sushmitacruz27
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Hi! I am from Philippines. My name is sushmita. I just wanna ask you guys about my mom's case. She was diagnosed last year from this rate cancer called nasopharyngeal cancer. The day we found out that she has this kind of cancer we immediately did what the doctor said. She finish the chemotherapy and the radiation needed. But sadly her doctor requested for last ct scan they found that the lymph is still there and its getting bigger. The cancer cells also continuos spreading to her body. Why it is like this? Her doctor didn't know to explain this. I hope you guys help me to understand my mom's situation. Thank you.
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Reply # - April 26, 2016, 10:08 AM
Hi Sushmita,
Hi Sushmita,
Welcome to Grace. I'm very sorry your mom didn't respond to chemotherapy. It's not uncommon enough that some people don't respond to chemo. We we don't know why some Nasopharyngeal cancer responds well and others don't. Unfortunately all cancers are like this.
This is an introduction to head and neck cancer that will be helpful to explain what's happening, http://cancergrace.org/hnscc/2010/05/10/intro-to-scchn/
I will see that Dr. Weiss provides a comment to your post. In the meantime I hope you read the link I shared above so you can understand better what is going on.
Hoping for the best,
Janine
Reply # - April 28, 2016, 01:04 AM
So what will happen to my mom
So what will happen to my mom now? If she repeat the same medication is there any assurance that the cancer cells will be gone?
Reply # - April 28, 2016, 10:37 AM
I'm afraid there aren't any
I'm afraid there aren't any reassurances that any anti cancer treatment will decrease the amount of cancer someone has. Unfortunately our best understanding of cancer at this time isn't enough to say with certainty. I wish there was more known but our researchers are working day and night to find better treatments. Our head and neck cancer oncologist who should comment in a bit is one of these people which is why it sometimes takes time for him to respond on Grace. I hope the link to Dr. Weiss' intro to head and neck cancer was helpful.
All best,
Janine
Reply # - April 28, 2016, 11:51 AM
Sushmita,
Sushmita,
First, please allow me to apologize for the delay in responding to you. Now, on to information.
Nasopharyngeal carcinoma is not very rare, especially in Asia. Locally advanced cancer (either big where it started or spread to lymph nodes, but not spread elsewhere in the body) is treated with chemotherapy and radiation with a goal of cure. The most common chemotherapy used during treatment aimed at cure is cisplatin with radiation followed by cisplatin and another drug called 5FU.
When this treatment does not cure the cancer and the cancer is only still in the nasopharynx and neck, sometimes surgery can be used to salvage a cure. Once the cancer has spread elsewhere in the body (most commonly to the lungs) cure is not possible. In this case, medicines such as chemotherapies can be tried with the goals of extending duration of life and preserving quality of life. The right choice of therapies depends on a variety of factors including the values of the patient, other medical problems, and how much time has passed between the completion of curative-intent therapy and recurrence/spread.
I don't know Philippines well, but suspect that there are likely experts in nasopharyngeal cancer that you could see. If within your means, I'd consider travel either within the Philippines or more distantly (within Asia--there is more expertise in these cancers in Asia for the most part than in Europe or the US) to have your mother evaluated by someone who knows nasopharynx cancer.