Sunday, September 12, 2010

How long do you have to live when you find out you have terminal colon cancer

How long do you have to live when you find out you have terminal colon cancer?

Cancer - 7 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
It depends on how advanced the cancer is.
2 :
every case is differant. my aunt was given 6-9 months. she made it over a year.
3 :
generally a "terminal" diagnosis means 6 months or less. however, no one can give you a definitive answer to that question. your oncologist can probably narrow it down a little more for you. it depends how advanced the cancer is, if it's metastisized, and if you are going to treat it agressively.
4 :
I have known people diagnosed with "Terminal" cancer who have recovered and lived for decades afterwards nothing is written in stone.
5 :
Too many factors unknown to give a guess. Age, stage, location(s) of metastisis, general health, rate of growth, histology (genes involved), responsiveness to therapy, etc.
6 :
HI, every person is different and it depends how advanced they have it when diagnosed. My mum was diagnosed on December 2004 and passed away on May 2006. When diagnosed she was told she had 9 months to live if she had chemo and 3 months to live without it. She decide to go for chemo. She had a great will to live and was always very strong and positive but in the end cancer took over.
7 :
Jan 24, 2006 I was diagnosed with stage IV colon cancer with mets (spread) to my liver. I was only 40 years old. I was told that I could not have my tumours removed from my liver because there were too many. My condition was terminal. The Oncologist said that if I did not do chemo I would live a year; with chemo I would last 16 mths. I did do chemo and now I am waiting for liver surgery at the end of the month. I feel great and have been off chemo since November. The correct answer is 'they' do not know. Doctors work on averages, and the thing with colon cancer is that for 40 plus years there have not been any new drugs developed. In the past 3 - 4 years 4 drugs have been approved and are being used successfully to improve and extend life. This is the reason that I am now able to have my liver resected. My advice is to become knowledgeable about the disease and about the treatments available even if they are in other countries. I live in Ontario, Canada and I have resorted to learning a lot from the Internet and what the US is doing. I have had to direct my own health care as the doctors here in Ontario are behind the US in knowledge of how these drugs work. Wendy www.wendysbattle.com

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