Great Response

[Be-Positive]

My mum is 58 and was diagnosed with stage 3/4 ovarian cancer, she has had a very bumpy ride of 3 lots of chemo, stents put into her kidneys and a fair few trips to the hospital where she couldn't eat/drink and was in a very bad way. She had a scan prior to her op which is tomorrow and they are so pleased with the response she has had. They are now calling her cancer stage 3 again. Her tumour has shrunk considerably and she is bad to eating normally again trying to gain some weight. Her weight went down to 7st 10 but she must be nearly up for 8.7- 9 stone again now.

Her operation is tomorrow and she is very scared but once it's over she is going to be pretty much at the end of her treatment. I know she has been saying that they put a catheter in before the operation and sometimes the one up the other side to? Mum was hoping they would just do it all when she is asleep in the theatre room.

We are all so so pleased how well she has responded when she was in the state she was, I never thought she would be at this point now just 3/4 months later. The treatment is so amazing they can do these days and the experts do seem to really know what they are doing

[baxbird]

good luck to your mum for the operation and to put her mind at rest, when I had the operation they put the catheter in whilst I was asleep.

I hope your mum recovers well now that things are getting a little more under control, does she have more chemo after the op, that seems to be the more widely used regime at the moment ( well I, and many others did 3 chemo, surgery and 3 chemo).

Wishing you all the best as you stay strong for your mum

Dawn

[Be-Positive in reply to baxbird]

Hello,

Yes she has 3 more chemo after the op, they have said the chemo starts 3/4 weeks after the surgery and to be prepared as it really knocks you for 6 as your body is trying to recover from the surgery and then trying to recover from chemo. They are then also adding in avastin for 18 cycles in her 5th chemo cycles. Then she will remain on just avastin for a year we are booking a long weekend to Spain in September so she has that to look forward to after all of this!

Just be so nice for her to get her life back again xx

[baxbird in reply to Be-Positive]

Hi, all I can say is that I didn't find the chemo post op any harder than pre op, but we all react so differently that it's very hard for anyone to be specific with what is going to happen. I too had the Avastin and although it's a bind going back each 3 weeks I felt more comfortable with the idea that someone was keeping an eye on me!

You will find that her 'normal' will be different to pre diagnosis, same as any big change in your life ( like having children, moving house) but it all settles down in its own way and you adjust.

Dawn

[Travy in reply to Be-Positive]

Hope your Mum's op has gone really well. I had mine six weeks ago and currently feel great - almost back to normal with fitness levels and very little discomfort. I had my first chemo yesterday following the op. This was actually six weeks after the operation so my wound had completely healed. I would be surprised if your mum restarts her chemo after only 3/4 weeks as her bloods may not have fully recovered. They may give her a bit longer to get fully fit.

I was really frightened about the op but it all went really smoothly and the aftercare was wonderful.

Good luck to her and to you.

[Be-Positive in reply to Travy]

Hi Travy,

Thank you, mums Op went well. They said the chemo had worked really well and they removed everything except a small part of disease by her pancreas, however they said the chemo would get this and they are not worried. It had spread to her bowel or anything either, her lymph nodes were the most infected thing apparently but they have remove all of them ones.

Mum was fine from Thursday-Sunday, she ate all day Sunday then Monday until now she has been being sick none stop, they said she might be able to come home tomorrow but she was in bad shape yesterday when I saw her. The pain of being sick with her scar and she was so fed up and upset bless her. They put a tube down her nose and throat on Monday to get all the bile etc out her stomach.

I am going back to see her again after work and hope she might be allowed home tomorrow as she is so uncomfortable in the hospital beds.

It is so hard to watch, I just keep saying she is over the biggest hurdle now and she will only start feeling better day by day now.

It is so good you feel so well after your op just 6 weeks on. We are planning a weekend to spain middle of September which I hope she will be fit and well for and give her something to look forward to.

Thanks for your reply. x

[Hidden]

Hello there,

Great news that your mum has reacted well to the chemo. I'm guessing that the operation is the usual TAH/BSO and debulking? It is usual to wake up after the op with a catheter and often also a drain in the abdomen, which is to help drain away the excess fluid from the operation site. Sometimes there are additional appliances or tubes such as a central line, oxygen and other things. Your surgeon or CNS can tell you which set of items your mum is likely to wake up with (I wouldn't want to scare you with the full list when it is unlikely your mum would have them all, because it really depends on the specific circs!). All of them are done after the anaesthetist has done their job. The one they do pre-op while you are awake is to put a cannula in, usually on the back of the hand, to administer the anaesthetic. If your mum is having an epidural then they do the preparation for that beforehand too. Everything else is done while you are off with the fairies.

I personally found it useful to know in advance what equipment I was likely to have on waking up, but not everyone needs or wants to know.

In any event, all those bits and bobs are progressively removed in the days after the op, which always feels such a relief, and helps with getting up and moving around which is the most important thing for recovery. If your mum is in any pain in the days post-op, the right thing to do is to tell the nurses right away and not be stoic. This is because if you are pain-free you are going to be better able to move around more, and also to breathe more deeply, which both aid recovery and reduce likelihood of chest infection.

All the very best to your mum and to you. I hope the operation goes really well. Lucky her to have you looking out for her.

Best,

Judith

x

[Be-Positive in reply to Hidden]

Yes mum is having full hysterectomy, appendix out and something to do with her stomach? They said it's all pretty standard for women when they have OC. Mum was so nervous before she went in it was horrible to watch but hopefully she is asleep now and will be awake and we will be past such a big hurdle - the next few days seem like they are going to be pretty hard going for her. I just hate seeing her feel frightened and scared worst thing ever! Just have to stay positive for her the whole time. I will post once she has recovered from the operation as let you all know how it went. x

[thesilent1]

Hi, I'm sure your mum's surgery will go well. My cathetar was put in whilst asleep, just in the front! You take the opportunity to have a rest and recharge your batteries whilst mum is in hospital being cared for. Best wishes to your mum. Ann xo

[Be-Positive in reply to thesilent1]

Thanks Ann!

Mum has literally just been taken into surgery, it was an emotional time, she was so scared bless her. We just tried to keep it all light hearted and making jokes so it didn't seem so scary. It's going to be a long few hours waiting for her to come out. Me my sister and step dad are going to go to some shopping and have some lunch and wait for her to come out. Just can't wait for this t he over for her - thank you for your words this site has been amazing being able to post with questions etc. they confirmed the catheter would be done once asleep so she was releieved this morning thank god. Sounds like she is going to wake up in a bit of a mess but at least she will be over the biggest hurdle hopefully. Xxx

[Alex53]

First week after the op is hard but after that I felt soooo much better than I had for literally years.... My tip would be to stay ahead of the pain ie take the painkillers before the pain gets bad. xx

[Be-Positive in reply to Alex53]

Yes agreed the first week after the Op has been hard for her

It will be 7 days tomorrow after the Op and the past 2-3 days she has been in a right old state, being sick and uncomfortable. Hopefully the next few days she will start to feel better. xx