Don’t know whether this is right for me or the place,
My wife was diagnosed in October after being unable to breathe, finding 85% fluid on the lungs, so off we went to emergency department where after a long wait and he aging lungs drained, thought it was an infection only to be back in a couple of days later with same issues, this time stayed in for 2 weeks, on second day was told my partner had stage 4 mastatic cancer from ovaries to lungs, so have gone through six cycles of chemotherapy, and an operation that was offered to remove reproductive system with full hysterectomy as well as spleen part of the stomach and liver, but when surgeons opened up to do removal found out that the cancer has spread to other areas so removal and further operations will not be viable, After marker count had come down from near a count of near 900 to just above 200 thought we was going to be lucky and get a grips on this, what I would like to know can the doctors make a good assessment on time scale or is this not something that should be asked??
Sorry if it’s a bit long, thanks
Hi Driftee and a very warm welcome to the Macmillan Community but I am so sorry to hear about your wife’s diagnosis.
I know from experience having been on my cancer journey for over 26 years with two very rare, hard to treat types of Non Hodgkin’s Lymphomas (one incurable), Asbestosis and Prostate Cancer that navigating this journey can be such a stressful and challenging time but talking with and getting support from people who have walked or are walking the ‘exact same' journey can help a lot.
As for Consultants being able to give an exact prognosis, back in 1999 when I was first diagnosed I asked for a timescale and was told the median survival rate would be 3-5 years….. well I am 20+ years past that prognosis.
The Community is actually divided into dedicated Support Groups (Discussion Rooms) and when it comes to the practical and emotional challenges of supporting your wife and indeed yourself you may benefit from joining and posting in our general cancer……
Supporting someone with incurable cancer
……. support groups where you will connect with a wide range of members navigating the exact same support challenges.
To connect with a group click on the “Bold Links” I have created above …… then once the group page opens click in the [Black - Click to Join - Banner] that appears at the bottom of the page and this will then confirm that you have joined the group.
When you are ready……. you can introduce yourself by putting up your very own post by clicking [+ Create new post] or [+] in the top right of the group page.
You can copy and paste the text from this post into your new post.
It is an emotional time supporting family so you might find this Macmillan information your feelings when someone has cancer helpful as well as this link getting help with your emotions.
As always the Macmillan Support Line is open between 8am-8pm (timings may differ across services) 7 days a week on 0808 808 00 00…… this service provides cancer information, practical information, emotional support, benefits and financial guidance or just a listening ear.
Talking to people ‘face to face’ can be very helpful so do check to see if you have any Local Support in your area, do also check for a local Maggie's Centre as these folks are amazing.
Do get back to me if you need further help navigating the community.
