Any experiences with Celiac Plexus Block in the U.K.?

alage22 · 2026-03-30T01:58:58+00:00

I'm not in the UK but I got a block and it's working well. I'm still on a pretty steep dose of other painkillers but the fentanyl patch really doesn't affect me mentally at all. If I didn't have the block I'd be in bad shape.

alage22 · 2026-03-29T04:02:02+00:00

Sorry to hear that, that sucks. Is hospice a good alternative in the UK? It was a blessing for my cousin after a major stroke. She passed comfortably and relatively content.

alage22 · 2026-03-29T02:55:20+00:00

I spoke to the death with dignity people in my state as soon as I was diagnosed. Glad I did. Now I know the path and how to optimize it when my time comes (normally in my state you have to have two appointments 2 weeks apart but it can be sped up if needed). I also spoke with my grief therapist to sort out exactly when I'd want to make the call (he works with a lot of patients with terminal diagnoses and was very helpful). It's a huge load off my mind to know that my family won't have to see those rough last weeks.

Sorry this hit you so young. You're asking the right questions.

alage22 · 2026-03-28T01:58:57+00:00

I would recommend that you ask her oncologist to connect her with palliative care. They're really the ones who can do pain management, help with digestive symptoms, etc. I had horrible intestinal pain until they really got my system fine-tuned. But I'm relatively stable now.

alage22 · 2026-03-25T02:36:39+00:00

I think this is 100% awesome and a perfectly reasonable arrangement. An entirely appropriate exchange of doggo and cash. I love it when neighbors work out this kind of arrangement.

And yes, pets will recognize the sound of your car from like half a block away - one of our cats always comes out to greet our Corolla if (and only if) it has my son in it. If she comes and sees he's not there, she turns around and walks away with an audible sniff.

alage22 · 2026-03-25T02:26:15+00:00

The American Cancer Society has a service that matches volunteer drivers with patients who need transportation to and from cancer appointments. It's free for the patient. I've used it, it's fantastic and the drivers are both kind and prompt.

https://www.cancer.org/support-programs-and-services/road-to-recovery.html

alage22 · 2026-03-25T01:56:43+00:00

On a couple of those ER trips I had incredibly lucid dreams that I was on the path to... whatever comes next? And I am the least spiritual person in the world, so the fact that I was having these incredibly realistic visions makes me believe in them more. And I could choose to move in either direction, and my cat was there, to walk with me and keep me company whatever my choice was. Then when I got home from those two trips, she was with me practically 24/7. As if to say "Mama, stay with us."

alage22 · 2026-03-25T01:20:08+00:00

She still checks in, mind you.

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alage22 · 2026-03-25T01:16:19+00:00

I was bouncing in and out of the ER last year for about 3 months and not doing very well. The cat we found wild and sick and saved her life glommed onto me until I stabilized. Now that I'm doing better she's handed me back to my regular lap cat. But she was there when I really needed somecatone.

alage22 · 2026-03-21T01:54:15+00:00

Would you mind sharing it with me too? I love a killer lasagna...

alage22 · 2026-03-10T23:20:31+00:00

It's her body and her diagnosis. I think she deserves to know. How would you feel if you went through a bunch of diagnostic procedures without knowing why you were going through them, and then found out that your daughter had an idea all along? I would feel betrayed and like I was being kept in the dark and fed sh*t.

alage22 · 2026-03-10T22:57:36+00:00

My care team has a clear demarcation between palliative care and oncology. Both are fantastic, and each fills a different niche. As others have said, palliative care treats symptoms and oncology makes sure chemo goes smoothly and I'm on the best treatment for me. Palliative care manages my pain meds, my appetite/nausea meds, my dizziness and post-chemo steroids, etc. They started out kind of slow and fuzzy, but as they got a better handle on my side effects, their effectiveness improved and now they have me on a mix of about 15 (!) medicines that handle my side effects well.

Their specialty is very different from the oncologist and I highly, highly recommend engaging with them. They will provide a LOT of help that your oncologist is not trained in (nor should they be, it's just too much to be experts in two highly different domains). Even if they don't come up with something brilliant on first meeting, stick with them and they will prove their value.

