Gallbladder cancer stage 4 diagnosis

Hi Leena and a very warm welcome to the online community which I hope you'll find is both an informative and supportive place to be.

I’m Anne, one of the Community Champions here on the Online Community and, although I'm not a member of this group, I noticed that your post hadn't had any replies yet. Responding to you will 'bump' it back to the top of the discussion list again.

I've had chemo to treat breast cancer and found that the thought of it was far worse than the reality. I know that all the side effects sound scary but you may only have a few, or even none at all. I prepared for treatment by eating as well as I could and maintaining light exercise.

While you're waiting for replies, it would be great if you could put something about your diagnosis and proposed treatment into your profile as it really helps others when replying to you and also when looking for someone on a similar pathway. It also means that you don't have to keep repeating yourself. To do this click on your username and then select 'Profile'. You can amend it at any time and if you're not sure what to write you can take a look at mine by clicking on my username.

Hi Leena 

I don’t have gallbladder cancer but I do have stage 4 cancer and have experienced chemo and immunotherapy. I didn’t want your post to go unanswered so I hope you don’t mind me sharing experience of being a stage 4 patient. Cancer drugs vary in their side effects. It might be helpful to put a bit of information in your biography about the drugs you will be receiving, then people who have experienced them can add further comments.

When you are stage 4, they generally want to keep you on a treatment (other than some immunotherapy drugs which are time limited) until it either stops working or you can’t tolerate it anymore. So doses may be lower than when treatments are used for earlier stage cancers, or there might be more fallow weeks in the schedule. The aim is to keep the cancer under control whilst not attacking it so hard it either encourages it to mutate, or makes you ill. Most cancer drugs will have some impact on blood cells and on your gut. You may feel tired, have lower immunity, and possibly problems like diarrhoea. The oncology team will help you manage the common side effects for your drug. It’s really important to stay hydrated before, during and after treatment. I found it helpful to keep a symptom log which meant I could see patterns. If something seems wrong, it’s really important to report it. 

I hope it goes well for you. 

Thank you so much for your reply I will text you again xx

i felt so alone thank you it helps

Thank you so much for your reply I will text you again.

i am going through roller coaster of emotions atm.

god bless