RE:RE:RE:RE:RE:JFM - How is your 2024 starting off?We will keep praying for another miracle in your Dad's case and for physical, emotional and spiritual comfort for both him and your whole family in the midst of this battle. It is hard not to like his spirit and determination, even as the potential negative consequences of that have you concerned. None of us live forever, at least on the earth, but I rejoice in the fact that you and your family got to enjoy your Dad's company for all those years since his first miraculous cure. That is a special blessing and I trust the Lord will give your Dad and your family a second such blessing.
PWIB123 wrote: Thanks SPCEO1. Dad's initial chemo regimen did not work and the cancer continued to spread to his liver. It had already previously spread to the lymph nodes almost immediately even before he began the initial chemo regimen.
The new chemo regimen is 3 days of Etoposide for 2 hours and 30 minutes of Carbotplatin AUC of 5 only on day 1. Each treatment cycle is 21 days whereas before he was going every 2 weeks.
It seems like every day brings a new symptom/health issue to contend with. He's finishing his second treatment cycle on the new chemo regimen today. It's hit and miss on bad versus good days, but he thinks he's getting a little bit of relief from the tumor in his rectum. He has a CT Scan scheduled, and we will have the first opportunity soon to see if the new chemo regimen is making any difference. Last week his white blood cell count dropped to a 1. It rebounded this week to 15. I'm not sure what denominator they are measuring against, but they had said that they wouldn't continue treatment unless he was above a 3.5, so the increase in white blood cell count was encouraging to see. Dad has a cold or sinus issue of some kind right now. I'm worried about his immune system, in part because the man refuses to quit working, even when he can barely get there. Two weeks ago I was helping him with a few things and he could barely walk due to swelling and stiffness in his legs. He managed to muster the strength to go to work anyway. The next week, he was walking fine again. Like I said, it's hit or miss.
Based on my research and the fact dad has a high grade, Stage IVb, neuroendocrine rectal cancer, it looks like the average person only lives 6-9 months and has a very low 5 year survival rate. Dad is in month 8 since being diagnosed, although the cancer didn't spread to his liver until a few months ago. He miraculously survived this 8 years ago, and I have less confidence he'll overcome it again. However, we know God can and did work a miracle. We are trusting in God's perfect timing. Dad will either be healed in this world or the next. It's still difficult to watch him suffer through the process, but we remain hopeful, no matter the outcome. That's where we get to experience joy in the midst of difficult trials.
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6402804/
- ”The median survival for patients with HGNECs in this cohort was 9.0 months [95% confidence interval (CI)8.2–9.8]; 3-year survival was 17.8% and 5-year survival was 13.3%. Median survival was 18.0 months (95% CI13.7–22.4) in patients without metastatic disease at diagnosis, and 5.9 months (95% CI 4.7–7.0) in patients with metastatic disease (p < 0.001). In patients without meta-static disease, 3-year survival was 36.2% and 5-year survival was 29.8%, while in patients with metastatic disease, 3-year survival was 5.9% and 5-year survival was 4.1%.”
- https://www.cancer.net/cancer-types/colorectal-cancer/statistics
- “For rectal cancer, the overall 5-year relative survival rate for people is 68%. If the cancer is diagnosed at a localized stage, the survival rate is 90%. If the cancer has spread to surrounding tissues or organs and/or the regional lymph nodes, the 5-year relative survival rate is 74%. If the cancer has spread to distant parts of the body, the 5-year relative survival rate is 17%.”
SPCEO1 wrote: Amen to that! Any news on your Dad's situation? We have been praying for him too. But feel no need to respond if you prefer not to.
PWIB123 wrote: jfm1330 - I just said a prayer for you. You seem to have a balanced approach toward reality. May your days continue to be filled with joy until that last breath.