Posts by dustyjackal33

They told us there was zero chance he’d even make it to surgery!!
Yesterday was brutal. He was in so much pain we actually had to call 911. They gave him a cocktail of shots—some Ketoral, Normabel, and something to relax his muscles—and man, he was fine after that! He was talking some total nonsense, but hey, that’s just the meds kicking in...
He felt great today too. Slept straight through until 3 PM, and said he finally got some actual rest, all while sleeping on his back!! He even hopped out of bed without any trouble at all so I could head to the bathroom to get cleaned up!
The doctor said this is totally normal and that these ups and downs are part of the deal!!

As for radiation, we aren't 100% sure yet, but it looks like he'll be going through with it!! He's getting these patches that release morphine slowly over three days, so hopefully that keeps him comfortable too!

I'm just praying things get easier. Maybe I'm being selfish, but I want him home with me for as long as possible

P.S. He was telling me today that he's heading to the beach tomorrow, haha!!

Ronald Green31: They told us surgery was out of the question... since it spread through the whole spine, they said an operation could be fatal.
I'm wondering if some kind of radiation therapy—maybe once a month—could at least take the edge off the pain?
I remember when my grandma had metastases, she went into the hospital for radiation every month, and then things would actually feel a bit better for the following month...

The doctor checked his spine and said a metastasis has actually eaten through one of the vertebrae!
He’s been up and down lately. This morning was actually pretty good, but by evening he was in agony, even with heavy doses of morphine and Norco!
He's losing his appetite too... we have to practically bribe him just to get a few bites in. He's weak on his feet, but that's mostly from the pain. He still has this huge will to live—it's like he's fighting hard—but when the pain hits peak levels, it feels like he's just giving up for a bit. He gets a little out of it if he takes too much morphine, though I think it's just the meds hitting him...
Ronald Green31: Sorry, I honestly don't have the energy to Google this right now, so could you explain what vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty actually are?
Thanks for the help!

I don't even know where to start. My dad had surgery for colon cancer five years ago, and everything was going great... until two months ago. Now, it’s spread through his entire spine, and he actually has a spinal fracture from the metastases.
He's been on morphine for three weeks now, plus they've got an epidural catheter in him.
The doctors are basically saying radiation isn't "worth it" anymore, but we're fighting just to get him that treatment.
Does anyone here know what the actual survival odds look like with a diagnosis like this?
Thanks in advance.