julie99

I have posted before about my brother's lung cancer--had lobectomy in Dec.2006.
The doctor who operated on him really dropped the ball when he went back to him because of severe pain in his back. He did an x-ray or something-- didn't show anything. Then he sent him to a pain clinic. (I think he thought he was trying to get out of working.)
The pain clinic said he had broken ribs. (turns out cancer had eaten through the ribs. 3 or 4 months wasted before cancer was found. The tumor was sticking out of his back and yet the pain center said not to worry it was nothing. In the meantime he was getting anorexic.
Anyway, turns out it was a tumor- 3" near his spine.
Local hospital treated with linear radiation, which meant they went through his chest to get to the tumor's front side. Don't understand that. They burned his esophagus and his back.
He took 22 out of 30 treatments and said no more!
He was getting much worse. He was down to 112 lbs. Could not eat hardly anything.

Now they are sending hospice out and they say he is not going to get better!

I have found a different kind of raidiation therapy at a hospital one hour away, but don't know if he could make it. He can't even walk now.
This therapy targets the tumor better without hitting all the other parts of the body.

It is called Helical Tomotherapy and Image Guided RAdiation Therapy. It is in Knoxville, Tennessee.

It's only one of 5 centers in the US.
I am going to check on this as soon as possible.
I can't stand to sit back and watch him die without even a second opinion.