Mom very weak
Hi everyone,
My mom (54) has metastatic pancreatic cancer. About three weeks ago, we were told that her first chemotherapy regimen had stopped working after about six months.
The following week we went to a university hospital for a second opinion/new treatment plan. She had to undergo a CT scan, blood tests and an ascites drainage, which meant another week passed before treatment could start.
She was supposed to start her new chemo combination the following Tuesday, but her bilirubin was too high, so they couldn’t give it. They decided to place a stent that Thursday and kept her in the hospital. She ended up staying there for about a week.
The day after the stent they couldn’t start chemo because of logistical reasons. Then on Monday they still couldn’t start because she had vomited during the weekend and the doctor on call didn’t want to prescribe the chemo before the specialist had seen her. Eventually, last Tuesday, she finally received her first dose.
What scares me is how much she has deteriorated in such a short amount of time.
In about 1.5 weeks, she has needed four ascites drainages. She barely eats and briefly needed tube feeding. She is extremely tired and can hardly keep her eyes open. She gets dizzy when she stands up, barely has the energy to talk, and her voice has become very weak.
I’m desperately trying to hold on to the hope that the new chemotherapy can still work and that some of what we’re seeing is because her body has been through so much lately — the ascites, high bilirubin, stent procedure, hospital stay, lack of nutrition, etc. But seeing her like this makes it incredibly difficult not to lose hope.
Has anyone here seen someone with advanced pancreatic cancer become this weak before or at the beginning of a new treatment and then improve again once the chemo started working or their other issues were brought under control?
I know everyone’s situation is different and I’m not looking for false hope. I would just really appreciate hearing from people who have been through something similar — especially if your loved one managed to regain some strength after being in such a bad condition.
Any experiences, advice or hopeful stories would mean a lot to me right now. ❤️