My husband's oncologist called today and the Ct. scan they did on the 14th showed an infection of some sort in John's upper left lung. This is also the lung that has nsclc.

In 1995 he had Necrotizing Pseudomonas Pneumonia (not sure of spelling). He also developed an abscess with a fungus ball in it The abscess healed properly and as far as we knew the fungus ball was gone. This episode destroyed 1/3 of his right lung. When telling the doctor about the fungus ball and abscess she stated that perhaps this was a fungus ball but that they need to find out by doing a bronchocopy so I guess that is where we headed at this time.

We don't know how a fungus is treated and would appreciate any information any of you may have or perhaps where I can find information.

Thanks, linda/gnik

I'm very sorry to hear your news. I am curious when and how your husband was diagnosed with the NSLC. Is this the result of a recent test? And was it determined by CT Scan, PET scan or biopsy?

The reason I ask is because I wonder if there is some confusion between the NSCL and the nodules(s) they indicate may be a fungal ball.

To answer your question, I was recently diagnosed with Coccidioidomycosis (aka Valley Fever) which comes from a fungal spore prevalent in the Southwest U.S. (I merely visited there) My problem showed up on a lung x-ray and subsequent CT scan as two nodules the doctors at first thought were malignancies. Apparently though, the coccidioidomycosis can produce lung nodules that mimic lung cancer nodules. I am scheduled to see an Infectious Disease specialist at the University of Michigan on May 9, but I have found from my own research that the fungus is generally treated with an anti fungal medication, which may or may not reduce or eliminate the nodules. Sometimes, they go away on their own or calcify. Sometimes they do surgery to remove the fungal ball.

There is also a fungus common in the Midwest that causes an infection called Histoplasmosis. This can also produce lung infections/nodules, etc.

I hope you keep us posted on what happens.

God bless,

Tom

Thank you for your very informative reply regarding fungus.

We moved to Houston Texas in 1991 and John developed pneumonia in 1992. He was treated with massive doses of Cipro. The Cipro affected his kidney function and left him with his kidney's functioning at 50%.

Last October (2005) he complained of shortness of breath to our family doctor. The radiologist, after a chest x-ray, suggested that he could have pneumonia so he was put on ten days of Cipro. Another x-ray and the nodule/mass was still there. He was then sent to have a CT scan which showed possible lung cancer. He then had a bronchoscopy and was diagnosed with Stage 111B nsclc. The mass was 5cm in size.

He started radiation in Feb. 2006 for seven weeks. They have done two chemotherapies, one in Feb. and one in March, and he is scheduled for another on April 27. They are being very conservative in his treatment because of his loss of breathing capacity and his kidney's functioning at 50%. He also has emphysema and had lost 47% of his breathing capacity before the radiation.

If you were to see him the only thing you would notice would be his weight. He has always been thin but he is very thin weighing 136.5 on a 6' frame. The most he ever weighed was 142. He eats real well and drinks Ensure but just doesn't gain weight. He isn't on oxygen and is mobile without any assistance. He does have a cough but it is not constant and he gets short of breath when performing certain chores. Will keep you posted on what happens next. Thanks again for info.

Thanks for providing more information. You didn't say they did a biopsy of the nodule, but I assume they did if they are treating him with radiation.

I'm a little surprised that the doctor thinks there may be a reoccurance of the fungus infection, but as long as they are doing a bronchosopy, they should find out for sure.

The medications I know about for fungal infections are very harse to the body and particularily on the liver. I'm not sure about the impact on the kidneys.

I hope you will keep us posted. Good luck and God bless you and your husband.

Tom

John is not on any treatment at this time for lung cancer. He isn't taking any medication other then the inhaler which was given to him when he was first diagnosed with NSCLC. He does take his regular medicines but they have nothing to do with the lung cancer. The only pain he has is in his shoulder blade when sleeping. He takes Tylenol and it goes away.

I am blown away in this his 9th month after diagnosis and his noticable symptom would be weight loss and shortness of breath upon excertion. He has gained two pounds of weight in the last month to month and a half. I get afraid that when something happens it will be like a freight train hitting us. The thing I am most afraid of is him being in pain. I have asked our doctors about pain management and they tell me it will be taken care of but then I read about others with so much pain.

We have had a lot of company and I haven't had much time to myself. I hope to be able to write more in the future.

God Bless us all.

Linda/gnik