My husband first became ill last January with what initially seemed to be reflux. After undergoing tests, doctors discovered a tumour in the pylorus of his stomach. Following several months of further investigations, scans, and four rounds of FLOT chemotherapy, he underwent a subtotal gastrectomy in November last year.
Unfortunately, the surgery led to complications and he remained in hospital for almost a month. After recovering, he began a planned course of four additional FLOT treatments, but he reacted badly to the second round and the treatment had to be stopped.
When the pathology results came back, there were concerns that the cancer may have spread to the remaining part of his stomach. A staging laparoscopy was therefore scheduled with the possibility of removing the rest of the stomach. Sadly, the procedure revealed that the cancer had spread to the lining of the abdomen. We saw the consultant yesterday, who confirmed that this is peritoneal disease, and the prognosis is very bleak.
We discussed possible options, and my husband is due to start irinotecan chemotherapy in two weeks. HIPEC was also mentioned, possibly at the centre in Basingstoke, although to be honest the appointment was a bit of a blur. The consultant seemed quite disheartened and repeatedly mentioned funding limitations, which made the conversation even more difficult.
We left the appointment feeling extremely distressed and quite lost. If anyone has advice, information, or experiences with similar treatments that they would be willing to share, it would mean a great deal to us.
Hi Carrie80
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.
While you're waiting for replies, it would be great if you could put something about your husband's diagnosis and 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.
Sending ((hugs))
"Never regret a day in your life, good days give you happiness, bad days give you experience"
