Good morning. I am new to this forum, I don't know why I didn't join before but now I feel I want to. My husband had oesophageal cancer in 2021 and had the Ivor Lewis operation with chemo before and after. All looked good and although he lost weight and generally weaker he has been stable. Fast forward to May this year and he started to lose weight and feel tired. He has now been told (after a CT scan) that he has secondary cancer in his liver. He is being offered chemo again to control the growth but that is all they can do.
To say we are devastated doesn't do it justice to describe in one word. Our daughter is getting married in two weeks and although never a good time it is particularly bad.
I am sure he is not alone in this happening and I want to be sure he is being offered the best treatment possible and in the best hospital possible. I did ask the oncologist at our appointment this week whether there are treatments which are not offered on the NHS which could be better or if he would be better to be treated at a hospital classed as a centre of excellence. The oncologist just kept quoting NICE guidelines etc etc which wasn't too helpful.
So my question is does anyone have any help or advice in this regard please?
Many thanks
Hello Flora,
Welcome to the forum and thank you for sharing some of your story, I understand that you both must be absolutely devastated, and of course you will want to know that everything that can be done, will be done.
I imagine that the hospital will need to determine various factors before deciding correct treatment, and currently there are several different treatments for OC with mets, that I hope they find the one that is best for your husband, which manages the Liver mets and keeps it under control.
My husband has not had the surgery, but he was diagnosed in May 2020, given a very poor prognosis as he had lung and liver mets, he has amazed his oncologists, by reacting really well to the treatments he has been given, and keeping the met in his liver under control whilst almost eradicating the mets in his lungs. So there is hope still, and although it may mean constant, regular treatment for your husband for a while, they may be able to do wonders to help with this new discovery.
My daughter is also marrying this year, something that at one point I was not sure my husband would see, I do hope, that after this initial period of absolute shock, you both find that there is a lot more to "palliative" treatment than is first explained.
Wishing you all the best..
