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Newbie caregiver with questions
My 74 year old husband was diagnosed with small cell bladder cancer on Aug 14 and started chemo on Aug 17. He had been hospitalized for 12 days when I brought him home. I am 20 years younger than he is and we do not share a residence, but it’s always been understood that I would be there for him when he needed me. Diagnosis and treatment is/was at the Indianapolis VA hospital, which was not at all what I expected. It is a very big, very new and up to date place and he trusts their judgement. I was not with him to hear what the oncologist said exactly but the paperwork reads “small cell bladder cancer with acute renal failure”. I’ve sort of determined that it’s Stage IV on the net because we know it’s in the lymph nodes and there are two small spots on his ribs. He currently is regaining strength from the stay in the hospital and feels ok – just tires easily. His next chemo is Sept 9 (our 20th wedding anniversary) and I actually am just looking for some input – his doctor made this sound extremely serious when he called me. He told me that “surgery of any kind is not an option”, that he needed to start chemo immediately – that even two weeks might be too late and that there is no other round of chemo to try after this one. In my net research I find time frames of 3 months to 3 years. I know everybody’s is different, but I feel that I really need to prepare myself so I can be strong, supportive, and ready for this, speak intelligently with his oncologist and ask questions too.