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>Q & A with Dr. Sugarbaker

These are questions asked of Dr. Sugarbaker by a Patient regarding a mesothelioma surgical procedure in January of 1997.

What exactly will be removed during surgery?

The Surgery is called extrapleural pneumonectomy. It is removal of the left lung, the parietal pleura (lining of the lung), the ipsilateral pericardium (left side of the lining of the heart), ipsilateral diaphragm (left side of the diaphragm).

How many surgeries of this type for Mesothelioma have you performed?

250

Of those patients, what is the percentage survival rate?

The median Survival Rate is 41 months.

Of the patients who survived what was the quality of life?

The quality of life for most patients was fairly normal, some have even returned to work. Patients should not be oxygen dependent. Patients with epithelial cell type without Lymph Node involvement have a 2-5 year survival rate of 74% to 39% receptively.(Pg. 288 study)

How long of a hospital stay is required with this surgery?

A 5 to 10 day stay provided there are no complications.

How long will it take to recover from the surgery?

Complete recovery time is about a year.

How long after surgery will the chemotherapy and radiation start?

Chemotherapy will start about 4 to 6 weeks after surgery. There will be three cycles of therapy. One Cycle of Taxol, one cycle of Carboplatinum and then the final cycle is with both chemo agents followed by 1 month of radiation. Total treatment time is 3 1/2 months and the recovery time.

Based on the test results of the MRI, Echocardiogram and V/Q scan, what stage is the asbestos cancer in?

Stage I because there is no evidence of lymph node involvement.

Based on the prior surgery on November 15, 1996, how long a wait before having surgery again?

The surgery can be performed now. They will use the same incision site.

What are the risks associated with the surgery?

Hemorrhage, respiratory failure, pneumonia, disrupted diaphragmatic patch, perforated duodenal ulcer, empyema (infection), upper gastrointestinal bleed, deep vein thrombosis, death.

Based on the additional tests, is the cancer localized to the left lung?

Yes. There was no evidence of the Cancer in the chest wall, right lung, or in the diaphragm.



This post first appeared on Mesothelioma ( Skin Cancer), please read the originial post: here

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>Q & A with Dr. Sugarbaker

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