causing another injection of (positive of) heparin. DH never really pays attention even now.

I asked him if they said anything about it, cautionary or otherwise. He sat there silent rubbing his head and face and gave me a response of "but its not good" as if he said something before that which he didn't there were only crickets for that minute between the question and that answer. To him having ANYTHING extra isn't good in his opinion the man barely took anything medicinal even when he was healthy.

I guess I just want to know if anyone else had port return issues, is it common, if its not common what can we expect etc?
DH dx stage IV liver mets largest 6x6.4 cm
Colonoscopy/endoscopy/port place 5/29
4cm mass in splenic flexure
1st round FolFox 5/30
08/2018 new CT no new lesions, clear lungs, slight decrease in colon.
3/2019 PET scan shows greater than 6-7 liver mets largest measuring 3x3 cm. No growth nothing new.
8/15/19 largest liver lesion 1.9x2.1
9/16/2019 OSU to proceed with surgery implant HAI and colon resection
11/19 resection of colon HAI placed
2/20 CEA back to 1000s, liver worse than when we began-start FOLFIRI

Pyro
Posts: 305
Joined: Mon Oct 12, 2015 7:40 pm
Location: Tucson, AZ

Re: Port return...

Postby Pyro » Sat May 18, 2019 7:32 am

Absolutely, it’s totally normal. I’ve had to sit in the office, not getting treatment, because the port is blocked. The nurses have a bunch of techniques to free it up, it usually works for me, eventually.
Aug 2015- Stage 4 CC with liver Mets(38/m)
Sep 2015- Avastin/Folfox/Iron
Dec 2015-Not liver surgery candidate
Jan 2016- Erbitux/Folfiri, 2nd opinion at MDA in TX
Feb 2016 -MDA liver surgery
Mar 2016 -30% of left lobe rem, PVE
May 2016 - 70% of liver rem
Jun 2016-Rad
Jan 2017-perm colost @MDA
Jul 2017-Erb/FOLFURI
Nov 2017 -Lung & Liver ablations@MDA
Jan 2018 -Xeloda & Avastin mx
Jul 2018-Avast/FOLFURI
Sep 2018-Rad
Mar 2019 - Keytruda fail
Jun 2019 - FOLFURI
Aug 2019 - No more, quality time!

User avatar
ginabeewell
Posts: 565
Joined: Wed Oct 24, 2018 10:30 am

Re: Port return...

Postby ginabeewell » Sat May 18, 2019 9:24 am

That happens every few times for me. They will try Heparin once or twice and then move onto something they call Draino which sits for an hour.

So yes I think normal. If he just had one extra syringe of Heparin, that doesn’t sound like too big an issue.
49 YO mom of twins (11) lucky stepmom of 16/19 year olds
9/17/18 DX stage 4 CRC w inoperable liver mets CEA 931
Currently NED!

Join me on a lookback of my journey via my Strive for Five on Substack here:
https://ginajacobson.substack.com

All treatment details here:
https://www.weareallmadeofstars.net/col ... nt-journey

My favorite posts here:
https://weareallmadeofstars.net/favorite-posts

Mohrfamily
Posts: 267
Joined: Tue May 22, 2018 4:04 pm

Re: Port return...

Postby Mohrfamily » Mon May 20, 2019 4:44 am

Thank you both, my husband just worries because he's never had problems with accessing his port before and they had trouble on chemo day as well as 5fu pump flush day.

I try to tell him about feedback on here but he's stubborn one thing that apparently has not changed. Good love him :wink:
DH dx stage IV liver mets largest 6x6.4 cm
Colonoscopy/endoscopy/port place 5/29
4cm mass in splenic flexure
1st round FolFox 5/30
08/2018 new CT no new lesions, clear lungs, slight decrease in colon.
3/2019 PET scan shows greater than 6-7 liver mets largest measuring 3x3 cm. No growth nothing new.
8/15/19 largest liver lesion 1.9x2.1
9/16/2019 OSU to proceed with surgery implant HAI and colon resection
11/19 resection of colon HAI placed
2/20 CEA back to 1000s, liver worse than when we began-start FOLFIRI

Mohrfamily
Posts: 267
Joined: Tue May 22, 2018 4:04 pm

Re: Port return...

Postby Mohrfamily » Wed May 29, 2019 10:23 am

Ok so DH has had 2 blood thinners and a bunch of saline and normally by this time he's almost done sitting in the chair but they are having issues accessing his Port to the point where if they don't get blood shortly he's going to have to skip chemo and go to radiology to see what's wrong.... Ahhhgh
DH dx stage IV liver mets largest 6x6.4 cm
Colonoscopy/endoscopy/port place 5/29
4cm mass in splenic flexure
1st round FolFox 5/30
08/2018 new CT no new lesions, clear lungs, slight decrease in colon.
3/2019 PET scan shows greater than 6-7 liver mets largest measuring 3x3 cm. No growth nothing new.
8/15/19 largest liver lesion 1.9x2.1
9/16/2019 OSU to proceed with surgery implant HAI and colon resection
11/19 resection of colon HAI placed
2/20 CEA back to 1000s, liver worse than when we began-start FOLFIRI

User avatar
juliej
Posts: 3114
Joined: Thu Aug 05, 2010 12:59 pm

Re: Port return...

