Hello Bryan_B,

Welcome to Cancer Chat. It's nice to hear that you've been reading [@davek]‍ 's posts. You should share these concerns with your doctor to find out when you might expect a scan. There's also a page on EOX here, which I hope might be helpful. 

Best wishes,

Moderator Anastasia

Thanks Anastasia. Since I was diagnosed and had EOX, davek's experiences and positive outcomes have given me hope. I know that's unrealistic as everyone's cancer is different. There are several things I would like to ask him. How do I contact him? Sorry but I haven't got to grips with all the workings of the chat forum yet. Thanks for your help. Bryan 

Hello Bryan_B,

I tagged davek in this chat (see my post above) so he should recieve an email notification and he can reply to your post. If you'd like to use private messaging or need help with anything else, you can find the help page here.

I hope that helps,

Moderator Anastasia

Hi [@Bryan_B]‍,

So glad you found my posts helpful. Initially I received follow up CT scans every 3 months which reduced to 6 monthly, then 12 monthly.

There’s an argument against giving too many scans as the radiation can trigger new cancers but I argued that as I’d never had classic cancer symptoms there was a higher risk from not scanning.

best wishes

Dave

Hi Dave, Thanks for that. I have other questions if that's OK? Sorry if you've already answered these questions before, but you've done so many posts! Was EOX the only chemotherapy you had or did you have other treatments as well? How many cycles of EOX did you have? When did you know it had been effective? How did you know (CT)? Was your OGJ cancer an adenocarcinoma? Was it in your stomach also or confined to the junction? So sorry, I'm trying to draw comparisons with my own cancer which I know I shouldn't do because everyone's cancer is unique. But desperate times, so you cling to good news where you find it. Keep up the good work. Your story is inspirational. Thanks. Bryan 

Hi Bryan,

Sorry for the delay and thanks for the dm nudge!

The only treatment I had was EOX - people often ask whether I was on anything else legal or illegal, the answer is nothing apart from a balanced diet and the odd glass of wine ... though they were few and far between when on EOX though as my taste buds were shot away for months. 

I had 4 rounds of EOX - 2 fewer than were standard at the time but my oncologist had seen some research that showed that 4 had better overall outcomes as the immune system wasn't damaged quite as much so there was less chance of infection. 

Adenocarcinoma - about the size of my fist - from the junction, up a bit then out and wrapped around my aorta.

CT scans a month after my last EOX showed 50% shrinkage of the primary and 60% of the secondaries. The idea was to have a scan every six months and then zap it again with EOX when it started growing again. Unusually they kept on shrinking for a year or so then went static. 

Best wishes

Dave