Hello, it's been a long time since I've posted anything on here but yesterday we received the news we had been dreading.
My mum was diagnosed with stage 4B high grade endometrial cancer in July 2022. CT scans showed it had spread to the lung and pelvic bone. She had 6 rounds of chemo and came through it with little side effects however she now has clots in her lung and neuropathy in her hands and feet.
In Jan 2023 scans showed the chemo had done it's job in reducing the cancer and she was doing well until in April 2023 she had problems urinating. Further scans showed growth in the womb and the lung. She was hospitalized and it took 5 attempts for them to insert a catheter. She then received radiotherapy on her lung and her womb.
Again, scans in August showed positive results in shrinking both areas. Then, a month later she started to feel pain in her shoulder and a lump appeared on her cheek.
Scans showed the cheek was a cancerous lump and plans were made to remove it. Then CT scans showed her shoulder pain was actually cancer in her 4th vertebrae. More radiotherapy to her cheek and a blast on the vertebrae to help with the pain followed.
Her Dr decided ded immunotherapy was the next step. However before we got that far they told us the CT for her face showed 2 shadows on her brain. An MRI later confirmed she did indeed have 2 lesions and that the bigger of the 2 was in her cerebellum, affecting her balance.
Two weeks later, pain in her arm. CT and MRI - a new lesion on her neck which was pressing on a nerve and causing the pain.
Another week in hospital, a blast of radiotherapy and that took us to yesterday.....
Blue Monday will have a new meaning for me now - it's the day we were told my poor mum has months left to live.
70 years old, wife, mother, sister, grandmother.
She's been given the option of starting the immunotherapy which has a 40% proven record in helping with endometrial cancer. They just don't know if it will help that in her brain. They did say it's the same type of cancer in her brain so I'm clinging to the hope that just because they don't know if it will help, that actually, it might?
So many thoughts, questions, anger, sadness....
I'm an only child and therefore my mums primary carer. My dad is registered disabled as he has severe mobility issues so its all been on my shoulders to care for them both. On top of that I have my 2 sons aged 9 & 11 and the 3 of us moved back in with my parents when my mum was first diagnosed.
I just don't know what to do next or what to expect.
Hi SaeoaX
The pain of not knowing is something I think we all recognize. When my wife was diagnosed she was told that chemotherapy was not generally effective against her cancer but it was the only treatment available - and in her case it seems to have worked in at least making her cancer stable.
You do sound incredibly busy with your mum, dad and your children. Do you have any support yourself? Your parents hopefully have had some kind of needs assessment and you should be able to get a carers assessment. We were lucky when our son was young that we got a lot of support from this school and that helped make sure he always got a consistent answer to any questions.
<<hugs>>
Steve
