Pancreatic Cancer Support Group

GEMCITABINE IS SUPPOST TO BE ONE OF THE LESS TOXIC BUT EFFECTIVE CHEMO DRUGS UNFORNUNATELY BYBTHE TIME MY MOM WAAS DIAGNOSED IT WAS TOO LATE!

It was too late for my Mamma too, pancan is the worst. Much more awareness needs to be brought out on this fast paced deadly cancer.

my mother in law has got pacreactic cancer on a tumour which has been growing,and the she got really bad yellow jaundice, the doctor sent her to the hospital and they kept her in the radiologist was off ill so he couldnt give her an operation to relieve the pain so the surgeon had to do it instead a week later, she comes home from the hospital,but we know she is dying,and she is going to get told tomorrow monday 12th, i know she will be devistated, myself and husband cry ourselves to sleep praying is no good anymore love shirlxx

My mother was placed on this plus cisplatin. The first 8 months were okay, no major side effects, besides losing her hair, but no nausea/vomiting, stuff like that. Then she was started on Tarceva and thats' when things got worse. She no longer could eat without vomiting. But the first 2 drugs I think worked well except her cancer had already spread. I think that the chemo she got was what kept her with us for a year after diagnosis. Hope this helps.

My mother was treated with Gemcytabine along with other chemo over a period of 4 years. She is now at the end of her life (we expect it any day) but we are approaching FIVE years surviving with pancreatic cancer. She had the whipple surgery, radiation, and then various cocktails of chemo up until this past January. She turned 80 in July. The dose wasn't very high due to her age, so she had manageable side effects - primarily digestive upsets. I hope this is encouraging to others.

It helped my mom, stage 4. mets to liver, lung and kidney. She suffered debilitating fatigue for 2 days after each tx, but she stayed alive for 18 months. But this disease wins almost all the time. By the time it is dx, it is almost always so big and often mets to other organs. I hate it and still have nightmares about my mom's end. Caroline

My mom did receive this but it was too late for her. They had to cut back the dosage because she couldn't tolerate the dose that the doctors wanted to give her. The doctors felt that if she could have taken the full dose then she may have had alittle more time.