Checking for pleural effusion & asisticed fluid

[Kimchi]

I"m 49 yrs,living in Asia, dx 09/2006 with Stage 4 ovarian cancer, malignant mass on right ovary, pleural effusion in right lung and asisticed fluid in abdomen. My doctor has prescribed monthly treatment of Carboplatin and Taxol for 6 months.  
Had uterus, 2 ovaries and falopian tubes and omentum removed and now completed 5 cycles of carboplatin and taxol. CA125 (112,34,13,16,12).  Each cycle, my doctor does manual check of cervix, annus, blood and urine test. But no xrays or ultrasounds.  Wondering if there is any fluid left in abdomen and lungs and what is procedure regarding checking for this.  Does the chemo dry up any residual fluid in lung (had most of it drained before hystorectomy) and can fluid reoccure in both areas during chemo? Is it possible any residual fluid in lung will attach to my lung or breast and fluid in abdomen attach to stomach, liver or other organs?  How do you test to see if there is any fluid left??
Thank you

[freshair]

Yes, chemo dries it up. Your cat scan will show that. Good luck. One more treatment for you! I remember having something in the lung area that took awhile to go away even after I had chemo. I forget now what it was. OK I just read my reports from 2004. My notebook is full at this point, ha, ha. I had a small pericardial effusion. I think it might have been from having surgery (it was after brain surgery). It eventually went away on its own.

Breathe in the good,
Helen

[Kimchi]

Sorry I had posted this question for Dr Goodman but somehow it appreared on the OC forum page..Think there maybe a glitch in the new lay out cause I tried for many days and kept getting a reply that alotment was full  yet I noticed that on some days there were 2 questions allowed and other 4 questons, don't see a pattern to indicate how many questions are alotted per day.  Will try again on Dr Goodmann's page.

[gah_70]

Someone will more than likely come along with a better answer than mine, but here is the way I understand it.  I had lots of ascites at the time of diagnosis, as well.  Doctor removed 8 liters during surgery, and it came back during the time between surgery and chemo.  This may be a simplistic view, but the way I understand it, chemo does dry it up.  That may be by virtue of killing the cancer cells so they no longer cause ascites, or perhaps the chemicals themselves dry it up.  I do know the body absorbes, or gets rid if the excess fluid over time.  I had so much that it found it's way out of my body through each and every surgical cut until it eventually went away, or the incisions healed enough to prevent it.  I had to sleep on pads because for the first three weeks because my incision leaked all the time.  I also lost fluid through my vaginal incision, as well.  I lost 20 lbs the first week after chemo, though, which was attributed to the ascites drying up.  It can be seen with a CT scan, and that was one of the things my doctor compared from my original scan vs. the follow-up I had after I completed chemo.  Does your doctor have plans to do a follow-up scan when you complete treatment?

Best wishes to you!

Gail