Doug describes "My Condition"
This is the first of a dozen or so posts by Doug Wright on a blog I created for him. I've imported all the content of Doug's blog and will note where Doug was posting. Doug Wright - On May 1 I was informed that I have adenocarcinoma. It is in both lungs, prmarily the left. It is diffuse and spread widely enough that neither surgery nor radiation are viable treatments. There are two types of this cancer. Chemotherapy can slow its spread, but only has a 30% - 40% chance of response in one type, and 10% - 20% in the other. If the chemo were effective, it could prolong my life expectancy from 12 to 18 months. Untreated, the average life expectancy at this point is 6 months. My oncologist is currently working with radiology to try to identify which type it is. The symptoms are dry coughs and constricted breathing. I am currently treating the former with a fairly effective cough suppressant, and the latter with an inhaler. My lack of breath makes all walking difficult, and I ...