My 88 year old mother has late stage dementia and terminal merkel cell carcinoma with a large mass in her groin. We have been caring for her for over 12 years, my father 87 has CLL and Chronic Bronchitis and is determined to continue to care for her at home. We need to understand what to expect next and how long she has left and our doctor is very vague in his answers
Hi, Every doctor would be vague as no one knows and no one can predict the duration one would survive. There are so many factors that decide survival-stage of cancer, age, comorbid conditions such as dementia, nutrition, etc. If all are taken care of well, survival can be long. On the other hand, if a patient is not looked after well, he or she can die within a few days with lung infection or bed sores or DVT-pulmonary embolism.  Hope I have answered your question. Let me know if I can assist you further.