How does cancer kill you

gasmanvn · New User Joined: 16 Aug 2006 Posts: 8

Hi guys

Dont laugh because this is a serious question. I realise and understand what cancer is (I am a sufferer of Lung Cancer) and understand that treatment with chemotherapy also damages your immune system. But for a person with cancer [b]what actually kills the person[/b], assuming of course that the treatment did not work or has been discontinued.

brainman · Posted: Thu Apr 19, 2007 2:07 pm Post subject: Re: How does cancer kill you

Hi gasmanvn,
Your question is quit complex. The simple answers are not usually very helpful. Usually, the answer comes in two parts… the primary cause of death and the secondary cause of death. My father died last September of a system wide infection that was secondary to his cancer (A.L.L.). My mother died of respiratory failure secondary to her cancer (GBM). I don’t know if these examples are helpful or not. I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers.
_________________
Jim
Site Administrator and long-term cancer survivor
1992 Astrocytoma grade 2, left motor strip
2005 Recurrence this time said to be an Oligodendroglioma 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/

rlee · Site Admin Joined: 15 Jan 2006 Posts: 245

gasmanvn,
Brainman makes a good point. Often it's not the cancer that kills you directly, but consequences of having cancer. This is a common question that is difficult to answer. For lung cancer, it often makes patients very weak and cachetic, ie they lose weight. Eventually this weakens the body so much, one is prone to infections. There is no way to predict what may happen to each person nor the exact timing. Sorry.
_________________
RLee, MD

Any information provided is NOT intended to provide specific medical advice to users but rather to provide users with information to help them better understand their health condition and related care. All readers are strongly encouraged to consult with a qualified physician for answers to their personal medical questions.

JustineHH · Regular Joined: 21 Apr 2007 Posts: 11

I watched my father pass away at a point when he started having to get blood transfusions (his anemia due to cancer) every other week. The cancer in his colon caused the anemia and was zapping him of all his nutrients. And that's how he died.

	Cancer Forums Forum Index -> General Cancer topics	All times are GMT - 5 Hours
Page 1 of 1

A website for discussions about any type of cancer, including lung cancer, breast cancer, mesothelioma, prostate cancer, laryngeal cancer, leukemia, lymphoma, multiple myeloma and others