Hi. Reading your post, I have the impression that your mother's tumour originated from the lungs, with
metastatic spread to the brain, and not vice versa. Tumors originating from the brain itself usually spread
to contiguous structures, and do not usually metastasize to distant organs like the lungs. Lung cancer, on
the other hand, has a propensity for spreading to the brain. If my hunch is correct and your mother has
primary lung cancer, then spread to the brain means that it is at a very advanced stage (stage 4). At this
point, any attempts at curing the disease will be very difficult. The most that we can realistically hope for
would be to control the spread of the disease, avoid complications and extend her life. Patients with
untreated lung cancer live for 8-12 months on the average, but with proper treatment a small number can
survive up to five years.
Your mother's survival will depend not only on the kind of medication she will receive, but also on how
strong or fit her body is at the time of diagnosis. If her body is stronger, she will be able to withstand
the rigors of treatment better, and have a later onset of complications from the disease.
