My dads throat cancer came back and is wrapped around his caratoid artery.  he has stage IV cancer, his particular cancer is from HPV.  The only treatment they can do is Chemo and they said it would only buy him a month or so.  What are we looking at on approx. time in general?  no one has said, they just say hes terminal.
Hi, Thanks for writing in. Sorry to hear about your dad having stage IV throat cancer. The tumor wrapping around the carotid artery is a delicate situation and one of the reasons his treatment options are limited. The main objective when treating a terminal condition is to ad Chat Doctor.  Following pain management, chemotherapy is the next goal and I feel you must go ahead with chemotherapy even if it means he will love a month or two more. Life expectancy in stage 4 cancer can vary anywhere from 6 months to 18 months depending on the involvement of structures around the tumor and spread to other organs. Cancer is a difficult condition to treat and his battle with cancer should be fought till the end. I recommend the chemotherapy if he is able to tolerate the treatment. Please do not worry.