Hello! My father just had a lobectomy last week, successful as far as we can tell. He came home from the hospital yesterday, and despite being warned of the terrific pain that was to come, he seems to think that his pain is much worse than it should be.
I would welcome hearing from anyone who has had this done. I'm interested in experiences with recover and pain, both good and bad. I think it will help my father to see that others got over the worst of the pain within x number of days/weeks or that others experienced the same kind of pain within x number of days/weeks after the surgery, etc.
Any experiences that can be shared would be much appreciated!
My mom did not experience (or let us know about ) much pain after her lobectomy. She had about a 3" scar at the side of her back (upper left lobectomy). Sorry I can't attest to the pain issue.
But, depending on how long between diagnosis and surgery, make sure he is monitored for cancer that may have spread, esp. to the brain. See my posting under
delady's topic: not sure what to do...please help
My mom's c ancer spread to the brain so keep an eye out for it!
Jo
Last edited by jogordon; 08-06-2004 at 02:54 PM.
Reason: spelling
Hi Smokey,
My Mom did and still does have quite a bit of pain...she had the bottom 2 lobes of her right lung removed on 4-15 of this year; as of now it is stage 1 Adenocarcinoma...Unfortunately, she got an infection in the hospital after the surgery and it is now an abcessin the 1 lobe they left on the right side, the left side,thankfully is clear so far...so, lots of problems...We have finally gone to see an Oncologist, as her surgeon and lung Dr. said they got all of the tumor with the lobes removal, and are not sure if they can "clear up" the abcess, well that is not good enough for me! I mean this is my Mom... And, there is a tumor on her left adrenal gland above her kidney that "glowed" on the PET Scan...so, I got her in with an Oncologist. He also is suspicious of the cancer maybe not being "all gone" so we are re-staging (his words) with a new PET Scan and a new CAT Scan this coming Tues. He also has given her a patch for pain control and a cream that contains amitryptyline and baclofen, which is a special compound to apply topically to her feet and the area on her back which hurts the worst (burning, tingling, "on fire" feeling, like neuropathic pain). We had never heard of this cream, but she has been applying it twice a day for 5 days, and she says her pain is 75% better . I don't know if any of this helps, but good luck to you. I am just so glad that I "explored" about lung cancer on the net, otherwise I am not sure we would have known to get another opinion...like Jo said, most of the stories I have read about lung cancer say to be so careful as it can spread so easily...
Take Care,
KF
Hello! My father just had a lobectomy last week, successful as far as we can tell. He came home from the hospital yesterday, and despite being warned of the terrific pain that was to come, he seems to think that his pain is much worse than it should be.
I would welcome hearing from anyone who has had this done. I'm interested in experiences with recover and pain, both good and bad. I think it will help my father to see that others got over the worst of the pain within x number of days/weeks or that others experienced the same kind of pain within x number of days/weeks after the surgery, etc.
Any experiences that can be shared would be much appreciated!
I'm a 43 year old female that had a lobectomy in December of 2002. I never had so much pain in my life until I had this surgery. The surgery was done due to lung cancer and the recovery time lasted aproximatley 2 months. My husband took off work to care for me as I was unable to care for myself. My left upper lobe was removed and I still have extreme difficulty in breathing and walking any distance. My cancer is cuurently in remission, even though it was found during surgery in seven out of ten lymph nodes in the center of my chest. I pray every day it never comes back. I feel for your father as I know what he is going through. the pain does get better, but it takes alot of time. Take care. A survivor.
After a Lobectomy 
I mean this is my Mom... And, there is a tumor on her left adrenal gland above her kidney that "glowed" on the PET Scan...so, I got her in with an Oncologist. He also is suspicious of the cancer maybe not being "all gone" so we are re-staging (his words) with a new PET Scan and a new CAT Scan this coming Tues. He also has given her a patch for pain control and a cream that contains amitryptyline and baclofen, which is a special compound to apply topically to her feet and the area on her back which hurts the worst (burning, tingling, "on fire" feeling, like neuropathic pain). We had never heard of this cream, but she has been applying it twice a day for 5 days, and she says her pain is 75% better 
