What would you do?

[~Ally~]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/9733803/Sally-Roberts-runaway-mother-will-allow-radiotherapy-if-sons-cancer-is-back.html# (http://www.stephenking.com/forums/redirector.php?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.telegraph.co.u k%2Fhealth%2Fhealthnews%2F9733803%2FSally-Roberts-runaway-mother-will-allow-radiotherapy-if-sons-cancer-is-back.html%23)

I've been following this case the past few days. The mother disappeared with her son in the hope of preventing him receiving radiotherapy treatment recommended by his doctors. They had already removed his tumour, and the additional radiotherapy is proven to increase survival rates in affected children to an 80% success rate. The mother believes in complimentary therapies, as many people do, and stated in earlier interviews she had researched the condition on the Internet and was worried about the possible side effects affecting her son in the long term.

Personally I would want my child to be alive with unwanted side effects, rather than run the risk of delaying radiotherapy until the cancer definitely returns and maybe being too late for treatment to be effective.

Any opinions?

[Todash]

I would make sure I had the best medical opinions available (super important: second opinion) and then probably use complementary therapies to manage any side effects that did show up. Cancer treatment is tough, no doubt. But dying from cancer without the recommended treatment is certainly no walk in the park.

[PatInTheHat]

Here lately I've come to hate pert near everything there is to hate about the "medical profession" and hospitals in general (with a freakin' passion:mad2:), oh, and the ubiquitous 24/7, life consuming, soul sucking, constant ass covering that goes on like it's an Olympic event...oh oh, and that *$#%'n Jello:glare:.
And with that in mind, and that one of my nephews was just diagnosed with a probably not too very much operable brain tumor, its my opinion, that mother might just need a little switch whippin'.

[GNTLGNT]

...Agreed Ally....seek treatment pro-actively, and deal with the side-effects PRN...

[JellybeanJay]

I honestly don't know what I would do.

[Becks19]

I absolutely agree with you Ally. I would much rather have the radiation eradicate the cancer and then deal with the side effects. ( I read that this lady took her Son to Mexico and is having him treated there. Not sure if this is true or not?? Or just blowing off the press?? The statement was made by the Father)

[Neesy]

I would want the best for my son, just as this Mom appears to want. But - if the brain is affected by the radiotherapy he may end up alive but with other major concerns. Your brain controls everything in your body. It's a tough call.
My husband had squamous cell carcinoma on the left side of his tongue. It was a large lesion and they had to remove half his tongue and reconstruct it with an anastomosis with tissue from the front part of his thigh (including veins and arteries). When the time came for radiotherapy he went for it even though they only found two lymph nodes that were positive. In retrospect he wishes he had not done the radiotherapy for six weeks. It is not because it made him weaker (that passes) but the tissues became very stiff and wooden. Now he has a hard time eating and has lost a lot of weight - and he is a chef! So I don't know what the answer is here for this young guy. He is too young to decide for himself (legally). Hope it all works out for him no matter what decision is taken.

[Todash]

I'm sure the mother acted with her son's interests at heart. It is hard to know the right thing to do. I don't think her actions make her a bad mom; I just think I would weigh the statistics and end up going with the treatment IF it provided the best chance of a good outcome.

[atomicinchworm]

I think the biggest thing is to always get a second opinion. Always, always, always. We have been fortunate having a lot of medical people in the family, because there is no way for the average person to know everything you really need to know.

If she felt the treatment sounded too aggressive (a lot of doctors do treat way too aggressively) she should go to another specialist. Probably in a hospital known for treating cancers.

I would personally treat, with the different opinions in mind, and manage side effects as they appear.

[Lily Sawyer]

They can't force her to bring her son in for radiation treatments, but dang, she sure comes across as uninformed and rather ignorant, kind of like parents who opt not to vaccinate their kids. (I am unapologetically pro-vaccine unless the individual has allergies to the base of the vaccine. Then it's a different story.) My understanding is that while radiation kills off tissue around the location of the tumor to help prevent more cell reproduction and the cancer spreading, it's far less toxic and hard on a body than chemotherapy.

If I were her, I'd get a second (or third) opinion and opt for the radiation if it's recommended again.

[dsurrett]

I'm currently undoing chemotherapy (round 2 with intrathecal chemo is Dec 26). I'm fortunate to be under the care of arguably the best oncologist at UAB (University of Alabama at Birmingham - a major medical research center) and am going with his recommendations. If I had a child undergoing treatments and a trusted oncologist recommended radiation and explained the ins and outs and possibilities for the future, I'd go with it.
As a side note, several friends have recommended I try the 'natural herbal cure' but it's illegal in my state. :oh:

[~Ally~]

Thanks for the replies folks, it's always interesting to read other peoples perspectives. Good luck to all who are being affected by cancer, whether personally or via friends/family being diagnosed and treated. :love:

Cancer is cruel, I've had family members die from it, and have a cousin who seems to be constantly battling it these last few years. She has the right attitude and now sees herself as lucky because she has had treatment, is still surviving and has the scars to prove it. The scars are in highly visible places and she should be proud of them because they show she's a fighter. Without invasive/aggressive treatment she wouldn't be here. Unwanted side effects or death? There's no contest in my eyes.

[~Ally~]

Just a little update...the mother still refuses to give consent for treatment, despite knowing there is a tumour present in her son's brain and doctors have warned he could die soon. Thankfully the judge has sided with the doctors in this case, and Neon will have surgery tomorrow. I've been willing to give this woman the benefit of the doubt in this case...up until now! There is irrefutable evidence a brain tumour is still present, he will die without this treatment, yet she still wants to refuse it because he may no longer be the perfect child she has now! Disgusting.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2249988/Sally-Roberts-continues-oppose-treatment-son-Neons-cancer-High-Court-doctor-warns-seven-year-old-die-soon.html (http://www.stephenking.com/forums/redirector.php?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dailymail.co.u k%2Fnews%2Farticle-2249988%2FSally-Roberts-continues-oppose-treatment-son-Neons-cancer-High-Court-doctor-warns-seven-year-old-die-soon.html)

[JellybeanJay]

Earlier I had said that I didn't know what I would do. I would like to add that the reason I don't know what I would do in this case is because I can't imagine being presented with this dilemma, as a mother I hope I would have a clear enough mind to weigh the pros and cons and make the right decision for my child even though the right decision may not always be the best decision.

[hipmamajen]

Stories like this are always hard to read. I tend to believe 2 things in these cases:

1. The media isn't always known for making the news perfectly unbiased, especially when they can sell a bunch of advertising by making someone seem like a lunatic or a villain.
2. Most parents (not all, but most) when given a choice, will walk through fire, glass and dragons to do the best thing for their children.

Having a couple of kids who've have desperate medical needs at different times (thankfully they're both OK) and going through a pretty wretched situation with a friend's daughter right now, I know that doing everything the medical establishment offers isn't always a good thing for the patient. There are questions of quantity vs. quality that can only be answered by the individual, and if that individual is too young, by his or her family (bless them.) And it doesn't always look from the outside like what someone else might choose in the same situation.

So, I don't know if what this mom is doing is right. She might be a selfish old witch, or a whack-a-doodle and a half. I hope she isn't. I hope, for her son's sake, that she's well-balanced and well-informed and looking out for his best interests.

That all sounds kind of preachy, I don't mean for it too. It just hits kind of close to home right now.