Hi all,

My mother has gone into the hospital for many things - High Potassium, gall bladder infection, anemia...etc. They did a colonoscopy today and found a lesion (what is that??) and we find the results out tomorrow.

Can CEA levels be brought up by something else or is this the definative sign she may have colon cancer?

Thank you so much. Yes we did get the results but only today. My mother has cancer which the leasion is in the large intestine. It has also spread to her liver and lung. They are scheduled to do surgery to remove the lesion Monday so that she won't have any blockage and also help with the anemia she has. She then is going to have an oncologist talk to her tomorrow to deal with the rest.

If the cancer has spread, does that mean that chemotherapy won't work anymore??

I am sorry for everything your family is going through. There are a lot of people, my husband included, who has stage iv colon cancer. In my husbands case, his spread to his liver. There is every reason to be hopeful that the chemo can control this. I post on another board also and I have come across several that have had mets to the liver and lungs and they are receiving treatment for it. Write down questions you want to ask the oncologist and I feel like he will be more than happy to discuss them with you. Please let us know how things are going.

Thank you all for your support!!! I love this board for all the help and info very caring people like yourselves give each other!! My mother had her surgery. They did a bypass around the tumor in her large intestine. They however found lots of nodes everywhere! He said the prognosis is not good but if I'd like to talk to an oncologist about it - he would be more than happy to do that. Although I have to talk to my insurance for one of course :confused:

She is recovering this evening - How long can a person live without the chemo treatments? She is 78 and I'm not sure there is much hope for her...giving her chemo may just cause her more pain!

Hi,

I don't contribute often here, but I know I can be helpful sometimes.

My mom also has this type of cancer. It too had spread to the liver and lungs before they found it. She had been having generalized abdominal pain for several months before being diagnosed right after Thanksgiving last year. They did not do any surgery, because she did not experience any blockage problems. Her chemo started in late December, and she just finished 12 rounds this past week. They did have to delay the chemo 3 times during her treatment, but she recieved a very encouraging report after her last CAT scan. Although we know there will be no cure for her, we are hopeful that things can be managed indefinitely. Her CEA has come down 99% according to her oncologist. Also, all the tumors have shrunk 80-90%.

Although the treatments were difficult, (especially the neuropathy), she has been very strong and an inspiration to all her family. She continued most of her regular activities, which include gardening, and spending time with family.

The doctor last week told her that she "responded tremendously" to the 5FU, Oxaliplatin, leucovorin combination. All her blood numbers have improved to almost normal range now. He ordered her pick-line removed and said to come back in two months. Now we pray that the cancer stays at bay.

I expected her to feel better this week, but she started having an itching problem in the last few days. I was concerned that this is related to her liver problems, but the doc doesn't think so. Tonight she has a fever of 99.9. She is taking Benadryl tonight, and if things don't improve, we will contact her primary doc tomorrow. Other than the itching, she is doing ok, and the doc expects her to feel better and better as the chemo wears off.

All in all, I would never have imagined that she could have tolerated the full 12 rounds of chemo, but she did. She is 72 years old. I think there is a lot of hope for your mom too.