Stable scans

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Hi All,

I was diagnosed with stage 4 incurable Anal Cancer with liver and lymph node involvement Poorly differentiated squamous cell carcinoma in Feb 25.

i had a colostomy in March 25 followed by 6 rounds of Carboplatin and pacliataxol 3weeks on 1 week off which did shrink the tumours I then had 28 sessions off combined chemo and radiotherapy which I finished in Dec 25.

i had scans in March 26 and saw the oncologist a week ago for results, he doesn’t really say a lot but said that I am stable and that more scans in 3 months but no more treatment at the moment ? Im a little worried he did say that if anything changes let him know and he will get the scams early!

my question is what do I look out for ? The symptoms last time was bleeding etc which i obviously will not have now as i have a stoma ? Really scared that things will progress and i wont know the signs ! It also doesn’t sit well with me that i am no longer having any form of treatment when i have an aggressive cancer that has a very high reacurrance rate ? My consultant did originally mention surgery but now is just putting me on surveillance?

sorry for the long post but not sure who else to ask x

AllyL 3 hours ago

Hi Brandysnap15

That's really good news that things are stable, but totally understand your need for more clarity around your treatment.

I'm thinking could Macmillan nurses help with more information?

If you wanted to explore treatment options you could ask for a second opinion?

Hope you are able to get some reassurances soon.

Ally xx

Irene75359 2 hours ago

Hello Brandysnap15

In your shoes I would look for a a bit more clarification; stable is good, however, it is unclear if he means that the liver spot/s have disappeared, the tumour of origin has disappeared - he has left you hanging on a knife edge, albeit unwittingly. I certainly don't think you would be left without treatment if there was definite activity but I am not qualified in any way to tell you that.

In the very early days after treatment, often we (ok I am talking about myself here) was so frozen in fear that I didn't investigate further. But I have become slightly braver as time has passed, with some oncologists you have to self-advocate and if your consultant is quiet you need to push - what about the surgery, if not why not, and if I am not being treated what do I look out for?

Please don't ever apologise for any sort of post on here; yours in a really valid post and I hope you investigate further.

Big hug

Irene xx

Brandysnap15 2 hours ago in reply to Irene75359

Thank you, I think I am gonna email my consultant and ask the questions, I still have liver meta but they have been stable since June 25 and the liver team are happy that they do not need to do anything at the moment but not sure about the primary just told that the original haziness that they saw on the scans they couldn’t really see anymore ?

Irene75359 1 hour ago in reply to Brandysnap15

Well, that original explanation is not clear to me either! The haziness could be inflammation but I really am guessing. Very best of luck, please let us know how you get on. xx

Clarhedge 44 minutes ago

It is good news you are stable and you should be able to relax a little. Not getting enough information will have you on edge. Do you have a specialist nurse you can ring? Or is it possible to contact your oncologists secretary? My oncologist told me to phone her secretary if I had questions and she would get back to me. Some Drs are better at explaining than others.
Hope you get some clarity on it all soon x

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