Esophageal Cancer Support Group
Esophageal cancer is malignancy of the esophagus. There are various subtypes. Esophageal tumors usually lead to dysphagia (difficulty swallowing), pain and other symptoms, and is diagnosed with biopsy. Small and localized tumors are treated with surgery, and advanced tumors are treated with chemotherapy, radiotherapy or combinations.
Good news: Since his Stage 3+ dx of EC in 10/11, my husband has achieved partial remission.
The iV chemo he received Dec through March was powerful, and the process was grueling, putting him in the hospital for a week at one point. He chose to end treatments 2 weeks prior to planned endpoint due to painful neuropathy; it was compromising his ability to drive safely & he was losing his fingernails & toenails.
But the stuff did what it was supposed to do. His PET showed a significant reduction in the size of the tumor. Also, the peripheral lymph node involvement appeared to be gone. (The docs say it isn't, tho - that the particles are just too small right now to be visible)
We've seen 3 different docs @ three different institutes - including the head of the Gastroenterology Surgery Dept at The Cancer Inst of NJ (Rbt Woods Johnson) - and all maintain that my husband's EC is still inoperable.
So he took a two-month break from everything, & our daughter planned her wedding in 6 weeks time to take advantage of this window of improved health (see "photos").
Treatments have started up again with the oral chemo, Xeloda, and targeted radiation. So far he's not experiencing significant side effects. This is great, & has enabled him to gain more weight, grow more hair, & continue to strengthen his muscles at PT. He's finishing up his 3rd week of this new treatment & has 3 more to go till the next PET scan.
I'd say my husband's quality of life index is at it's highest since he began treatment in Nov. Since a cure sounds unlikely, we'll take "second-best" (as Fred called it in a note to me) any day.
Bari
The iV chemo he received Dec through March was powerful, and the process was grueling, putting him in the hospital for a week at one point. He chose to end treatments 2 weeks prior to planned endpoint due to painful neuropathy; it was compromising his ability to drive safely & he was losing his fingernails & toenails.
But the stuff did what it was supposed to do. His PET showed a significant reduction in the size of the tumor. Also, the peripheral lymph node involvement appeared to be gone. (The docs say it isn't, tho - that the particles are just too small right now to be visible)
We've seen 3 different docs @ three different institutes - including the head of the Gastroenterology Surgery Dept at The Cancer Inst of NJ (Rbt Woods Johnson) - and all maintain that my husband's EC is still inoperable.
So he took a two-month break from everything, & our daughter planned her wedding in 6 weeks time to take advantage of this window of improved health (see "photos").
Treatments have started up again with the oral chemo, Xeloda, and targeted radiation. So far he's not experiencing significant side effects. This is great, & has enabled him to gain more weight, grow more hair, & continue to strengthen his muscles at PT. He's finishing up his 3rd week of this new treatment & has 3 more to go till the next PET scan.
I'd say my husband's quality of life index is at it's highest since he began treatment in Nov. Since a cure sounds unlikely, we'll take "second-best" (as Fred called it in a note to me) any day.
Bari
How long has it been since you stopped the Oxliplatin? Have your nails gown in? Ted stopped that chemical 4 1/2 months ago & his nails are in various stages of regrowth, with some of them still partially attached, & some entirely off.
It's the neuropathy that's still causing him moderate, constant pain & frustration . While the neuropathy has lessened somewhat with time, he still can't manipulate small buttons or pull off soda can tabs - or any tabs for that matter. This results in quite a comedy of errors at home, since my Parkinson's Disease causes manipulation problems with the same tasks. But for me it's just a frustration, while for him it's very painful.
Good luck to you in your ongoing treatment.
Brenda, thanks for you warm encouragement.
Bari
Bari