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Joined: 5/28/2009
Posts: 8
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My husband was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer last April, 2008. He underwent CK and was started on Gemzar. He responded well to treatment. In November, he wanted to temporarily move to Philly to see his bros and sisters (so we did). He started treatment up there. Everything was fine until one day he went in for chemo and they put him in the ICU unit for what they said was a really bad blood count. Within 2 weeks, the Dr. said the Gemzar was killing my husband and they gave him over 60 plasma fusions and stopped all chemo altogether. Only 3 weeks earlier a CT scan showed that the cancer had not spread to any organs andhad actually shrunk. The Dr. told us there was no alternative and my husband died in the hospital. Is this possible? Why wouldn't they have switched to an alternative. He was doing so well and then BOOM...everything went south. Any advice? I'm beginning to think it was wrongful death....they could have done something different other than just stopping chemo altogether and telling the family nothing else could be done.....He was fine in Florida and in fact we were about ready to move back to Florida to the original team of drs (he was unhappy with the drs there).....Thanks in advance for any help or shedding some light on what happened. Diane
Diane
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Joined: 10/11/2008
Posts: 928
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It is hard to tell exactly what may have happened, although it is not uncommon for patients to succumb to complications of chemotherapy as a result of low blood counts. Infection, bleeding, anemia, can all result and may be irreversible in some cases. Where was he treated in Florida by the way?
Jerome J. Spunberg, M.D., FACR, FACRO
CyberKnife Center of Palm Beach
jspunberg@radiationoncologyinstitute.com
(561) 799-2828 Radiation Oncology Institute
10335 N. Military Trail, Suite C
Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33410
(561) 624-1717
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Joined: 10/10/2008
Posts: 2347
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Stopping the chemo did not results in his death. Low blood counts FROM chemo may have, and that is a known complication that occurs relatively commonly. I think about 10% of chemotherapy treated patients will die from complications of the chemotherapy, although I have not researched that number and would not want to be held responsible for it being exactly accurate.
None of which removes the sad fact that you have lost your husband and we are very sorry for t hat, regardless of cause.
From the facts you have given, I doubt this represents a wrongful death problem.
Clinton A. Medbery, III, M.D.
St. Anthony Hospital Cyberknife Center
(405) 272-7311
buddy@swrads.org
Mail to:
Clinton A. Medbery, III, M.D.
Southwest Radiation Oncology
1011 N. Dewey Ave. #101
Oklahoma City, OK 73102
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Joined: 5/28/2009
Posts: 8
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I keep going over and over in my mind what happened to my husband. I still don't understand how he could be feeling so well and then spend 28 days in the hospital in PA (on a trip to visit his brothers) where they reversed every single thing that was ever done. How can that be? In FL he was doing great. I know the statistics on pancreatic cancer. But why would the chemo stop, and then over 20 transfusions take place to "undo" all the gemzar when he responded so well to it. The drs said gemzar poisoned him...I just can't accept that....Can you help me make sense of it all.
Diane
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Joined: 5/28/2009
Posts: 8
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by the way the CK facility in florida wasin Sanford. The drs. and staff are the best ever!
Diane
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Joined: 10/11/2008
Posts: 928
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Too complicated to say without very detailed review of the records. Perhaps you should try to confer with the doctors who treated him at the time. It might offer some closure for you.
Jerome J. Spunberg, M.D., FACR, FACRO
CyberKnife Center of Palm Beach
jspunberg@radiationoncologyinstitute.com
(561) 799-2828 Radiation Oncology Institute
10335 N. Military Trail, Suite C
Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33410
(561) 624-1717
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Joined: 10/10/2008
Posts: 2347
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It sounds like he may have had a low platelet count, from your description of the "over 60 plasma transfusions". That is a known complication of most forms of chemotherapy, although deaths from that cause are not common.
It is impossible for us to say without more data. But I hope that you can find some inner peace about all this. It is obvious that you are still struggling with it, and I wish we could help more.
Clinton A. Medbery, III, M.D.
St. Anthony Hospital Cyberknife Center
(405) 272-7311
buddy@swrads.org
Mail to:
Clinton A. Medbery, III, M.D.
Southwest Radiation Oncology
1011 N. Dewey Ave. #101
Oklahoma City, OK 73102
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Joined: 5/28/2009
Posts: 8
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First, thank you for your responses. It is a very complicated family situation (I am a 2nd wife). All this happened in PA where he is from I was on my way back to our Orlando home and then the plan was for me to fly up there and drive him home and the furniture would be shipped. While I was on the road. there was a period of time (days) where I could not get hold of him and the stepkids wouldn't answer the phone. I found out by persistance that he was in ICU ( he never came out and died at the hospital)...The kids convinced him I had left him so he signed some sort of paper telling the drs and hospital not to give me information. The kids also went into the apt., took everything we owned together out, emptied out the bank account by taking his debit cards and then wrecked his car. I know my husband was not mentally stable. He never would have done this. I was the one by his side through every single treatment and theONLY one in the world that could tell the drs what had been done in Florida. But the drs. wouldn't talk to me (hippa and I could not get the info)...This is why it is so hard for me. Why on earth wouldn't a dr want to talk to the one person that could give them scans, and reports from every single drs visit/hospital stay in Florida (our permanent residence)...this is why I keep asking questions. By the way, as a final gift from my step kids I was told to stay away from the hospital AND the funeral. The man that went into that hospital is NOT the same man that had made plans to come home to florida with me. It happened and it happened quickly without the benefit of knowledge on the drs part of what had been done previously (including allergies, reactions, etc). Thank you in advance. I just don't get it !
Diane
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Joined: 5/28/2009
Posts: 8
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By the way, I checked with each drs. office here and the drs. in PA NEVER ONCE contacted them for records.
Diane
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Joined: 10/10/2008
Posts: 2347
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THey could not talk with you because every conversation with you could have cost them a $10,000 fine if they had a document signed by a mentally competent patient saying they were not to talk to you. That is the legacy of HIPAA which patients said they wanted to protect their privacy rights. They COULD have contacted the doctors' offices.
Clinton A. Medbery, III, M.D.
St. Anthony Hospital Cyberknife Center
(405) 272-7311
buddy@swrads.org
Mail to:
Clinton A. Medbery, III, M.D.
Southwest Radiation Oncology
1011 N. Dewey Ave. #101
Oklahoma City, OK 73102
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Joined: 5/28/2009
Posts: 8
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So they wouldn't talk to me to progonge my husband's life He was clearly not even mentally competent when he told them not to talk to me. This just isn't right. My uncle was a dr ((family dr) before he died...things used to be different. The patient came first and it 's hard to believe that a dr wouldn't violate the privacy rights, and acc ept the word of a mentally incompentant patient instead of talking to the one person on God's earth that could shed some light on his situation. I know pancreatic cancer carries a high death rate but hiis life could have been prolongued had they just listened to me....
Diane
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Joined: 10/10/2008
Posts: 2347
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I don't know what to tell you. BUt when patients say something to us, we must respect it unless we are certain they are not mentally competent.
Clinton A. Medbery, III, M.D.
St. Anthony Hospital Cyberknife Center
(405) 272-7311
buddy@swrads.org
Mail to:
Clinton A. Medbery, III, M.D.
Southwest Radiation Oncology
1011 N. Dewey Ave. #101
Oklahoma City, OK 73102
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