chest wall cancer - open sores- help!

RingUSA

chest wall cancer - open sores- help!

RingUSA

I just found this site today... my 78 yr. old mom has breast cancer - she was first diagnosed 15 years ago. She had a mastectomy at that time w/chemo and radiation. It has come back on the surface every few years since - in scars and lumps just under the skin. Each time she had surgery and or more chemo and radiation.  5 yrs ago she had a double flap surgery because they needed to remove so much tissue on her chest to get rid of the cancer and the double flap was the only way to cover the chest wall.  She went to Stanford for many years but in Feb.09 they told her they can't help her  any more - the chemo and radiation are no longer working for her. It is not in any organs but her chest wall has open sores that seem to be spreading.I am wondering if anyone has anything similar or any advise to offer in taking care of her chest wall. I've searched and searched for treatment options but have not really found much. She looks great, feels good, has energy but her chest wall looks terrible. 

RingUSA

Thanks for your help, I called The Valley Cancer Institute - they are going to have a Dr. call me tonight. I'm wondering if anyone out there has been to this institute and actually been cured? They said they can get rid of the cancer on my mom's chest! Wow, this is great - I feel like crying - watching her suffer is killing me.

If anyone has been to The Valley Cancer Institute in Los Angeles, please please let me know!

Thanks! Gail 

RingUSA

Hi Gg08,

Thanks for your help..... I am feeling so desperate to get help for my mom.  I really don't know all the terms to describe her cancer and all that she has been through but this situation she has right now is just so hard to deal with.  She has been through so many surgeries, double flap w/skin grafting- to cover her up after extensive surgery to remove cancer on her chest wall, then more chemo and radiation than I can keep track of. It's gone on for 15+ years..

The sores are now draining, have a strong odor and seem to be spreading fast.  Do you know if there is anything I can do for the odor, drainage? We went to a wound specialist who had us putting a clear gel on the sores. It seems like they are so much worse now - they used to be dry and odorless. We stopped using the gel..... 

The thread on Hyperthermia was very interesting. I am trying to connect with anyone who is using it and feels that it is working.  Since we live in CA, i think VCI may be our best option-  but I am a little uneasy about it since I see some hesitation here... I sent a PM to downtownfan after reading the above so hope to hear from her soon.

Thank you so much for any help you can give me.

Sincerely, Gail 

  

downtownfan

Hey Gail- I just sent you a PM.

If your mom doesn't have a wound care nurse then I would request one immediately. Making sure those sores don't get infected is paramount to your mother's fight.