Newly diagnosed, scared, questions

laurae · New User Joined: 10 Jul 2006 Posts: 2

I was recently diagnosed with a IIIb cancerous tumor. It is in the endometrium, uterus, and vagina, but apparently never touched the cervix.

My doctors all seem so grave, and I worry every time I see one of them as to how bad it really is. I know there must be women who have survived cancer this advanced - if you're out there, could you let me know so I won't be as scared?

I saw the radiologist today (will see the chemo doctor tomorrow so don't know that schedule yet) and he is going to schedule me for treatment 5 days a week for 5 weeks.

Afterwards, I have to have internal radiation, which he described as inserting two metal rods and then a plastic holder containing the radioactive element. The vagina is then sewn shut and I will be kep in a shielded room for "24 hours or longer".

This internal treatment really spooks me. Has anyone here had it? Does it hurt? Can you move at all with the rods inside?

I can use all the info and advice (and reassurance) I can get right now.

foreigner · New User Joined: 11 Jul 2006 Posts: 1

Hi, first of all sorry for my poor english.
My wife was diagnosed two years ago with a cervical carcinoma IIB.
She went through radiotherapy (30 days) and chemotherapy (5 days on the first rt week and again 5 days on the last). The treatment was extremely useful and the desease lost 90 % of its mass (from 20 cm2 to 2).
Right after her uterus, ovaries and linphnodes have been surgically removed and also the upper third of the vagina.
She's now ok and all the exams she's done in the follow-up demostrated no evidence of futher development of the desease. Of course we are stills scared but every doctor we spoke to said to be optimistical about the possibilities of total eradication of the desease.
About the internal treatment I can tell you that my wife didn't have to go through it but I've spoke to several women who had it: they all said that is just boring because you should move as few as you can. Just one woman reported serious problems inside her vagina because the radioactive rods holder moved form its position (she moved to take a newspaper) and caused serious burnings inside. So my advice is to stand the hours in the shielded room quietly, moving as lees as you can. But the brachytherapy really works and can help the surgeon have a smaller area where to work, reducing the risk of spreading tumoral cells all around.
What really caused problems to my wife is the fact that she was 32 yo and we didn't have babies yet and the menopuase. About babies we decided to adopt and we are still going through all the documents and psycologist my country requires (Italy). About menopause I can tell you that she had to give up with the hormonal therapy because she doesn't tolerate it well and also because it is known that menopause therapy can be the cause of breast cancer. So she decided to stop it and now all the symptoms disappeared. She is taking calcium for her bones and just some vitamins (500 mg vitamin c). Our sexual life is good and her vagina came back to be elastic again (rt can cause problems)... just not so much desire but some fluoxedine help her a bit... together wit all my love.
I think you should stand all the treatment doctors will tell you being confidant that for this type of cancer there are many chances to came back to an almost normal life.
Good luck

laurae · New User Joined: 10 Jul 2006 Posts: 2

Foreigner, thank you so much for your reply. I've been busy with exams and scans the last few days and could not reply sooner. After talking to my team of radiologists, I feel better about their plan of action.

The radiologist who told me about the internal treatment was not the radiologist who will actually be performing the procedure. After his (speaking now of the radiologist doing the implant) examination, he said it could be done on an outpatient basis. I will be sedated and the radioactive element will only be inserted for two hours, I will have radiation 5 times a week for 5-1/2 weeks, and one day each week the external radiation will be replaced by the internal proedure.

I really appreciate your sharing your wife's experience and you helped me to feel better. Smile

Thanks again.

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