Stage 4 extreme weight loss?
I am the caregiver for my 64-year-old uncle, who was diagnosed with stage 4 non-small cell lung cancer about 2 months ago. By the time he was diagnosed it had metastasized to his liver, kidneys, several ribs and now to his brain.
Weight loss
He has maintained an extremely positive attitude through 15 sessions of radiation. He is very sure he will make it to the 5-year mark.
However, he has probably lost about 30% of his body weight and he was never large to begin with. He truly looks like a walking skeleton.
Treatment side effects
Here are my questions - He hardly looks strong enough to withstand more treatment. His doctor is well aware of his weight loss but continues to have him continue with radiation. He just did receive the brain metastasis diagnosis yesterday and they want to embark on a ton of targeted radiation to the brain.
He was supposed to start chemo next week but it sounds like that will be delayed for the continued radiation.
At what point do they decide that a person is losing too much weight, white blood cells too high, red blood cells too low that a doctor would stop treatment?
After each radiation treatment, he becomes dehydrated, weak, exhausted, is beset with chills and generally loses all color in his face.
Curious to know if you’ve had personal experience with these terrible reactions and overcome them? Did your doctor or your loved one’s doctor stop treatment? If radiation has been this bad, I can’t imagine with the three types of chemo will do.
I am sorry to hear your uncle is having such a rough time with radiation. I had surgery and chemo, no experience with radiation, but I wanted to reach out and send my best wishes.
Hopefully others with radiation experience will join in the discussion.
If you are not fully comfortable with your uncle's doctor, I would suggest a second opinion if possible.
Warmly, Alisa, (LungCancer.net Team)
Hi
- I hope others will share their experiences here, but also, as reactions can vary greatly by person, we always encourage bringing questions (and these are great questions!) to his doctor/care team - they will have more information for him specifically, and be able to expand on decisions/options. Please keep us updated. Thinking of you and your uncle - I am sure having you involved in his care is helping him greatly. Warmly, Margot, (LungCancer.net Team) 
Hi catgirl29. First, I want to say that it is great that you are such a concerned advocate on behalf of your uncle and seeking out information. Extreme weight loss and nutrition levels can certainly be a concern. I can't speak to the specifics of your uncle's case, but I want to share with you this article looking at loss of appetite and weight loss:
https://lungcancer.net/symptoms/appetite-weight-loss
Hopefully this information can help you and your uncle in addressing this issue with his medical team. Wishing you the best and please know that you and your uncle are always welcome here. Best, Richard (LungCancer.net Team)
