Update on my brother

[jennys]

Hi all,

My brother finished his 2nd round of chemo last week; they decided to use cistplatin in his second one because they weren't happy with his blood tests (hcg was 19000 before 1st round and came down to 13000); he was pretty lucky and only suffered mild side affects this time.....I have just spoken to him and he was waiting for a ct scan, he said that depending on ct scan and blood tests taken next week the onc will decide if stem cell replacement is an option....meaning if it doesn't look like this chemo has worked, they will not be doin the HDC.....does this sound right?? If it hasn't worked....what next?? Has anybody got an idea of what they do if they can't to HDC?

Thanx in advance for any info
Jenny

[Margaret]

Jenny,

I wish I could offer some advice, but I have no extensive knowledge on this...but many on this board do. I did want to tell you that my thoughts are with you and I know this must be a time filled with worry for you and your family. I am sending prayers of support.

Let me know if you need someon to talk to.

Margaret

[jennys]

Thanx Margeret, Robert and Scott for your support and replies.....sorry it has taken me a while to reply

Since my last update Gerard ct scan came back and showed an improvement in his stomach tumour...his hcg count wasn't back yet but they decided to go ahead with the HDC which he had last week and finished on friday.....his nausea has been minimal touch wood, but has been extremely tired...the nurse told us that this was expected....he will have the stem cells put back in on Tuesday, and i will be staying with him for a few days until his wife flies in.....his hcg was down at 6600 but has gone up to 9000 last week, but he is doing extremely well so far....

I will keep u all updated as things go along, thankyou all again for your support, especially you Robert with keeping me sane thru this whole process so far

Jenny

[Scott]

I hope Gerard's treatment keeps showing good results, and I wish all of you the best.

[jennys]

Hi all,

I thought I would just fill you in as to where my brother is at....He finished his first round of HDC/stem cell transplant last wednesday and has been in hospital since last monday....he has had to have continuous potassium dripping through his system and he has had two platelet transfusions already....he is not eating because his mouth is full of ulcers and nothing has worked so far to clear this up, he says that the stuff he has tried only gives him temporary relief.....he is quite down and grumpy which I can't blame him for because I reckon I would be ten times worse!!! It is very hard to watch someone you love going thru this, and I keep praying that it will all be worthwhile.....his white cell count is down to 0.01 and they are quite concerned about his kidneys....they have told me that they want to do the next hdc within 30 days but I can't help thinking that if this is his reaction the first time round how will his body cope with the next round???

Thankyou for listening and letting me vent, please keep my brother in your prayers

Jenny

[David07]

Thanks for the update. I wish you and your family the best. Stay strong.

[dadmo]

Sometimes the body can adjust to the chemo so that the latter rounds don't make you feel as sick and the chemo still gets the cancer.

[tccancercop]

My second round of HDC (carboplatin+etoposide) was i think a bit easier (very few mouth sores!!)

[jdunn]

Hi Jenny,
I'm sorry that your brother is having a tough time. It is hard to watch someone suffer that you love. Stay strong for your brother. You are a wonderful, caring sister.
Thinking and praying for you both.

[Hopeful]

It's very tough to see someone you love going thru HDC. Kevin had c-diff for 3 weeks (NOT FUN) and he was on potassium drips for quite a bit.

How long has your brother been neutropenic? When did his #'s hit .01? What are they doing for the kidneys?
Patti

[jennys]

Hi all,
Thanx for your good wishes and support,

Patti,
I am not sure how long his count has been down to .o1 but he has been neutropenic since the day after his stem cell transplant which was about 6 days ago....I am not sure what they are doing about his kidneys, they have taken a stool sample and the results should be back today.....by the way what is c-diff? Sorry I just haven't heard of it before...

tccancercop,
Thankyou for your input and I am glad to hear you are going ok, I have been praying that you haven't suffered too badly....Thankyou also for the hope that his mouth sores won't be so bad the second time around cuz I know they are driving him absolutely balmy!....They have upped his morphine again too cuz they said that they don't want him to have any pain whatsoever....

Again thankyou all and I will keep you posted
Take care
Jenny

[jennys]

Hi all,

I thought I would bring you up to date with my brother.
Gerrard was finally released from hospital yesterday after his first round of HDC....initially they were going to give him the second round within 4 weeks after his first as his tumour markers actually went up and so they looked at his as highly aggressive but because of how sick he got they have postponed his second HDC for another 4-6 weeks.....apparently his stomach lining is quite damaged and they want to give it plenty of time to heal.

He has stopped vomiting and only one mouth sore remains (he is loving the fact that he can eat again ).....he initially had mouth sores all throughout his mouth, down his throat and throughout his esophogas....so this is a huge relief for him...

His Doctor has also said that because of how sick he got the first time, he will definitely be doing his second HDC as an inpatient (We all sighed with relief at this....except for Gerrard but he does realise it is for the best.

Anyway thankyou all again for your support thru this hairy up and down ride of a roller-coaster....I truly appreciate it

Take care
Jenny

[Scott]

Thanks for the update, Jenny. I hope your brother takes advantage of this rest stop to refuel for the journey ahead and, as Robert said, keeps his eye on the finish line. Our best wishes go with you both every day.