I normally post on the liver mets thread but I have a specific question to ask re lung mets. (PS. Yes, I have had a really lovely holiday in lanzarote for 2 weeks with the OH and 2 teenagers and we all survived!!!)
So, lung mets. I also have them in my spine and liver but have responded well to my chemo that finished in March. My April CT and bone scan showed significant reduction so great…but… Just before I went on holiday I noticed a squeak/wheeze noise in my right lung when I was breathing hard after walking briskly up the fell with my dog. My heart sank. I tried to put it out of my mind but the next morning after everyone had gone to school/work I had a right good sob, which I confessed to on the liver mets thread.
Well, it is getting worse and I can hear it now when I get up in the mornings and sometimes when I haven’t been doing anything strenuous. I can’t help but think that the tumours must be growing again in my lungs. I keep telling myself that I am just doing too much, tiring myself out and all sorts of things like that. But I know that I am going to have to go and see the Dr. I really hoped that I would get a good few months or at least until after my September scheduled appointment before I started having symptoms again.
So, anyone else out there had a similar experience? IT would be great to hear something positive if possible?
Hi Susie, I have bone mets but also noticed like a whistle sometimes when I laughed out loud or am walking briskly. Mentioned it to GP who had a listen but as I was due a routine CT scan she was happy to wait for those results - which I have had and nothing showed up. I think its natural to worry about every little niggle - any headaches now and I wonder and so on. Obviously get it checked out but I hope my experience bolsters you up a bit. Very best wishes for a great outcome lots of love xx
With mets to liver, pleura and bones,and which had responded well to treatment(combination of slight reduction and stability), we decided to take a break from active treatment, with the exception of herceptin and pamidronate, which continued. Like you, I had hoped for a good few months before needing to resume chemo-but am convinced that after the next scan (Aug 11th), I’ll be back on chemo again. The pain close to my ribs (the location of the mets to the pleura), has got very much worse-and exertion is becoming very difficult. I tend to be coughing, rather than wheezing-but the principle is the same- “Something isn’t right”. As I already have a scan booked, I’m taking no further action-but would if this wasn’t the case. Think you should do so as well-guess we’ve at least had 3 months without too much treatment :but due to these worstening symptoms, I’m actually keen to get started again.
I have a lung met/mets and know exactly the sound that you mean.
However the noise/squeak/rasp thing can come and go. I am not sure that it is tumour related. Do you have hay fever or allergies ???
If it is any consolation, my squeak was there, went away and then came back !!! Obviously I am hoping it goes again !!
I like Julie also have a lung met/mets, diagnosed 10 months ago. I have a noise/wheeze not sure how to describe it which comes and goes, at the moment it is not there. Like Julie I am not sure if it is due to tumour or other factors, my oncologist is not worried about it and my last CT scan I was stable I am due another on 1st September. I know we are all different but I hope it puts your mind to rest a little. Do hope you are feeling ok now, take care.
What can I say? You are truly wonderful and have greatly reassured me. Yes, I can honestly say that it does come and go so it may be nothing to worry about at all. I will tell my BCN tomorrow but hopefully they will just tell me to monitor it and tell them if it gets any worse.
I know that I am overly optimistic. Each time after treatment I launch myself back into life big style like there is nothing wrong with me and don’t give myself chance to rest as much as I should. I am so busy trying to prove to everyone that I am ‘okay’ when I am not really. The reality of our situation is just so hard.
Anyway, going to try and have 40 winks before tackling the weeds!!!
Good for you-there’s no harm in being optimistic. How unbearable life would be for us if we had all hope removed. It will come one day…but please, not for a while yet!Am glad you can at least ask a question soon-and get further testing if and when necessary. I too find that pains/wheezes/coughs come and go. It would be nice to have two consecutive days the same, and I might manage to plan things a bit better! Good luck tomorrow.
You’re right-the reality of our situation is incredibly tough-and holding on to normality/routine as much as possible is a good thing (at least in my book) Unfortunately, this does include weeding!!!
Hope you are feeling ok today and not too tired after the weeding!!! I am too like you, I try to carry on as if I am normal (whatever that is :)! and consequently am always feeling tired, I prefer it that way though as I want others to think I am ok and it helps me forget about it for a while.
Do hope you get some help and advice from BC nurse today.
Thanks again for all your support it made me feel so much better that I didn’t even bother ringing my BCN until yesterday. Anyway, she is going to let my Dr know incase they want to do an Xray but I am hoping that they will just leave me alone until my next appointment in September.
I have been doing plenty of walking and have had no problems other than a wheeze every now and then so I shall just keep on as ‘normal’.
Hi I have only just seen this thread as I only come on the site now and again. When I had a whistling/wheezing sound it turned out to be fluid on my lung. This was easily remedied by a ‘pleural effusion’ (draining the fluid off). I had to be admitted to hospital for a couple of days, but as soon as the procedure was done I had no more funny sounds, wheezing or breathlessness. I have had this procedure done twice now (in two years), the firt time they drained off 4 pints of fluid and the second a bit less. Obvously this might not be the case in your situation, but I think it is fairly common.
JOY
Update:
Well I feel a complete fraud - fatigue? On our secondary course day 1 in manchester last week they gave us a checklist to determine whether you have CRF or not. Good news, I haven’t. Even better news when talking to one of the other ladies there I found out that the Diclofenac tablets I was taking might have something to do with my wheezing!
I changed from 3 x 50mg tablets per day to 2 x 75mg slow release tablets at the beginning of June, by the beginning of July I was wheezing and it has got steadily worse. So, I have stopped taking the 75mg ones and gone back to the 50mg ones and already I feel so much better, that’s in just 5 days! Can’t tell you how relieved I am. I was really starting to think the worst again!
I am sleeping better, I have more energy and actually feel like getting up in the mornings and doing something instead of dragging myself out of bed. I will try and make the most of it for as long as I can. Has anyone else had this sort of reaction to the slow release Diclofenac tablets?