Anyone help me out with a question about MIL's thrombosis in lung please ?

[Kittypickle]

MIL is in spain, which makes things about 20 times more difficult. She had cancer of the esophagos and has been extremely ill following intensive radiotherapy & chemotherapy. She seemed to be doing unbelievably well given how ill she was in the summer as she couldn't eat for weeks.
She's now been admitted again as she apparently has a "thrombosis" on her lung. They are doing a brain scan tomorrow and that's all we know at present. Can anyone give me a better idea of what might happen (we need to decide whether DH should be going over) She's 75 and pretty frail as hadn't had a chance to build back up from treatment in the summer and recent further 3 sessions of radiotherapy. My friend who has patiently answered my questions all the way through this is herself too ill really to ask at the moment so any help would be much appreciated.

[3littlefrogs]

Thrombosis means bloodclot - known in this country as either Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) or, if in the lung Pulmonary embolism (PE). A PE is due to a blood clot forming in a deep vein elsewhere in the body, usually the leg, and travelling to the lung, where it causes a blockage. It can be small - causing pain, coughing and breathlessness. It can be large, and therefore much more serious. People who have any kind of cancer are at high risk of developing blood clots. The treatment is usually injections to slow down the clotting process and help to speed breakdown and reabsorption of the clot. (I am not talking about clot busting drugs here, these are stronger, faster acting and not given except in life threatening situations, because of the risk of bleeding). Injections - usually heparin- are then followed by tablets (usually warfarin) to keep the clotting process slow, and this would usually be for 6months to one year for a PE. However, because she has had a serious malignancy (cancer) her treatment will have to be monitored very carefully, and she will have to be managed by 2 specialists, one who is dealing with her cancer, and another who is an expert on clotting. She will not be able to travel, as this treatment will have to be carefully supervised, so I think the best course would be to try to speak to her doctors and be prepared to visit at some point, if there is no-one else there who can be supportive. While she is in hospital, she is in the best place to be looked after, but you will need to be thinking about future care.HTH, and i do hope you manage to find out what is happening and hope she improves soon.

[colinandcaitlinsmommy]

Be sure that if she goes on warfarin that she has blood tests done to monitor clotting factors on a VERY regular basis. MIL has end-stage cancer of pretty much everything in her body, and had a blood clot. She was given injections and warfarin, and in literally just a few days she went from normal range to where her blood would never clot if she bled, so we had to discontinue the warfarin for now. DH is living with her now.

[Kittypickle]

Thank you both. My SIL is out there until Friday and then my BIL is going. SIL bless her struggles a bit with all the medical details so we're not getting much information. My BIl is much more on the ball so a good thing he is going out.

The situation is pretty rubbish, she has been nursed throughout the whole thing by her DH. He's 80 and had a triple bypass a few years ago, though much fitter than he was.

Apparently her heart rate has been very high the last few days which I'm assuming is as a result of the PE. It's just so hard when they are far away, poor DH has thought he had said goodbye for the last time when he went over in the summer, the distance and a small family makes it much more complicated At least it shouldn't be too hard to get a flight out at short notice, FILs heart attack was one July, impossible to get a flight.