Unexpected advice
About a week after meeting Dr D, my dad had a appointment with the oncologist at Penang GH. Surprising, he did not recommend chemotherapy and instead would continue treating symptoms. The only pain right now is on his left leg. The specialist recommended upping the Tramadol dosage from 3 to 4 times a day. If that becomes ineffective, then small dosage of morphine will be prescribed.
With regard to the tumour at the lymph node, he acknowledged that it has grown bigger but it's still small. Also, there was no further spread of cancer.
When the time comes for chemotherapy, he would recommend 6 cycles but with only 1 type of drug (rather than the 2 types that have been consistently recommended by the other 3 oncologists) so that it's less harsh on the weaker organs.
He asked dad to go for tumour marker tests and to meet him again in a few weeks time to look at the results as well as to get an update on my dad's left leg.
Currently I have reservation about this because we've been following Dr D's advice and knowing how much she prioritises quality of life, I put lots of weight on her recommendation of chemotherapy. I hope my dad understands that the risk of delaying this treatment is that his health may deteriorate even further when he finally goes for it and so he may even feel worse.
Comments
Thanks for the video! I've randomly googled some of the interviewees and glad to find that they are bona fide. I'll ask my dad to watch it too.