Question 1

any advancements for stage 4 colon cancer treatment?

Accepted Answer

Immunochemotherapy: When FOLFOX therapy (chemotherapy) has failed Immune reactive agents i.e. Avastin for blood vessel growth and Erbitux for epidermal  growth  factor have been applied as well as  agents affecting tyrosine kinase.
The Immunogenic protein that  acts as a vaccine isolated, a is  a byproduct of oncofetal protein  MUC5ac in its post translational form.  In stage IV used to produce mAbs for strong ADCC.

Question 2

my mom is 82 and has stage iv colon cancer.  a portion of her colon was removed and a later pet shows no more cancer in her colon.  it also showed a 1/2 inch spot on her lung, what is a good treatment and survival rate?

Accepted Answer

: If the lung lesion is a metastatic occurrence of colon cancer, proton beam radiation is occasionally successful in the delay of more extensive metastatic disease.  There are other potential causes of the lung lesion, such as other forms of cancer. Evaluation of this with interventional radiology may result in other treatment options.

Question 3

can someone with stage 4 colon cancer with liver mets lives long after sucessful treatments.

Accepted Answer

It is possible: Several factors regarding colon cancer liver metastasis predict long term survival. Where the mets present when the original tumor was discovered? How many mets are present? Is the CEA level over 200? How large are the liver mets? How many lymph nodes were positive from the colon specimen? Can all of the liver lesions be removed or ablated? Are there metastasis present elsewhere ie: the lungs.

Question 4

what is the life expectancy for stage 4 colon cancer with small liver/lung mets , partial sbo, and plueral effusion -no more treatments and on hospice?

Accepted Answer

Not too long: Up to 6 months, but can be up to 12-18 months.

Question 5

how successful is chemo treatments along with fu2 cheom for two days in treating colon cancer -stage 4?

Accepted Answer

This is complicated: There are many different chemo regimens for people with stage 4 colon cancer which include fluorouracil. The effectiveness of the chemotherapy varies quite a bit depending upon your coexisting medical conditions. On average, however, stage 4 colon cancer is very serious and regardless of treatment the 5 year survival rate is low, in the range of 10% or less.

Question 6

life expectancy, diagnosed 7/15/11  stage iv  colon cancer, cancer has spread to the vagina. the tumor recently grew 20%. what treatments available?

Accepted Answer

Experimental: Contact the oncologist to enroll in treatments - but if conventional therapy isn't helping at this point, it is worth talking with your oncologist about options. Note that experimental treatments are not better-.

Question 7

is alpha lipoic acid a good cancer treatment for colon cancer ?

Accepted Answer

No: Lipoic acid has been shown to induce colon cancer self destruction in human cell lines in laboratory. In vitro studies, it was also shown to suppress tumor growth. But, there are no studies in humans convincingly showing the suppression of tumor progression by lipoic acid. Surgery and/or chemotherapy remain the standard care for colon cancer.  Lipoic acid is NOT recommended for cancer therapy.

Question 8

what is the best hospital or medical center in the us for colon cancer treatment and surgeries and how do these medical centers rank worldwide?

Accepted Answer

Many choices : There are many excellent centers for colon cancer surgery in the us. Top hospitals  include johns hopkins, mskcc, university of pennsylvania, baylor, ochsner institute, ucsf, mayo clinic, cleveland clinic and many others. Consult us news & world report online to find a highly ranked center near you.

Question 9

can anemia due to colon cancer cause fast heart beat sometime.how long it takes to recover?can i live longer after cancer treatment?

Accepted Answer

Absolutely: Anemia can cause rapid heart rate, low blood pressure, fatigue, dizzyness, if you are being treated for colon cancer i recommend you discuss these symptoms with your treating physician.  Often you will live longer after cancer treatment, the reason we treat cancer is both to extend life and improve quality of life compared to no treatment.

Question 10

can b17 cure cancer? asked for someone with stage 4 colon cancer.

Accepted Answer

I : I wish there were a reliable cure for stage IV colon cancer, but unfortunately there is not, and vitamin b17 is most definitely not one.  Vitamin b17 is another name for laetrile.  This named was coined in the 50's in an attempt to overcome drug regulations and increase sales based on the popularity of vitamins.  Laetrile, or amygdalin as it is also called, is not a vitamin by any definition of the biochemical term.  There is no scientific evidence that laetrile or vitamin b17 has any anti-cancer benefits.  I share many patients with naturopathic oncologists who prescribe nutritional and herbal therapies, but i've yet to see any of them consider laetrile effective.

In the very special circumstance when a stage IV colon cancer patient has only a small number of metastasis in the liver only, there is a possibility of being cured by a combination of surgery and other therapies.  Most of the time in stage IV disease, the cancer has spread widely in the body and it is impossible for the body or doctors to get rid of every last bad cell.  There are however, many new and effective treatments that have significantly lengthened the amount of time patients with this disease can live and with a good quality of life.  Some of these treatments are chemotherapy.  Many people forget that one of the most effective chemotherapy drugs for colon cancer, irinotecan (camptosar), is a slightly modified form of a compound originally found in the bark of the "happy tree" (camptotheca) which grows in southern china.  Other effective treatments are special purified antibodies (which are part of our immune system).  One class of these antibodies attack specific changes in the cancer cells that distinguish them from normal cells and can stop the cancer cells from growing so fast.  Another class of these antibodies help stop the cancer cells from hijacking the normal body to build new blood vessels to feed the cancer.

More information can be found via the links below.  I wish you or your loved on the best in their struggle with colon cancer.

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Doctor answers about:

Stage 4 colon cancer treatment

A member asked:

Any advancements for stage 4 colon cancer treatment?

A member asked:

My mom is 82 and has stage iv colon cancer. a portion of her colon was removed and a later pet shows no more cancer in her colon. it also showed a 1/2 inch spot on her lung, what is a good treatment and survival rate?

A member asked:

Can someone with stage 4 colon cancer with liver mets lives long after sucessful treatments.

A member asked:

What is the life expectancy for stage 4 colon cancer with small liver/lung mets , partial sbo, and plueral effusion -no more treatments and on hospice?

A member asked:

How successful is chemo treatments along with fu2 cheom for two days in treating colon cancer -stage 4?

A member asked:

Life expectancy, diagnosed 7/15/11 stage iv colon cancer, cancer has spread to the vagina. the tumor recently grew 20%. what treatments available?

A member asked:

Is alpha lipoic acid a good cancer treatment for colon cancer ?

A member asked:

What is the best hospital or medical center in the us for colon cancer treatment and surgeries and how do these medical centers rank worldwide?

A member asked:

Can anemia due to colon cancer cause fast heart beat sometime.how long it takes to recover?can i live longer after cancer treatment?

A member asked:

Can b17 cure cancer? asked for someone with stage 4 colon cancer.

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