Here I’m going to write about the carcinoid cancer good news and bad news that I’ve got when my husband diagnosed with such a cancer.
A devastating blow was struck when my husband received the news that he had carcinoid cancer. The specialist told him that more tests would have to be done before they could tell him the actual results.
Knowing how he must feel at this terrible news I should have been strong and supportive but instead all I could think of was that he might be leaving me in a matter of months and I couldn’t take it.
When my husband was told he had cancer I was filled with dread and imagined him leaving me within weeks or just a few months, I cried myself to sleep most nights and found it hard to cope with.
His next appointment at the hospital was to find out how far the cancer had gone and how long we could expect to be together.
The consultant didn’t look as grim as I suspected he would be and his first words had us both thinking.
He said I have some good news and some bad news for you, first of all the bad news, you do have cancer this of course we already knew so what could the good news be!
Then he explained that the good news was that it was a very rare type of cancer and a slow growing one.
My relief was immense just to know he would be with me for much longer than a matter of months.
The Symptoms of Carcinoid Cancer in My Husband
Johns symptoms began at least eight or nine years before they found out what was causing them.
The very first symptoms were hot flushes which occurred now and again, these effected his face and upper chest, as time went on they got worse but only occurred after eating a meal.
Even a cup of coffee affects him but we have managed to solve that problem by changing to decaffeinated coffee, evidently the caffeine must have been bad for him.
Diarrhea as a Symptom For Carcinoid cancer
Other problems were the onset of diarrhea, the doctor decided he had irritable bowel syndrome and he had tablets to control it.
As time went on he began to get extreme pain in intervals of about every 3 months.
These would last for about a week during which he had terrible diarrhea and sickness, it was thought that it was gastro enteritis.
Finally the doctor sent him to see a consultant but it was months later after a full scan that they diagnosed the cancer.
Carcinoid Cancer Bad News
My nights were spent in tears, during the day I tried my best but the dreaded feeling was with me the whole time. Finally after two weeks he received a letter asking him to visit the specialist again, we knew this was it and I can’t describe the feeling as we sat waiting to go in and see him.
His first words were rather strange; he said I have some good news and some bad news for you. The bad news is that you do have cancer but the good news is that you have a very rare cancer.
He then proceeded to explain that the cancer was a slow growing cancer called Carcinoid and that although he must have had it for at least ten years it was still quite small and he could still have some years to live. The joy I felt was immense I could have hugged the doctor.
This was around two years ago and although his life was restored which we are thankful for he still has some really bad days from the effects of the cancer.
I will continue tomorrow and I will explain to you the first noticeable signs when I began to worry and urged him to explain everything to his doctor, This may help some of you to seek your doctors advice if you recognize any of the signs in yourself.
Johns problems began about ten years ago not serious ones more worrying. He started getting hot flushes after eating about once or twice a week, they didn’t last long but we couldn’t understand why as it is usually women who suffer from them.
He also started getting diarrhea more often than is normal but we put that down to something he had eaten or perhaps a bad pint in the pub on his weekly nights out.
This continued on slowly getting worse but he would not say anything to the doctor. About four years ago he started having really bad bouts of what he insisted was gastro enteritis. This included terrible sickness and severe pain and it lasted for about a week, during that time he refused to eat and lost a lot of weight.
Finally I managed to get him to see sense and talk to the doctor but we had no joy, he said it was nothing to worry about and quite normal for men to get the hot flushes but he sent him for an endoscope to make sure.
This came back as normal so we stopped worrying.
Within a few months he was taken seriously ill and rushed into hospital, it turned out to be peritonitis and when he recovered we assumed that had been the cause of all his problems.
In the following weeks the flushes and the bad bouts of pain and sickness began again, taking place about every three months or so.
Again a visit to the doctor and John was sent for another endoscope and other tests including x-rays, these came up as clear but he was given tablets and pain killers.
In the following months John lost a lot of weight which had me convinced there was something seriously wrong, my best friend and my brother in law died of cancer and the weight just dropped off them and John was going the same way.
The hot flushes were getting worse and he was becoming frightened to eat they made him feel so ill. Finally they decided to give him scan and this is when the cancer came to light, they found cancer in the liver and the small bowel.
About nine months ago the pains and sickness became severe again this time he was taken into hospital and they found that the cancer had almost blocked the tube leading from the bowel.
The surgeon came to see him and told him that he would need an operation but it was dangerous not just because of the cancer but also because John has bronchitis and has difficulty with his breathing at times.
He told him that he could die on the table and it was up to him whether he should risk it or not. John never gave it a second thought he said he couldn’t go on much longer with the pain and if there was any chance at all he would take it.
They scheduled the operation for the following day.
He was taken to the theater at 10.30 am and the sister said it would be a long job and not to expect him back before 6 pm as he would be in recovery until that time.
6 pm came and went and as it came up to 8 pm I was almost in bits.
All they would tell me was that there were complications and they keeping him there to keep a close eye on him.
As 10 pm approached the sister came to tell me that John was in intensive care he hadn’t come round from the operation and was on life support.
They took me and my daughter down to see him, they explained that he would look bad and also about the tubes that were attached to him.
It was one of the worst times of my life seeing him lying there it was almost as if he had already left me.
It was around 12 pm the following day before he finally woke up, my relief was immense although he still didn’t recognize us.
That night I went home assured by the sister that he would recover. I was back at the hospital at 8 pm the following morning and to my great joy he was much better. That night they removed the life support for short periods of time at first until they were sure that he was breathing properly on his own.
The following afternoon he was moved to a ward and although he was still on oxygen and with numerous tubes still attached I knew he was on the road to recovery.
The surgeon revealed that they had cut out the blockage which was due to the cancer; they had cut both sides and rejoined it. It was an entirely successful operation. John was home seven days later and much better.
There had been talk of chemotherapy but the specialist kept putting it off, as it was rare type of cancer he was interested in seeing how it progressed. This worried me a lot but John was relieved at not having to go through it.
The hospital visits became very regular every two weeks, sometimes more often to see various doctors. Different blood tests and other more uncomfortable tests continued with no complaints from John he just took it in his stride.
Good News We’ve Got For Carcinoid Cancer
After nine months they arranged for him to have a nuclear scan to see how the cancer was progressing, on the day arranged John was too ill to attend due to a chest infection so the scan was rearranged for a later date which was one month later.
The results of this scan where quite surprising, the cancer had not grown at all which was great news.
In the meantime the hot flushes had returned and they were making John feel so ill whenever he ate anything that he started missing days where he wouldn’t eat which caused him to start losing weight again.
He was then referred to another doctor who decided that they would try a monthly injection. His GP had to approve as it was an extremely expensive one that needed approval as to the cost.
It was approved and has brought great relief to John. He does experience them now and again but not as bad.
He has just had another CT scan this is over twelve months since the last one and to every ones amazement and my joy the cancer has shrunk slightly.
