Check Ups Beyond 5 Years

Hi Lesley, 

At my last check I was discharged back to my GP.   They didn’t mention the possibility of further checks and to be honest I am not sure that I would be that interested.  Firstly, I feel that at my age there are probably other health issues that are more likely to catch up with me.  More importantly, I gather that any future recurrence would most likely be remote not local and would manifest itself by symptoms ( breathlessness, pain etc) before it could be diagnosed by other means.  If worrying symptoms were presenting  I wouldn't wait for the annual check anyway but get it checked out.   On the other hand there might be an advantage in remaining”on the books” at your hospital rather than having to wait fior a GP referral. 
So on balance I am trying to put it behind me, though as you can see from my posting, I am not altogether succeeding! 

Hi Poppysmum27, as you know from my recent post, I have been diagnosed with a recurrence of my uterine cancer (stage 2 grade 2)  from 8 years ago.  At the time I had a full hysterectomy with 25 sessions of radiotherapy and 1 of brachytherapy and was followed up for 5 years.  Unfortunately (and it is very unusual for recurrence after 8 years) it has now metastasised to my lungs, right pleura and spine and is incurable.  Treatment will be palliative but hopefully it can be held back for a reasonable length of time.  My reason for this post is to encourage taking up the offer of follow up beyond 5 years (which I did not get) and to ask for a CT of the thorax/abdomen/pelvis.  If your hospital does not offer this, it costs around £350 or so privately and could be money well spent.  Yes, other things may get you but if you get a recurrence and you can catch it early, it could be treatable.

1. hi chrissie im so sorry to hear about your recurrence. i was grade 2 stage 3 2016 and was having 6 monthly ct checkup scans. they were ordered for pelvis alone but fortunately at 3 years the radiographer ordered abdomen as well just to check kidneys etc and a recurrence was found in a paraortic lymph node. this was removed last summer and if she hadnt requested it i would never have known. im back to having 6 monthly scans but whole torso now thank goodness which includes lungs.

Hi papermoon, thanks for your reply.  It just goes to show that whole torso scans are so useful for picking up any early recurrence.  I’m glad your problem was picked up and dealt with promptly.

I agree with you both. They should put you through the scanner every year or eighteen months to check as recurrence often happens in a different place entirely. I'm am glad they caught yours early papermoon and were able to remove it ..what a thoughtful radiographer. Chrissie, I'm so sorry to hear your story. I'm in the same boat although it's chosen different homes to set up shop in my case. I'm the same age as you and yes, I wept buckets at the pain of leaving my family behind. Have you asked if there is a trial you could participate in that may help? We can go through this wretched journey together . God bless. Love and hugs. Lamb.xx

Hi little lamb.  I have read your story and I am so sorry the recurrence wasn’t found earlier.   Hopefully the clinical trial will be suitable for you and will give you a good amount of time which is what I am hoping for as well.

My oncologist decided that we should try 6 cycles of Carboplatin first, the CT after 3 cycles showed improvement so I hope the results of the second CT will continue the improvement.  I am due to speak with my oncologist on 10 Dec so will be asking whether there are any possible trials and what further treatment might be available.