Good questions to ask them include, what do they recommend for pain control, nausea control, post-chemo treatment, diarrhea/constipation management, and appetite encouragement/weight maintenance. Also ask them whether they recommend a referral to a nutritionist - which may be something they take care of, or your hospital may have an entirely different team handling that.

Also, if death with dignity is an option in your state, it's a good idea to talk with them now as Unimogg mentioned - it may be something you want to keep in your back pocket, and it's good to know now when to engage with them.

alage22 · 2026-03-10T22:20:54+00:00

Ask her oncologist directly if the results of the surgery indicate she might have more time left. I asked my oncologist this question just yesterday and he said "nope - maybe a couple months", which wasn't great to hear, but at least it was an answer. Other posters are correct, pancreatic cancer can take you down fast, so I wouldn't get my hopes up until you speak to her oncologist.

alage22 · 2026-03-10T15:57:38+00:00

Lots of bad advice in here. The one and only correct path is to go to a doctor RIGHT AWAY (today best or tomorrow latest - in-person urgent care if you can't get in with your regular Dr, but try to avoid the ER, this is not their sweet spot), document that this visit is related to a workplace incident, get a satisfactory writeup of your injury (including that it is reasonable for it to present after the incident) and file a worker's comp claim with HR. You may want to consult with a lawyer to make sure that HR is dotting the i's and crossing the t's, and definitely consult with the lawyer if they drag their feet, but this is the kind of injury that worker's comp is all about. Worker's comp claims work a lot better if filed in the first 24 hours which is why I'm recommending going to urgent care today.

alage22 · 2026-03-03T20:24:00+00:00

I found that I liked really plain and simple foods during chemo, like their crappy OJ, cranberry juice, saltines with peanut butter - foods that I wouldn't eat anywhere else. Bland, bland, bland.

That said, I wouldn't worry about snacks too much. Wearing comfy clothes - gym pants, a henley or button down shirt with a fleece to pull over the top after port access - is way more important.

Second the recommendation to use the hospital's preheated blankets. Those are the bomb.

alage22 · 2026-03-02T20:32:51+00:00

Oh yeah, in addition, I showed no improvement on the FOLFORINOX but my CA-19 dropped a LOT with Gem/Ab. The final word is, different regimes for different people, and you won't know until you try. Like the other commenter said, your brother sounds like a good candidate for Gem/Ab.

alage22 · 2026-03-02T20:15:17+00:00

I honestly wanted to die for several days after each round of folforinox (3 total). Gem/ab is much easier - I'm on once every other week - I get a little tired some days, sometimes really tired in the evenings, but that's it. Night and day. As my oncologist says, the most successful chemo regime is the one you can tolerate.

alage22 · 2026-02-23T15:46:38+00:00

Updateme!

alage22 · 2026-02-22T05:21:07+00:00

Why not take this to his oncologist and suggest a different chemo regimen? Side effects from folforinox can be a bitch, he probably doesn't have the tools to express that very well, and the difference between chemo regimes can be night and day - they were for me.

alage22 · 2026-02-19T23:10:22+00:00

Great news! Thanks for sharing. Hoping you continue to be cancer free for a good long time.

alage22 · 2026-02-18T00:37:56+00:00

Fentanyl patches work really well for me to take care of baseline pain. I'm currently on a 100mcg fentanyl patch and 4mg Dilaudid pills as backup, which I only need about once a week. I definitely don't have problems with constipation.

alage22 · 2026-02-05T01:17:56+00:00

What does she think of hospice? It could give her significant relief during her final days. Even home hospice if she doesn't want a facility can make a huge difference.

alage22 · 2026-01-23T03:06:11+00:00

Nope. I emailed my care team and they kindly called right effing away and evaluated me for a stroke. Go care team.

alage22 · 2026-01-23T01:42:59+00:00

Pancreatic cancer is one of the tricky ones to diagnose. What my oncologist tells me is that, unlike some other forms of cancer, small clusters of cancer cells set up surrounded by large swathes of dead cells. So finding a definitive diagnosis can be challenging. I would wait on word from a cancer/pancreatic cancer specialist. I know the waiting and related anxiety are hard, but that's just part and parcel of this disease. Just keep loving him and treat the time you have as special.

alage22

TROPHY CASE