post surgey germ cell tumor treatment

elliot · New User Joined: 13 Aug 2007 Posts: 2

Hi i'm new to the forums!
my name is elliot and i'm 21.

so 4 weeks ago my left testie was removed, and they found it to be cancerous.

after a ct scan and a bone scan they found that the cancer has not spread anywhere. now i'm going back for more blood work to see how much cancer is left inside of me i suppose.

now everyone has been telling me that regardless of how many cancerous cells are left i still have to go through chemo. now i did some searches on the side effects of chemo and it really seems like its going to be doing more harm than good!

i'm really looking for any advice or alternate treatments for this, because i really dont want to go through any of those side effects.

Muttsmom

Hi,

Sorry to hear about your dx.

I had chemo and radiation, the conventional treatment because it's the only kind that is proven to work. Alternative treatment has shown me nothing except seeing the people die that used it vs. conventional medicine. I would never consider alternative medicine. Chemo isn't fun, but it's dooable and I'm doing great 5+ years later and I had it 9 of my lymph nodes as well (they were removed), which means I definitely had it floating around in my blood stream.

The lab work is probably checking your liver, kidneys etc. (a CMP) to make sure you don't have any problems prior to starting chemo. To my knowledge, there is no blood test that shows if all the cancer is gone or not. There are tumor markers for certain kinds of cancer, but they aren't always accurate and some onco's don't even do them.

Best wishes and let us know how you're doing.
_________________
Nancy
2/14/02 ILC 43 - 5.5 cm 9+/16 nodes
Stage IIIA er/pr+ Her2-
2/02 MRM
FECx6 radsx33
Tamoxifen - Arimidex (chemo induced menopause)
4/03 SM w/bilat. recon.
9/03 expanders removed
5/04 repair reconst. disaster
10/04 Actonel for bone/joint pain from Arimidex
NED - 5 years
3/07 Diabetes
In memory of Kim 12/1/04

elliot · New User Joined: 13 Aug 2007 Posts: 2

i know with the blood work they doing tomorrow they are looking for some sort of hormone or something like that that is generated by the cancerous cells or something, i could be wrong i'm no doctor. maybe it was some type of sugar? sorry my thoughts are all jumbled.

well how long does chemo last? will i still be going through all of the harsh side effects although i'm a relatively healthy energetic young man? is there any good questions that i should ask the doctor to help futher the understanding of my cancer?

brainman

Hi elliot, I am no doctor either but what I think you are talking about what is called a "tumor marker." A tumor marker is a substance (sugar, protein, etceteras) produced by the cancerous cells or by the body trying to attack the cancer cells. Usually, these markers are cancer specific.

As for the chemotherapy, you should ask your doctor for information about what specific chemotherapy you will receive, the frequency and duration of the treatment, and what side effects you can expect.

I will be praying for and thinking about you.
_________________
Jim
Site Administrator and long-term cancer survivor
1992 Astrocytoma grade 2, left motor strip
2005 Recurrence this time said to be an Oligodendoglioma grade 3, same location.
My Story Part 1: http://cancerforums.net/viewtopic.php?p=7350
My Story Part 2: http://cancerforums.net/viewtopic.php?t=8029
Blog http://jimhawkinsport.blogspot.com/

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