My dad has nscc spread to the liver, the second lot of chemo hasnt worked on the liver but has on the lung

[saints]

they have offered him tarceva but said as he is so well in himself to leave it for a few months to have a break from treatment and side effects, i dont know wether to be glad for him or not, feel like we are being fobbed off or are they saying they arent treating him now. i am worried thats in the two months before re scan it will grow and spread, my dad is 80 but still very active and looks years younger , any help will be great xx

[Hidden]

Hi,

I don't think it will hurt to have a break for a couple of months as NSCLC is slow growing anyway and the older you are in general the slower cancer may grow. Tarceva is a great treatment and doesn't have all of the nasty side effects of traditional chemo as its a biological therapy and is targeted at cancer cells only. It is usually given as a second line treatment or maintenance therapy (however it has now just been approved for first line also) Tarceva has worked on liver mets for some people either shrinking them or holding them at bay.

Questions I would ask.:

1/ Is your father EGFR positive? Tarceva is usually prescribed for someone who is, however it can work on EGFR negative patients.

2/ What is the plan of action for the liver mets?

Hope that helps

Lyn

[saints in reply to Hidden]

Thanks for your reply, dont really understand a lot about tarceva, his consultant said that it was something he can try, she gave us the info on that particular one, so not sure if he tested positive or negative. we were a bit shell shocked as we thought the chemo had worked as he was lots better, also dont like asking too much in case we dont get the answers we want. I know that sounds silly but dad seems happy at her decision and not too worried, if we start going in to detail it may give them both more to worry about, my mum is 82 and dad 80. Thanks again for your support and information and for giving us some positive news about tarceva xxx

[Hidden]

No problem, hope all go's well xxx