4th stage lung cancer

[velvel]

Is it reasonable to anticipate life expectancy beyond a few monhts with stage 4 lung cancer?  My business partner is having a biopsy today - various scans suggest widely spread cancer cells.  The main tumor is inoperable -

[lizziecee]

Yes, it is reasonable to expect survival beyond a few months. Miracles do happen.  I have a dear friend in Tampa, Florida who was dx with stage IV non-small cell lung cancer 7 yrs ago. He had his right lung removed, but didn't get better so his wife changed the hospital to the Moffitt Cancer Hospital in Tampa. They found the cancer had spread to his left kidney and this was removed. He went into a rehab facility for a month as he could barely clean his own teeth, never mind walk.  Slowly he got better and his doctors were amazed. He has been twice to England to visit us since then. However, he now has a small "spot" as his wife calls it, on his left lung and is having a Catscan early Nov to see if the spot has grown since the last scan in April.  He feels well and is living a normal life. He is 78 yrs old. If your partner's cancer is small cell and inoperable, the prognosis might not be so favourable.
2 yrs ago my friend's younger brother was dx with small cell lung cancer, which was inoperable, and he lived 13 months from dx. I guess no-one can give a finite time of survival and you have to be prepared for the worst scenario. My late twin brother was dx with an inoperable brain tumour which his doctors said was small cell, emanating from his lungs,but despite many full body scans, they were never able to find the primary cancer. He lived 11 months from dx. We are all different and I guess doctors do the best they can for us within their knowledge and experience. I have breast cancer and Crohn's, but am coming up to the 5 yr mark for my bc, and as far as I know I am in remission.

I do hope things turn out okay for you both.

Liz.

Liz.

[gaggy300]

My brother-in-law was dignoised with 4 stage lung and liver cancer in October of this year, 2007. It is december 31 and he was told this morning the cancer had spread to his kidneys. I know the outlook is not good, but how long can a person live in this terrible condition?  He will have his last cemotherpy in January.