Hello, 

My Grandad has recently been diagnosed with Esophageal cancer which has spread to his gullet, lymph nodes and lungs. The doctors advise is not to operate and also not to have chemo as they feel my grandad is too weak to cope with either (he had a stroke a few years ago).

I visited today and he sounded like he had mucus on his throat  when he was breathing, is this a normal part of this type of cancer? It made me worried as I have heard previously about the 'death rattle'. He was sat up and talking some of the time, although he is very tired lately so was drifting in and out of sleep even with the noise around him. 

The doctors have given no life expectancy, even though he asked. I just wanted to hear some other experiences of this type of cancer with no treatment offered. I feel he doesn't have long but he doesn't have any end of life care so I could be wrong. 

Please feel free to share your own experiences to help me understand what to expect and how long we have with him. 

Thank you