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Hi, recent diagnosis of vulvar cancer. Heading for surgery in March. It’s been a whirlwind of a couple of weeks. I know it’s not a common cancer so I wonder has anyone any experiences to share:)

Hi There, my Mum has a mass in her stomach, they did a biopsy and I have been called into hospital tomorrow for the preliminary results. I'm just wondering if they can tell if it is cancer from the preliminary results and if so, what questions should I be asking? I want to have as many questions written down before I go in. Many Thanks

I have pain in my lower breast and arm, below armpit. I cant feel a lump. Could this be random or should I go to gp?

My mother was diagnosed last Thursday with Bile Duct cancer which has spread to her liver. The diagnosis took two weeks and now we're waiting to hear from the oncologist in the Mater hospital for her first appointment. I suppose it was naive of me to think if somebody was diagnosed with cancer then the next step would come quite quickly, does anybody know how long it usually takes before you see the oncologist? From what we gathered in the Liver clinic the cancer in inoperable and next step will be chemo but we haven't been given much information. She's had a stent put into her bile duct to clear the jaundice over two weeks ago but since last week she's been getting weaker and weaker, sleeping a lot and not eating. I came home from work this evening and she's gone yellow again. I'm unsure what I should do next, is waiting for a week to hear back after diagnosis pretty standard? Should I be calling the hospital to let them know her symptoms? I'm in limbo right now and unsure of what the next step should be. Any direction would be greatly appreciated. Apologies for the rambling, I'm still a bit all over the place with this.

hi My husband, in the past two weeks, has been told he needs open heart surgery to replace a valve in his heart and has also been told that he has metastatic cancer, originally in his prostate four years ago and now in his pelvic bone region. Both conditions have me seriously worried and concerned and we still don't know which will take precedence i.e. open heart surgery or chemotherapy. He is currently taking hormone tablets with a view to getting hormone injections starting within the next week or two. Anyway, I am scared and feeling very alone, as apart from my two sons in their early twenties I have only a handful of friends and no other family. Not sure what I am asking for but would like to know and feel that I am not alone. Thanks.

Hi, I was diagnosed a long time back with head and neck cancer and it has metastized, however, it was not squamous cell carcinoma but clear cell carcinoma. My understanding is that this cancer type, rare as it is, is more commonly found in the kidney. I constantly review different treatment options out there but thus far nothing has worked for me. Latest update I have found is that a combination of Nivolumab (Opdivo®) with ipilimumab (Yervoy®) seems to have best response for RCC. (Renal Cell Carcinoma) My query is this, looking at the HSE approved list of drugs, this combination is approved for use in patients with Renal cell carcinoma, and it's also approved for head and neck patients with squamous cell carcinoma So, my head and neck is not squamous cell carcinoma, so I guess that rules me out on that basis, and even though my cancer is more associated with RCC, I am also ruled out of this combination treatment because my cancer is head and neck even though it's more commonly part of RCC. Can someone please advise what are my options here and if I have this right. I have tried taxol and platin, that combination didn't do anything, also tried sunitinib, which also did nothing, I am now on Xeloda. Should this latest treatment not do anything then I want to raise the possibility of Nivolumab (Opdivo®) in combination with ipilimumab (Yervoy®) with my consultant, but want to know if it's reimbursable for my particular case. Would appreciate any help from anyone out there who might know more on this subject.

Hello all! I have been diagnosed with breast cancer recently and just had my lumpectomy and sentinel node biopsy last week in James. I've been told that I'll need radio, hormone therapy, and possibly chemo but I think I will find that out when I go back to James next Wednesday. Although it's only a possibility at this stage I would like to be in some way prepared, so I want to ask if anyone received chemo in Tallaght hospital after initially being treated in James? The reason I'm considering this is because I have heard that the cold cap to prevent hair loss might be available in Tallaght whereas it's not in James. Of course if I am to receive radium every day for a few weeks I'd be better sticking to James because it's closer to me, but I would like to be prepared. Any previous experience is welcome, I'm just curious at this stage without having a definite plan yet from my doctors. Thanks!

Hi my partner went to gp on Monday and was told that he’s got testicular cancer . We are now waiting on an appointment with the hospital and don’t know how to feel the worry and not known is the worst part does anyone have any advice please on how to deal with this and how long an appointment would usually take to arrive thank you

Hi all I’ve just started on this , my mother was diagnosed with lung cancer 4 weeks ago and since then just got nothing but bad news ,, spread to lymph nodes in the neck and chest , tumor is bigger that first thought ,, now being told can’t do radiation as to much fluid around the tumor which has built up in just 2 weeks ,, hopefully start chemo next week ,, My question is this no sugar coating all I want to know is this curable at this stage ???,, I need to know has anyone solid info on this as I’m broken A straight forward answer please

Hi, I want to tell you all my story and alert you to the fact that not all cancer treatment is covered by health insurance or reimbursed by the HSE. I have oesophageal cancer, this is my third bout with the disease and had my voice box and oesophagus removed in 2018. My consultant has told me that I need immunotherapy, specifically the drug "Pembro" but this is not yet licensed in Ireland for head and neck cancer, it is licensed for SOME cancers and fully paid for by the HSE but not all. I don't understand the logic behind this, but that's just the way it is. I am currently paying for my own treatment, it is €8,000 per month despite having health insurance with Irish Life, for decades, they are also refusing to pay. I am working very hard to warn everyone about this travesty in the HSE system, I have discovered during this that Ireland is the slowest country in europe to approve new drugs, even Greece who are still bankrupt have approved Pembro on their national health system! So not only am I battling stage 4 cancer, I am also facing financial ruin to fund my treatment, it's so unfair and very stressful for my family. You can also read my story here: . https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/cancer-patient-has-no-choice-but-to-spend-40-000-on-treatment-1.4159445 Thank you, Maria Waters