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Ovarian Carcinosarcoma
My mother was diagnosed with Ovarian Carcinosarcoma in March. She had a complete hysterectomy, and part of her small intestine removed. She still had cancer "deposits" remaining in her abdomen that they couldnt remove. They had her on Intraperitoneal chemo with no response, actually the remaining cancer grew. She will now be taken off the Intraperitoneal and they are going to try Gemzar and Taxotere just IV.
I'm worrying that this chemo will not work either, her doctor gave her a 1 in 5 chance of a response and if not he said shes got 6 months to a year (estimate..I know theres no time stamp).
Can anybody share stories about how chemo has gone with this disease and how the disease reacted? I don't know how long my mom has and I'm supposed to get married in March. I hope shes still around to at least see pictures and know that it happened. Again I know theres no fixed time on this but I'm hoping that by hearing stories and knowing other experiences i'll have a better idea than I do now.
Thank you.
This discussion is related to Carcinosarcoma.
I'm worrying that this chemo will not work either, her doctor gave her a 1 in 5 chance of a response and if not he said shes got 6 months to a year (estimate..I know theres no time stamp).
Can anybody share stories about how chemo has gone with this disease and how the disease reacted? I don't know how long my mom has and I'm supposed to get married in March. I hope shes still around to at least see pictures and know that it happened. Again I know theres no fixed time on this but I'm hoping that by hearing stories and knowing other experiences i'll have a better idea than I do now.
Thank you.
This discussion is related to Carcinosarcoma.
Hello. I was diagnosed with ovarian carcinosarcoma Stage 1 in March 2010 after a abdominal hysterectomy to remove a tumor. On August 4, 2010 I was told that I am in remission after 18 weeks of Taxel/Carbo Chemo treatment once a week. I am divorced 50 year old and have a 16 year old son. I have not been able to find out much about this cancer so would love to hear from you and others. It has been a little over a month since my last chemo and my feet are still numb, my hair hasn't started growing and I'm still healing from being cut open to perform the hysterectomy. I know it's going to take a while to heal but I'm tired of feeling and looking like a sick cancer victim. I'm also frighten that the cancer will come back so I have been trying to find out the warning signs (which are symptoms of many disorders). I would love to hear from you about your journey thru your 1st year of remission. Also to the young ladies who's mother's are affected by this horrible cancer. My prayers are with you, your mothers and family members! Time is so important it brings hopes of new research, new treatments and new knowledge to rare aggressive cancers!
Hello. I was diagnosed with ovarian carcinosarcoma in June 2009. I am currently in remission and saw your posting. Mine was/is stage 2. I wanted to reach out to you and offer my sympathies and support for your worry about your mother. It is an aggressive tumor type and there are so few cases that the doctors can't really predict what will happen. Doctors giving estimates of time remaining are notoriously inaccurate, by the way. Try to be with your mom in the present--she must so appreciate your love and support! Give her my best!
Thats all I ask for is a few years. I just want her to be at my wedding and meet her first grandchild. I hate that she may not be here for these things.
This cancer is severely aggressive. I'm sad that my mother is one of the so very few people with it. But I'm also glad that its not common so other people don't have to deal with it, at least not alot.
You know whats strange? I never found out my moms CA-125 level. I dont know why. I'll be calling her doctor monday to ask about that now.
I have some hope and its a little better now than when it started because my mom is feeling much better off of the first chemo. I know the next line wont be as bad as the first. So I gotta work on keeping her happy and positive!
This cancer is severely aggressive. I'm sad that my mother is one of the so very few people with it. But I'm also glad that its not common so other people don't have to deal with it, at least not alot.
You know whats strange? I never found out my moms CA-125 level. I dont know why. I'll be calling her doctor monday to ask about that now.
I have some hope and its a little better now than when it started because my mom is feeling much better off of the first chemo. I know the next line wont be as bad as the first. So I gotta work on keeping her happy and positive!
It is sad for me to read about the treatment ordeal your mum and family has to go through. Hopefully Gemzar/Taxotere can help, and with minimal side effects.
My mum's sister has uterine cancer, a few years ago. She discovered it early in Stage I. After complete hysterectomy and radiography, her cancer is thankfully in remission now.
Our mums are not so lucky, ovarian carcinosarcoma is not only rare, but also highly aggressive and unpredictable. We can only pray that some form of chemo works. The good news is that after my mum's hysterectomy, her biomarker CA-125 dropped from 1000+ to 300+ U /ml. The norm is < 35 U /ml.
There is hope. I have heard of ovarian carcinosarcoma sufferers (both young and old) who lived for at least a few years.
My mum's sister has uterine cancer, a few years ago. She discovered it early in Stage I. After complete hysterectomy and radiography, her cancer is thankfully in remission now.
Our mums are not so lucky, ovarian carcinosarcoma is not only rare, but also highly aggressive and unpredictable. We can only pray that some form of chemo works. The good news is that after my mum's hysterectomy, her biomarker CA-125 dropped from 1000+ to 300+ U /ml. The norm is < 35 U /ml.
There is hope. I have heard of ovarian carcinosarcoma sufferers (both young and old) who lived for at least a few years.
With my mom they said the intraperitoneal was the best first line. It's supposed to get a better response but it decreases quality of life...by alot. My mother was hospitalized twice while on it. Couldnt eat, sleep, drink, walk. It was horrible. I hope the first line works for your mom. This is a horrible process for everyone.
