EndoCa: Endo Cancer at 79, No Rad/Chemo

My mother who is 79 years of age was diagnosed with Endo cancer after a biopsy was done. She had surgery to remove the uterus, tubes, ovaries and a small part of the vagina done on May 8th. The pathlogist reported stated that the cancer was at Stage 11B, Grade 2. The lymph nodes was tested and did not have any cancer, also the pelvic washing was negative for cancer. Because of her age and other health problems her Dr. has said that he would not recommend any Radiation or Chemo. Does any one else fall under this category - if so what advise would you give someone else.

Thanks - any advise would be appreciated.

I cannot relate to her age ( I am 55) but I am guessing that they feel her chances of recurrence vs. the health issues she would incur for adjuvant treatment are not worth taking the chance. Radiation often causes problems with the digestive tract and chemo can be hard on her also... If you are questioning him/her , perhaps you would feel better with a 2nd opinion...
I know when my Grandmother was dx'd with breast cancer in her 90's, they just let it run it's course... Felt like it would be the best thing not to put her thru surgery/chemo..

Thanks for your advice. Yes, her Dr. is very concerned about her other health issues. She has Aortic Stenosis, High blood pressure, high cholosteral, osteoprosis and then some. I am going to talk to her to see if she wants to do the chemo/or Radiation but I doubt it. She says she is not worried about anything because she says whatever God has planned for her so be it.

Hi flalady:

Sounds like your mom's cancer was thankfully caught at a very early stage. Also, given her age and other medical problems, it makes sense that they don't want to do further treatments.

When my dad was dx'd with late-stage aggressive neck cancer, they let it run it's course because of his age and health. The doctor said that yes, the cancer will kill him, but any treatments would kill him almost immediately because his body wouldn't have been able to handle the treatments. We put him in the home hospice program - which is what he wanted. He didn't want the treatments.

Here's a link to a website that has great information on stages and treatments of gyn cancers:

http://www.nccn.org

Hope all goes well for your mom.

Hugs and prayers.

Hi flalady and welcome to the site. You may get more responses if you use a title with just a bit more info in it. Perhaps "Endo cancer at 79, no radiation or chemo?" Just a thought. That way more people may notice it before it drops away. I hope that your mother is recovering comfortably. All the best to you as well.

My mom is 79 years of age. She was diagnosed with Endo. Cancer. She had a TAH/BSO done. The cancer was Staged 11B, Grade 2. The Pelvic washing done tested negative for cancer and also the lymph nodes were clear.
Because of her age and medical history her Dr. has suggested no Chemo/Rad. He said that these treatments would definitely make her sick. However, she seems to be strong person even though she looks frail and has a lot of medical problems. The 2nd day after surgery she was up and walking around the hospital corridor. She has not complained of very much pain. Her operation was on May 8
and she was back to Church on May 22. Can anyone relate to this. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

This message was posted before but someone suggested I may get more answers if I chnaged the title.

Thank you all for replying. All your kind words and wishes are very much appreciated. I talked to my mom and she said she would perhaps see another Gyn/Onc who maybe more advanced in this field than her first Gyn/Onc.

The pathologist report says that the cancer had invaded 1.3 cm of the myometrium but not to the outside of the uterus wall. It had also spread to the endocervical canal but not to the outside or distal cervical tissue.

What percentage is 1.3cm? Is it over 50%?

Thanks again.

Hi,

I too had a diagnosis of Stage 2 (2A was mine) as my cancer had spread to the endocervical canal. This carries an "intermediate risk" of recurrence (still around 10% I think). It's good that your mom had no evidence of spread to lymph nodes or pelvic area. The NCCN site gives good information on standard protocols that the doctors follow, and I recall that observation instead of further treatment is appropriate in some cases. And this may be the case for your mother since everyone is an individual with their own specific diagnosis and health condition.

In my own case, I decided to do 3 doses of internal radiation (brachytherapy or HDR, as it's called) as a preventative to lower my risk down to around 5%. It was not hard, but did involve a bit of stamina to undergo. There are no lingering side effects usually for this type of adjuvant therapy.

Good luck. Let us know how it goes.

Flalady, I am sorry I had inadvertently misread the number(s.) Further to Murky's excellent info, is the following based on the American Cancer Society:
Stage II: The cancer has spread from the body of the uterus to the cervix (the lower part of the uterus next to the vagina). The cancer has not spread to lymph nodes or distant sites.
Stage IIB: The cancer involves the body of the uterus and has grown past the lining and into the supporting connective tissue of the cervix (called the cervical stroma).
The above is taken from http://www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/co....asp?sitearea= which describes all the stages and grades.
As noted the NCCN site has excellent information on treatment(s) recommended based stage and grade.
Pls keep us updated.