Former lawmaker has "good attitude' about cancer

Carl Vogel thought he had flu before going to hospital

Former Sen. Carl Vogel, R-Jefferson City, listens during a 2010 presentation on the floor of the Missouri Senate. Vogel has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
Former Sen. Carl Vogel, R-Jefferson City, listens during a 2010 presentation on the floor of the Missouri Senate. Vogel has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

Jefferson City businessman and former Missouri state lawmaker Carl Vogel said Thursday he's got "a good attitude" about his now three-week battle with pancreatic cancer.

"I'm in a tough position," Vogel told the News Tribune, adding his doctors have "given me hope. I'm not going to sugar-coat it because, if you "Google' it, nothing good comes up about" pancreatic cancer.

He said his cancer is "at Stage 3 - but they would have preferred Stage 2, they said."

Vogel turned 60 on March 7.

"I was diagnosed on March 9," he said. "I spent 10 days in the hospital, between here and St. Louis."

He started chemotherapy Tuesday.

"It was seven hours long," Vogel said, "and then they sent me home with a body pump and I'm on what they call a 46-hour drip - which is attached to my waist and my port.

"It's the most efficient and aggressive way to spread the chemo, I assume."

At this point, because of the location of the tumor and some other health issues he didn't explain, Vogel said he's not a candidate for surgery or radiation, "so the best we can hope for is enhanced and improved scans after a couple of months and three or four treatments of chemo. Then maybe we can change course."

But surgery still is "a long shot," Vogel said. "I can read between the lines when I talk with the doctors."

According to the Minnesota-based Mayo Clinic website, pancreatic cancer begins in the tissues of the pancreas, which secretes enzymes that aid digestion and hormones that help regulate the metabolism of sugars. The cancer typically spreads rapidly and is seldom caught in the early stages.

"Signs and symptoms may not appear until pancreatic cancer is quite advanced and complete surgical removal isn't possible," the Mayo site stated.

Like many other cancer patients, Vogel's was diagnosed because of something else.

"I thought I had the flu," he said Thursday, while resting at home before another doctor's appointment. "I was in bed for several days, thinking I had the flu - but none of the flu symptoms followed with my initial reaction.

"And, then, I realized that I couldn't get out of bed without holding on to something - and that's when I went to the hospital, and they did blood work."

Vogel and his family have not publicized the health issue - but many at the Capitol and the business community have heard about it and are concerned.

Before the Legislature's spring break, state Sen. Mike Kehoe, R-Jefferson City, who succeeded Vogel in the state Senate, urged people to offer their prayers for the family.

"We've received tremendous support," Vogel told the News Tribune on Thursday. "We have a lot of confidence in our doctors that are treating us."

And, he said, people should know, "I'm requesting prayers. I have a good attitude, and my family's been a wonderful support group. We're going to give it our best shot."

Link:

Mayo Clinic: Pancreatic Cancer explained