Postby juliej » Wed May 29, 2019 6:09 pm

Mohrfamily wrote:Ok so DH has had 2 blood thinners and a bunch of saline and normally by this time he's almost done sitting in the chair but they are having issues accessing his Port to the point where if they don't get blood shortly he's going to have to skip chemo and go to radiology to see what's wrong.... Ahhhgh

Ahhhgh - indeed! :evil: :evil: :evil:

Port issues can be serious - fractured catheters, migrated lines, blood clots, etc. That's why so many onc nurses have a "no blood return - no chemotherapy" approach. There's a reason the port lacks a blood return, but it might take a dye study (cathetergram) or chest x-ray to determine what the problem is.

Hope they figure things out soon. Hang in there!

Juliej
Stage IVb, liver/lung mets 8/4/2010
Xelox+Avastin 8/18/10 to 10/21/2011
LAR, liver resec, HAI pump 11/2011
Adjuvant Irinotecan + FUDR
Double lung surgery + ileo reversal 2/2012
Adjuvant FUDR + Xeloda
VATS rt. lung 12/2012 - benign granuloma!
VATS left lung 11/2013
NED 11/22/13 to 12/18/2019, CEA<1

Mohrfamily
Posts: 267
Joined: Tue May 22, 2018 4:04 pm

Re: Port return...

Postby Mohrfamily » Fri May 31, 2019 4:48 am

I think he said that if they have issues today taking his pump off they are sending him to radiology for a pott scan. We don't see the onc till June 20th, I'm pretty sure there's a PET scan this month at the request of a radiologist.

I wasn't physically there on Wednesday when all of this happened so I go based off what my husband tells me which isn't really much I didn't find out till about 24 hours later that he might need surgery to his port which I gathered on my own while sitting at work worrying about him at chemo.

I inadvertently made him cry yesterday at the casual drop of surgery info. "Why is everything the hard way for you.... Accepting help is not a bad thing taking medicine isn't meant to be a bad thing.... Leaning on me for support is one of the things I'm here for besides being a nagging wife"

I got frustrated with the lapse in info that's kinda important, he won't take his other nausea meds when he ran out of the ones he takes on days 2 and 3 but he clearly needs them and won't call the replenish. One is also good for sleeping because that's a problem when wearing the pump but no wing do that either. So the cry wasn't me being mean I just needed him to remember I get being tough on cancer but he doesn't need to spare me I guess and he can accept some help here and there.
DH dx stage IV liver mets largest 6x6.4 cm
Colonoscopy/endoscopy/port place 5/29
4cm mass in splenic flexure
1st round FolFox 5/30
08/2018 new CT no new lesions, clear lungs, slight decrease in colon.
3/2019 PET scan shows greater than 6-7 liver mets largest measuring 3x3 cm. No growth nothing new.
8/15/19 largest liver lesion 1.9x2.1
9/16/2019 OSU to proceed with surgery implant HAI and colon resection
11/19 resection of colon HAI placed
2/20 CEA back to 1000s, liver worse than when we began-start FOLFIRI

User avatar
ginabeewell
Posts: 565
Joined: Wed Oct 24, 2018 10:30 am

Re: Port return...

Postby ginabeewell » Sat Jun 01, 2019 8:52 am

Not sure this is helpful feedback but weighing in to say as a patient I know I’m a pain about drugs - stubborn, slow to refill, apt to forget to take them etc.

My husband has assumed Rx responsibility 100%. He keeps everything ordered and picked up, brings me dishes of pills at bedtime and wake up, makes little baggies of pills when he is out of town, and brings me anti-nausea pill and water - and saltines - when it strikes.

Now, I’ve been happy to give all that to him!

Maybe your husband would be ok delegating meds to you?
49 YO mom of twins (11) lucky stepmom of 16/19 year olds
9/17/18 DX stage 4 CRC w inoperable liver mets CEA 931
Currently NED!

Join me on a lookback of my journey via my Strive for Five on Substack here:
https://ginajacobson.substack.com

All treatment details here:
https://www.weareallmadeofstars.net/col ... nt-journey

My favorite posts here:
https://weareallmadeofstars.net/favorite-posts

Mohrfamily
Posts: 267
Joined: Tue May 22, 2018 4:04 pm

Re: Port return...

Postby Mohrfamily » Mon Jun 03, 2019 4:41 am

Gina I wish it was that easy he just literally doesn't want to put anything in that he's not 100% ordered to do. He did finally remember to mention his dexamethasone refill on Friday flush day even to switch pharmacies. That nausea med he's come to realize it's a valuable asset on days 2 and 3 of his chemo!

Also, his flush went off without a hitch thank the Lord I was a little worried that having the kids with us it would take a few tries but on Friday 1 and done!
DH dx stage IV liver mets largest 6x6.4 cm
Colonoscopy/endoscopy/port place 5/29
4cm mass in splenic flexure
1st round FolFox 5/30
08/2018 new CT no new lesions, clear lungs, slight decrease in colon.
3/2019 PET scan shows greater than 6-7 liver mets largest measuring 3x3 cm. No growth nothing new.
8/15/19 largest liver lesion 1.9x2.1
9/16/2019 OSU to proceed with surgery implant HAI and colon resection
11/19 resection of colon HAI placed
2/20 CEA back to 1000s, liver worse than when we began-start FOLFIRI


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