brain cancer spread to lungs and hospice

[ggreg]

Would someone please tell me how much time is usually left for a patient whose brain cancer has spread to both lungs?  A dear friend of mine, who is in very poor condition and cannot have an operation, started with a tumor in his brain that was discovered about six months ago, and then a few months later, a tumor formed in one lung, and then an MRI done last week shows another one has formed in the other lung.  

They have not done biopsies, I am thinking they took a wait-and-see stance when they found the brain tumor, since he is too weak for an operation.  Since the new tumors in his lungs are there, they must be thinking it's terminal cancer.  I am wondering how much time does he likely have left?  He has had respiratory failure several times, the first one just before they discovered the brain tumor, and he now has to wear a sealed face mask pretty much all the time, and he is in the hospital, as a result of another respiratory failure.  His breathing is quite labored.  He also has a muscle wasting disease, cannot walk or use his arms.  He is in his mid 50s.  

I am thinking I would like to push that Hospice take him home to die there, but am wondering if his time is so short and he is in such bad shape, that he may not have enough time left to warrant that sort of transport and arrangement.  But he has been shuffled back and forth between the hospital and the nursing home so many times, and I thought if they do that again this time, and if he has, say, even a month left, surely it would be a kindness to let him go home this time, if they again release him from the hospital.  So, if anyone has experience along these lines, I would like to hear about it.  Thank you.
GG

[ggreg]

Thought I would come back and answer my own post.  The person I was asking about passed away the evening of the day after my post.  So, for anyone who does a search in this forum and finds this post, I would like to advise in this manner.  If you have a family member who is already in pretty rough shape and they have a brain tumor, fine.  But if another tumor shows up in their lung, THAT is the time to take them home with Hospice.  Because within six months of finding that first lung tumor, that's how long my friend had before the second lung tumor showed up on an MRI, at which time he died within less than two weeks.  When the second lung tumor was found, he was in code, and thus could not be released for that last week of his life.  

But I do appreciate the doctor's response here, because in actuality, as he said, no one can be sure, and in my case, nothing could be done at the very end anyway.  I'm just relating my experience, to perhaps help someone else come to a decision earlier than me.  By the way, this post and response were made on Sept 4, and today is Sept 7, and it had moved all the way to Page 5 of our busy neuro forum, so you can use the search window in the upper right corner with your own user name to find your posts, or even go to the My Med Help next to it and find your posts there.

[dr_simran]

Hello ggreg,

It is not possible to specify the exact time lines for the improvement in the disease or the outcome due to tumor.
The functionality of the patient and the quality of life improvement is more important. Miracles with new age monoclonal antibodies might happen. Trust and faith in God would help in long run.

Best