PLEASE HELP

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Hi wonderful people on this board:

Please I need your feedback. My mom has metastatic cancer originating from the breast. Last week she had her restaging tests and yesterday the doctor told her there were 4 -5 tumors found in her liver  found and she needs to undergo an oral chemo.

I know that noone can really tell her lifespan but I have  a very young brother and I guess I want to prepare for what is about to happen. I am praying she can live a long life but am I too unrealistic?

Thanks for listening

Comments

  • Faith316
    Faith316 Member Posts: 2,431
    edited January 2010

    There was a lady who posted earlier today saying she had lived with stage 4 (meaning metastatic) breast cancer for 17 years and is still doing well!  Every one is different but there is no reason your mom can't live for a long time with treatment.  God is the only one who knows the plan for each of us.  Good luck to your mom.

  • AnneN
    AnneN Member Posts: 241
    edited January 2010

    My oncologist told me when I was diagnosed with metastases that the statistics for stage IV survival aren't really meaningful right now. The average survival is supposed to be 2-3 years, but 20% live longer than 5 years and some have even lived as long as 30. My oncologist says that because so many more therapies are available now than were available 5 years ago, we really can't say yet how many additional years the new therapies will give us. Plus, scanning technology has gotten a lot better, so some of us who are diagnosed stage IV now might have been diagnosed stage III five years ago - the metastases might not have been found with the old technology. So the stage IV survival statistics from five years ago included more people whose metastases were widespread. 

    A lot depends on the type of cancer she has - whether it's hormone-positive or not, how fast-growing it is, and how well it responds to the therapy she's on. There are also some lifestyle things she can do that will help her treatment work better - diet, exercise, sleep, etc. Two good books on that subject are Anticancer: A New Way of Life by David Servan-Schreiber, and Life Over Cancer by Keith Block.

    You mentioned that you have a very young brother. Stage IV breast cancer patients and their dependents under 18 are eligible for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits. Receiving these benefits would help with any financial concerns your family might have, which would reduce your mom's stress, which would help her treatment work better. You can find out more about this under the "Disability" link on the social security website, ssa.gov.

    My heart goes out to you and your family. I hope this info helps. 

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