Prognosis

[Guest guest]

This is my first post. I would genuinely appreciate anyone addressing my problem. I'm very confused about my brother, Jack and his "situation" with stage 4, pros. cancer. Our family needs answers, and his oncologist is vague to the point that we don't know what to do. Jack is 54, and has brain damage resulting from an accident when he was a teen. He had 45 days of radiation, and within a few months the cancer spread throughout the skeletal system. He was referred to an oncologist around 6 months ago and began hormone treatment with a PSA of 2500. The PSA level went down to 350, and then up to 1500. He also takes Casodox(sp.) and failed to take the med. for 4 to 6 weeks. . (Could this have made the PSA rise this much?) The dr. says that if hormone tmt. fails to work or quits working that chemo. will be next. It is terribly frustrating to not know how to talk/interact w/ Jack, or particularly to plan for whatever future he has left, esp. considering his brain damage. I'm sure that the dr. is uncertain about what kind of info. Jack can mentally handle. I've talked to the dr. alone, he was very rushed and brief. He says that he has had patients "live for many years on hormone tmt., and also on chemo. tmt.". Jack weighs 145 lbs., down from 240 lbs. eighteen mos. ago, and claims pain that starts in the shoulder/ arm area , then radiates throughout. Jack lives alone for the past 5 years since our mother died, and has gotten along well despite his frontal lobe brain damage. Can anyone tell me more than the doctor will? How do I plan for him? What can I expect to be happening to him medically? Where can I find information that will address this stage of his everyday experience? I will appreciate any answers.