Dear Grace,
My father has adenocarcinoma stage 4 with a malign pleural effusion on the right side. Right now he
has also a "common cold" we think - because they are similar to the symptoms my mother has. It's symptoms are a cough with a lot of phlegm. My fathers breathing has become more limited due to this cough.
He is now considering to take antibiotica, which the oncologist gave him during the chemotherapy, and which he should take in case he was geting a fever. I am just wondering if the antibiotica also should be taken in this case, because he has no fever and he is not in a chemo cyclus. The oncologist is not available at the moment. I know you can't give an prescription on what too do, but maybe you could give an common suggestion on what to do.
Kind Regards
Malte Schuldt
Reply # - December 29, 2013, 01:15 PM
Reply To: Lung cancer with a "common cold"
Hi Malte,
You're correct in saying that no one here at GRACE can tell you whether or not your father should take the antibiotics. If it is a common cold, they are unlikely to help. (See http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000678.htm "Antibiotics should not be used to treat a common cold.") If it's something else, the specific antibiotic used should be tailored to the particular condition, which should be done by his doctor (if not his oncologist, then his primary physician).
JimC
Forum moderator