My mom has ovarian cancer. She just started her chemo, and only did one so far. The doctor suggests before each chemo they will check and test her situation for further chemo. But have a rough idea of 3-4 chemo begore surgury. Her Ca125 was 532 and the cancer was only spread in pelvic and abdomen so far.
Can anybody have the experience of 4 chemo before surgury ? If so please let me know a bit about your condition.
Also, I was wondering how many days after the last chemo, you go for surgury. And how many days after surgury they put you again on chemo and usually for how many sessions.
I think should these gaps affect on the remission and recurrance ??
Please share your experience and hope all have a long life.
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sara_mamani96
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I had surgery before I had any chemo. But to answer the later part of your questions I started chemo 10 days after my initial debulking surgery. When I had my second debulking after recurring it was a little longer. I’ve had friends that didn’t start chemo for more than a month after their surgery. Various doctors have different philosophies about the timing. I don’t know of any particular studies that support starting earlier over later is better or worse.
Have you seen the people here or out only goes with 2 chemo before their surgery. My mom insists to have the surgery before their new year. if they do 3rd chemo, probably the doctor would be on holiday and not sure they will fill the 6 week gaps after 3rd chemo with 4rd chemo or it is good to insist have surgery after 2nd chemo, if Cv125 goes down again.
I already asked her doctor’s plan. But still waiting for the response.
Also, wondering they did not do the surgery due to the ascites, since it was impossible ( what they told us). But how they went with golden standard in years ago with primary surgery even with patients with ascites.
The idea with giving neoadjuant chemotherapy (chemo before surgery) is to shrink the tumors and make it more likely to have an “optimal debulking” ie leave no visible cancer behind. I don’t know of any studies that suggest there is a specific number of chemos that are perfect to do prior to surgery. Some of it seems to depend on whether they can tell if the chemo is working...aka drop in CA125 numbers or CT scans showing shrinkage or disappear of the cancer.
I’m assuming that your mom is receiving carbo/taxol. The taxol often will help control the production of ascites. Has your mom had any relief from the ascites?
Yes, she use carbo/taxol. I also many other items apart from carboplatine and taxol. I think the main is carbo/taxol. She told me she is feeling better compared to 3 weeks ago. Her belly size also decreased.
Probably, 3 weeks after chemo they can do CT scan or CA125 to evalute how chemo affects?!
Most of the other things are drugs to control nausea and hyper reactions to the chemo. Good to hear she is feeling better and her belly has shrunk. That’s a good sign.
Again, I am struggling with over thinking and too many questions in my mind. I just called the SHARE to ask about the clinical trial if they have any information about if international patients can be covered in north America. I know I am too early for this question and what I heard from them as well. They need my mom gets to the end of treatment, first. but Can you please advise me if do you believe clinical trial can help to have a long remission, especially in your case. If so, I can figure out from now to find one in Canada where he international patients can be considered . However, I understand most of them recruit after 1st and 2nd recurrence.
There are indeed clinical trials for women in first line treatment. But from what I understand of your mom’s situation she is more likely to be eligible for a trial either when she gets to her first remission or if she recurs.
You can look for clinical trials on the SHARE clinical matching service located on SHARE’S website. Besides searching on your own there is an 800 number you can call for help. If you are attuned to dealing with databases you can search for trials on clinicaltrials.gov. While the focus is on US based trials there are also international trials listed there especially if they either receive funding from a US source or some of the sites participating in the trial are located in the US. In looking in these databases you narrow your search to reflect your mother’s situation.
Participation in clinical trials are a personal decision and there are no guarantees that they will work. Having said that clinical trials are how we got the advancement in drugs and treatment modalities that we have today and I firmly support participation in them. I was in one clinical trial. My mom was in several as she progressed in her journey. There is no real way to prove what has allowed me to still be here today doing as well as I am. There are probably a number of factors that contributed to my good fortune.
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