Fri feb 5 2016 dad updates part 2

The biopsy results came back. It's Adenocarcinoma. He has stage 4 pancreatic cancer. It's located in an unusual part of the pancreas, but this is a common type of pancreatic cancer. It's not curable. It's controllable.

The plan. First, Dad needs to manage on his own (with Mom's help) at HOME for a week, and that means getting stronger, health-wise.

Dad will probably go home on either Sat, Feb 6 or Sun, Feb 7. The latest will be Mon, Feb 8.

Dr. Shinn will meet with Mom and Dad on Monday afternoon, Feb 8 at Dr. Shinn's clinic, which is located at Wheeling Park Hospital, a couple buildings over from where we are at now. This meeting will be more like an orientation or getting to know the who, what, when, and where about the treatment.

Dr. Shinn will implement an aggressive treatment plan that is used nationwide. No experimental drugs. Wheeling Park Hospital can not administer experimental drugs. Dr. Shinn's treatment is common for this type of cancer.

The minimum goals are to prevent anything new from forming and to prohibit the current tumor from growing larger. The best goal would be for the tumor to shrink, which can happen.

Treatment will be chemo. It will be a combo of three chemo drugs with a vitamin infusion. It's a basic recipe.

Dr. Shinn wants to start treatment on Mon, Feb 15. Dad will be at the clinic for six hours. It's an out-patient procedure. Then he will go home with a fanny pack-like contraption, which will be a pump that administers more chemo over the next two days.

It's 48 hours of receiving chemo drugs every two weeks. And this will continue for four to six week at which time, Dr. Shinn will scan Dad to see how things are going, and a report card on his progress will be created.

But this treatment will never end for Dad. Everyday, he will take two blood thinner shots in the stomach. Every two weeks, he will endure a six-hour visit at the clinic for chemo, followed by about two days of chemo, mainly via the fanny pack. 2 days on, followed by 12 days off. After the 4th or 6th batch, he will get checked. And repeat.

The first scan or report card should occur in mid-April or mid-May.

If the report card this spring is not up to goal, then Dad could try the Columbus hospital, which can administer experimental drugs.

Dad will receive the chemo either through a port that gets surgically installed in the upper chest or through a picc line, which has little tubes sticking out of him. Dad will start with the picc line for the first batch of 4 to 6 weeks, and then he will decide about the port after the first report card.

According to Dr. Shinn, the two common or primary side effects with the chemo are fatigue and intolerance to cold. Dad will need to stay warm. He needs to avoid drinking cold fluids. Grabbing an ice cube could feel extremely painful. If it's arctic cold outside, then Dad will need to wear a ski mask if he goes out. Anything cold will feel much colder.