Pancreatic cancer

[Lmr05]

My mum has recently had a few scans as she has been getting a little pain in her side for quite some time now. Something was seen on her liver but after a further test was told 'no further concern and more than likely a small cyst. However after a few more CT scans it was confirmed she has pancreatic cancer which has spread to her liver which I don't understand as she was told no further concern for that. No biopsies have been taken, she hasn't lost any weight and she doesn't have jaundice which I believe are the main signs of this cancer. All her bloods came back normal apart from one which was linked to ovarian cancer but after a scan on them, everything was clear. Also adding in the fact the consultant walked in the room with no notes and just told her it's bad news and referred her to the macmillan nurses. He never went through anything with her. I know I am wishful thinking but can this sort of cancer be confirmed without a biopsy? Really struggling to cope and I'm holding on to any hope that they have got it so so wrong.

I wish I could say differently but I have a similar experience of my lovely dad’s pancreatic cancer diagnosis.
My dad wasn’t offered a stent or any intervention - it was never discussed. He didn’t have a biopsy and had been misdiagnosed for quite a while with earlier symptoms.
I would suggest if you have any questions perhaps a call to McMillan might be useful?
I really feel for you as I remember how incredibly scared I was and desperate for information.
You and your mum are in my thoughts
x

@HighHeelsHurt thank you for your message. I think I am just struggling to come to terms with it. Apart from a little niggly pain in my mum's side she just seems so well to believe this is happening. When I have read up on it everyone seems so poorly at diagnosis stage but maybe all that is yet to come 😔 x

@Lmr05 I honestly can really relate to how you are feeling. My dad was a manual worker and was doing a full days labour about 2 weeks before diagnosis. He was getting very tired though and taking himself to bed early in the evening. If I look back I think he was probably showing symptoms of being generally unwell for a few months (incorrectly diagnosed with diabetes and infections but the antibiotics never worked) and then one day he woke up and he was yellow. We got the diagnosis that day after a trip to A & E. At that point he was still pretty well. Sadly we didn’t have that long with him, pancreatic cancer can be quite aggressive, but I’m so grateful for that time to be with him and chat with him and tell him I love him. It was very very scary because I didn’t know what to expect. I struggled with anticipatory grief during that time- I just knew deep down it was bad.
I don’t want to give you false hope, but might it be worth contacting the consultant (secretary) to see if they can look at treatment options? I do remember my dad’s case needing to go to a triage a few days after diagnosis to discuss treatment plans. Unfortunately his was too far gone so it was only a plan to keep him at home as that was our wishes, but presumably that is the protocol and you might get some more information soon?

We had months of treating a stomach ulcer and it was only in the later stages that it was diagnosed. Initially as cancer of duodenal cap, it was only on investigation to bypass it they found it in the pancreas and it had spread to the liver. Its a virulent cancer and underdiagnosed to presenting as so many other things. She was teaching 2 weeks before.

I hope for you there is a glimmer of positive news.

@HighHeelsHurt I am so so sorry about your dad. My mum was exactly the same she was literally working the day before her diagnosis but since finding out the news she seems to be sleeping a lot and struggling to eat obviously finding it really hard to get her head around it all. She initially opted out of any treatment as she was advised the outcome of pancreatic cancer is not great but she has since opted to have a biopsy done which is next week to see what can be offered to her if anything. We can only take each day as it comes. Life can be cruel. Thank you for your messages you have really helped x

@Lmr05 I hate to think of anyone going through this. Life can be cruel, but those last few weeks with my dad were actually really very precious.
I do hope the biopsy offers some hope. I will always be here if you need to chat x

@HighHeelsHurt thank you so much, I really appreciate it xx