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What Is The Life Expectancy For Stage 4 Lung Cancer Patient?
My sister in law was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer last August. The doctors said she would probably not live through Dec. However, her vital signs are all still real good, but she is showing signs like major confusion, sleeping most of the time, not eating much of all anymore. She is on liquid morphine and the cancer has spread throughout her body. We are not sure what to expect. Can you help?
Tue, 25 Oct 2016
Hello,
Thank you for asking question.
I am Dr Adil.
The patients with stage 4 lung cancers don't survive long. The medications that we use to cure cancer have side effects, these medicine kills the cancer cells but also have the tendency to damage the normal body cells. So we can't give chemotherapy in large doses for long time to kil large tumors, that's why first we do surgery, remove the major tumor and then start chemotherapy to kill the residual disease. (there are some exceptions to this). Moreover, when cancer spreads to major blood vessels and internal organs it becomes unresectable (non-removable) because removal of such stage 4 tumors will end the life of the patient on operation table or soon after. Mostly stage 4 tumors can't be removed surgically, or there is no use of removing them, because they have already been metastasized through out the body and nothing can be done. One can't operate the whole body to remove the cancer.
What can be done is to give tender care and love to the patient and ease his/her life as much as we can. As your doctor is also doing, he is giving the potent pain killer morphine. confusion and drowsiness may suggest that her cancer has spread to brain and her lungs are largely damaged, and are not providing enough oxygen to blood.
It is always hard for us to disclose such a news to the loved one of the patient. But, with heavy heart we have to do so. Current situation is not very good.
Life expectancy of stage 4 lung cancer depends of various factors. Statistical proofs showed that 50% of stage 4 lung cancer patients pass away within 8 months, and those patients who respond well to the treatment, out of these only 8-10% survive up to 5 years.
I hope you have got my point. I wish well to your sister. May God help her.
Kind Regards.
Dr Adil Ramzan
Thank you for asking question.
I am Dr Adil.
The patients with stage 4 lung cancers don't survive long. The medications that we use to cure cancer have side effects, these medicine kills the cancer cells but also have the tendency to damage the normal body cells. So we can't give chemotherapy in large doses for long time to kil large tumors, that's why first we do surgery, remove the major tumor and then start chemotherapy to kill the residual disease. (there are some exceptions to this). Moreover, when cancer spreads to major blood vessels and internal organs it becomes unresectable (non-removable) because removal of such stage 4 tumors will end the life of the patient on operation table or soon after. Mostly stage 4 tumors can't be removed surgically, or there is no use of removing them, because they have already been metastasized through out the body and nothing can be done. One can't operate the whole body to remove the cancer.
What can be done is to give tender care and love to the patient and ease his/her life as much as we can. As your doctor is also doing, he is giving the potent pain killer morphine. confusion and drowsiness may suggest that her cancer has spread to brain and her lungs are largely damaged, and are not providing enough oxygen to blood.
It is always hard for us to disclose such a news to the loved one of the patient. But, with heavy heart we have to do so. Current situation is not very good.
Life expectancy of stage 4 lung cancer depends of various factors. Statistical proofs showed that 50% of stage 4 lung cancer patients pass away within 8 months, and those patients who respond well to the treatment, out of these only 8-10% survive up to 5 years.
I hope you have got my point. I wish well to your sister. May God help her.
Kind Regards.
Dr Adil Ramzan
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life expectancy is quite poor. treatment with palliative intent is the right way of going about it. One needs to establish the subtype of the cancer and look for any mutations for which there are specific targeted therapy which can prolong her survival.
She thus needs a work up including biopsy and treated accordingly.
She thus needs a work up including biopsy and treated accordingly.
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