What Does Cancer Feel Like? Lung, others...?

Question

Serious answers ONLY, Real-Life cancer victims experiences preferred - At what point did you know something was wrong?

I know the symptoms etc., but Im curious as to what Cancer feels like in late stages from personal experience with it, like when it spreads throughout ones body, etc.

Answer 1

For me, it is not the cancer that hurts, but rather the radiation/chemo , and effects from it. What hurts more than the pain, was having to tell my Husband and kids that I have Cancer.

My mother-in-law noticed a lump on my neck. I was feeling tired, and sluggish.

Each person, and pain level, symptom is different

Answer 2

I am a survivor of non-Hodgkings lymphoma, a cancer of the lymph nodes & blood. I never had any of the usual signs of NHL. What I had was hellish pain from sciatica in both legs and bladder incontinence from an orange-sized tumor that was putting pressure on the sciatic nerves & pushing ALL my lower organs to the right of center. I also had mets to the pelvis & lower spine, which was causing painful microfractures. A CAT scan three weeks before diagnosis showed nothing, which shows how fast the tumor was growing. Finally my pelvis broke in three places due to loss of bone structure & my lower spine suffered at least one fracture. W/o treatment I was given about 8 weeks & was obviously in the final stage. After 8 courses (the maximum allowed) of chemo, radiation , prednisone & rituximab I am still here 5 1/2 years later. I have never had so much pain in my life & this experience has made me put a living will in order w/express wishes that I be given high sedation (basically a controlled coma) & no artificial feeding or hydration in the event I am ever in such a situation again, God forbid. I think I may be the only person who was ever grateful to hear the words you & cancer in the same sentence since it meant that there was a reason for the pain - how horrible is it that I suffered so much that the diagnosis was secondary to the pain. A side note, my dog had to be euthanized a year later for the same cancer - he was not permitted to suffer.

Answer 3

I have Hodgkin's disease which is in the lymphnoids(lymphnoids filter toxins from your body and are through it) it is treatable to a point but I am told not curable. It started with a simple tender knot on my neck, dramatic weight loss followed the the pools of sweat on my chest while I slept.
My last bought left me always tired and drained because of the areas affected breathing at times was a chore and temporary blindness was scary
but I believe although chemotherapy was hard mentally being told you probably wouldn't had a short amount of time left was the worst
I would tell all who will listen in most cases attitude is the key to recovery
If it wakes up again I was told with out medical advancement I could only hope for a bone marrow transplant but hey I look at and think okay and I could get in an accident and be killed on my way to work today so what good would worrying do me
At 18 I was given at best 5 years 7 years later I was treated and given the same providing I survived and here I am 15 years later

Answer 4

Hi e.Grab.

My name is Ananth Shenoy and am a so called survivor and have been to heaven or hell and back a number of times. I just guess even with every bit of odds stacked against me and to still be alive is a miracle. The kind of pain and depressions I have been through is enough to just opt out of life. I have not eaten orally for the past five years and cannot breathe without my stoma and this will continue as long as I live. This, however, has never let my zest to live life the way I used to live it pre cancer get affected and still continue to work and do all the things that all normal people do except that I breathe through my stoma ( the hole in the throat ) - use a orator for hands free speech and "eat" through my peg tube inserted into my stomach. I have tried to make best use of the resources available to me and have tried to convert all my shortcomings into positives and this in turn has helped me a great deal in keeping me busy and thus triggering a chain reaction - no more depressions, work outs with a vengence at the gym, social work for the poor who need our help ( I am not that rich - but make ends meet) and I have a great job with one of the best known Companies in the world,with who I have been working working for the past eleven years. If you really want to know what I feel and how I have coped see if you would like to read my story at : www.rdoc.org.uk. On entering the site you can click on Ananths story and you can join me on the roller coaster ride that I went on thruout my treatment and later. I do hope you will take time to read it.

Take care and warm regards from India,
Ananth ( which ironically means "immortal" in Hindi - out national langauge )

Answer 5

Actually I can see how that could work, only alongside a good diet though. Cancer is a continually growing monster. Drastically lowering your food intake could lead to cells that are constantly demanding more resources to die. It's hardly a cure but it could help.

Answer 6

i have breast cancer .. i allways had sore breasts . then i found a knot in my right breast last year went for mamo then my lymph gland under my arm hurt and swelled up after mamo.my breast hurt and stayed sore..i am stage 3. her positive.it had spread to 15 lymph glands.after surgery chemo then radation i done very well a lot of body achs and pains especially after radation.they started giving me a new chemo called herception the only side affect was heart failure .. had to stop that now im having heart failure..have a lot of pains...