I have no history of cancer anywhere in my family. Thats whats really sad. We always thought we were lucky because we all escaped major health issues. But this struck randomly. They are'nt even worried about me or my sister getting cancer later in life because this cancer is so rare and random. Ovarian Carcinosarcoma effects less that 1or2% of Ovarian cancer patients.
I have no history of cancer anywhere in my family. Thats whats really sad. We always thought we were lucky because we all escaped major health issues. But this struck randomly. They are'nt even worried about me or my sister getting cancer later in life because this cancer is so rare and random. Ovarian Carcinosarcoma effects less that 1or2% of Ovarian cancer patients.
Thanks for the ACS recommendation to find out more about ovarian carsinosarcoma. We are based in Asia, and we get great support and advice from the medical staff here too.
The doctor has arranged for puclitaxel/carboplatin to be intravenously administered. We will try to keep my mum's spirits and quality of life up (as well as ours) :)
If this first line of chemo does not work and if my mum is willing, we might consider intravenous ifosfamide/cisplatin. It requires a 4-day hospitalisation every 3 weeks, and has additional side effects. We hope her cancer cells will go away with the first line of chemo.
Does your mum have a family history of similar cancers?
The doctor has arranged for puclitaxel/carboplatin to be intravenously administered. We will try to keep my mum's spirits and quality of life up (as well as ours) :)
If this first line of chemo does not work and if my mum is willing, we might consider intravenous ifosfamide/cisplatin. It requires a 4-day hospitalisation every 3 weeks, and has additional side effects. We hope her cancer cells will go away with the first line of chemo.
Does your mum have a family history of similar cancers?
Congratulations on the new baby. I'm sure that will make your Mom happy.
It has all been alot of the same research on my end. I've spoken to the American Cancer Society about my moms cancer and the treatments they have her on and it sounds like her Doctor is on the right track. Unfortunatley the first line didnt work. So I'm praying the second line does. There is always room for miracles and sometimes individuals do well and sometimes not. I think it has alot to do with overall health and spirit. Try your hardest to keep your mom positive. I think my mom already gave up because the chemo they had her on effected her so badly.
If you have questions or you just need someone to tell you something you may not know yet I recommend calling the ACS. They are very nice people and very helpful.
Are they doing Intraperitoneal Chemo on your mom or just IV?
It has all been alot of the same research on my end. I've spoken to the American Cancer Society about my moms cancer and the treatments they have her on and it sounds like her Doctor is on the right track. Unfortunatley the first line didnt work. So I'm praying the second line does. There is always room for miracles and sometimes individuals do well and sometimes not. I think it has alot to do with overall health and spirit. Try your hardest to keep your mom positive. I think my mom already gave up because the chemo they had her on effected her so badly.
If you have questions or you just need someone to tell you something you may not know yet I recommend calling the ACS. They are very nice people and very helpful.
Are they doing Intraperitoneal Chemo on your mom or just IV?
Dear Gemifly,
We are in a similar situation.
My mum was diagnosed with ovarian carsinoma stage IIIB in May 2010, after checking into hospital with ascites. She had her ovaries, uterus, omentum, and appendix removed about 2 weeks ago, and will start her weekly chemo on puclitaxel/carboplatin from next week. We were told that avastin has just been reported in scientific literature to have positive effects, but from my investigation it is expensive and shown to improve life by about 4 months on average.
The doctors said similar information to us: about cancer deposits remaining on her stomach, about 6-12 months of life left.
Our family is hopeful that my mum will end up on the good end of survival curve. We try to be around her as much as possible, re-assure her that everything is ok, and we are looking forward to my baby who is due in a few weeks time.
Do update when you can, on your mum's treatment. I will pray for you too.
Hespy
We are in a similar situation.
My mum was diagnosed with ovarian carsinoma stage IIIB in May 2010, after checking into hospital with ascites. She had her ovaries, uterus, omentum, and appendix removed about 2 weeks ago, and will start her weekly chemo on puclitaxel/carboplatin from next week. We were told that avastin has just been reported in scientific literature to have positive effects, but from my investigation it is expensive and shown to improve life by about 4 months on average.
The doctors said similar information to us: about cancer deposits remaining on her stomach, about 6-12 months of life left.
Our family is hopeful that my mum will end up on the good end of survival curve. We try to be around her as much as possible, re-assure her that everything is ok, and we are looking forward to my baby who is due in a few weeks time.
Do update when you can, on your mum's treatment. I will pray for you too.
Hespy
Thank you for posting. I hope this new chemo starts working as well. At least so the cancer stops growing.
COMMUNITY LEADER
Many times, chemo doesn't cure this disease. It only serves to keep it at bay. You may see other posts where women describe ovarian cancer as a chronic disease, and more and more, it is being treated as such. There are so many different types of chemo out there that if one doesn't work, there is time to try something else. You are right...we can't give you any promises on how a specific chemo will work, nor how your mom will respond to side effects. The best you can do is continue to monitor along with you mom's doctor, and develop a plan on how to address it if no progress is seen using one particular chemo.
Best wishes to your mom, and I hope she finds success with the new chemo.
Gail
Best wishes to your mom, and I hope she finds success with the new chemo.
Gail
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