merilee
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Posts:32
I am in the process of receiving chemo and radiation for local recurrence of adenocarcinoma....I was wondering if anyone knows when they do repeat scans to Ser how the radiation has worked ?? Or type chemo ?? Can anything be told by the blood work that I have done weekly before chemo ?+ Thank. You. M. M
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Reply # - March 18, 2016, 09:16 AM
Hi Merilee, I hope you're
Hi Merilee, I hope you're feeling alright.
Dr. Weiss says in a blog post, "Cisplatin vs. Carboplatin, if you want to start a brawl at a meeting of thoracic oncologists, a good way to start is to have a cisplatin vs. carboplatin debate. Cisplatin lovers feel that cisplatin is slightly more effective than carboplatin. Carboplatin lovers argue that carboplatin is equivalent and that even if cisplatin has a slight edge in efficacy, this small difference is inadequate to compensate for its dramatically higher toxicity." http://cancergrace.org/lung/2010/04/16/introduction-to-first-line-thera…
For adeno nsclc many oncologists prefer alimta because its side effect profile is less toxic. However the partner drug most often used is taxol. Any of the cytotoxic drugs shown effective against nsclc is fine except gemcitabine because of its toxicity when used with concurrent radiation.
It's important to wait for follow up scans after radiation because inflammation caused by radiation looks like cancer on both CT and PET. Too radiation continues to work for a time after treatment stops. Most specialists like to wait at least 3 months after completion of radiation to scan. Sometimes radiation scarring makes it difficult to know for even longer.
More waiting I know :( but it's better than getting the wrong impression or having cancer grow. I'm sorry you're going through this and hope it is GONE after this.
All best,
Janine