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eric byrne

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eric byrne last won the day on April 13 2019

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About eric byrne

  • Birthday 05/08/1949

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  • City
    Lanark
  • US State (if applicable)
    None
  • Province or district (if non-US)
    South Lanarkshire Scotland
  • Country
    UK
  • Status
    Lung cancer patient/survivor
  • Interests
    photography,reading,bowling,sciences,drawing and painting

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  1. HI Bruce,I would very much appreciate it if we could exchange posts either by mobile phone or email.My email address is eric_byrne49@outlook.com

    I know we are not regular contributers now in LCSC,but I do visit regularly to to check current posts.I would love to provide more support to those who post here,but  I feel  its over ten years ago since i have had any contact with LC current treatments,I really dont have much to contribute now.

    I have much admiration for a special contributor here,Tom Gally whose advice to postees here is just excellent and so up to date with developements in LC treatments,take a bow Tom

    Eric Byrne.

     

    1. eric byrne

      eric byrne

      Sorry Tom, Galli,ooops

      Eric. 

  2. I haven’t been diagnosed with cancer but I am concerned that I could have it. Maybe I’m jumping the gun a bit but I have been coughing up blood for 4 months now. I had a ct scan and it shows a 3 mm noodle with glass like appearance in my left upper lobe. I also fell a lump in my throat. Have been really tired lately as well. Anyone have this?

  3. Can you help AMay on the forum?  She's dealing with the UK's medical system and asking questions about how to proceed after first line failure.  See her post in NSCLC Group "Chemoradiation..What Next?"

    Thanks and Merry Christmas.

    Tom

  4. Thanks Tom, Thinking about spending a week in Albir just a few miles north of Benidorm at the end of the month.My daughters baby is due around the 17th of Oct so I am cutting things a bit neat.We love Albir,with Benidorm a 10 minute bus ride away,we can enjoy a bit of night life there,wonderful place due to the wide range of things to do there.We will be looking in a few estate windows whilst we are there,maybe go and view some properties also.Brexit has been a bit of a bummer for us in that the pound has fell against the euro by more than 10%.More importantly is the UKs reciprocal free health care agreement we have with the EU,if we need healthcare in Spain we just produce the EU healthcard and we can have all our needs met without having to pay,if the agreement is recinded by the UKs EU Brexit we may have to take out private medical insurance.When I look at that particular method as it operates in the USA,it just gives me the shivers.Problem is we wont know perhaps for another 3 to 4 years how Brexit will pan with the rest of the EU countries.The annoying thing is nearly two thirds of Scots wanted to stay within the EU,it was the English that voted to leave.Scotland is trying to get the EU to allow us to continue with our membership despite England leaving,however Spain is dead against it because they have problems with Catalonia and the Basque areas wanting to become independent,and if these countries see Scotland getting preferential treatment,Spain would be put in a impossible position by refusing their claims.
  5. Good Evening Everyone, Its been a wee while since my last post,I am just sitting idly at home enjoying some relaxing time to myself, Liz has gone off to bed early feeling a bit tired.I thought I would share with you whats going on in my side of the pond.Well first off I put my home up for sale about two weeks ago,it was sold within one week,I got quite a bit more than its current market value,surprisingly so,I think its partially to do with its location,Cairnhill is regarded locally as the posh part of Airdrie,not that for one minute anyone that knows me would regard me as posh,is'nt that right Katie?. My daughter Jennifer continues well in her pregnancy,she is due around the 17th of October,we know its going to be a boy,Iam so looking forward to welcoming a new member of our family into the world.Jennifer will be starting her maternity leave from school in couple of weeks.I am planning a holiday in Spain at the end of September we will spend some of our time there looking at property for sale.Our Scottish summer is drawing to a close think we got about 10 sunny days from last May,which even for Scotland was extremely poor,so a wee house in Spain will augment my sunshine exposure. I have been following lightly. I may add the Presidential Campaign being run in the USA,seems its all a bit neck and neck at the moment,not that I am over enamoured with the choice of candidates you have on offer.It was by coincidence I was dxd with LC at the time he was elected in Nov 2008, I never thought for one minute I would live long enough to to see how his administration would pan out.I am so blessed I even got to see him serving two terms,which I think on reflection,he is going to be a hard act to follow. Time for bed,goodnight everyone.
  6. Good Morning Glenn, Just to add to the previous comments,my friend Robert Lowe was diagnosed with SCLC in 1991 given initally two months to live,had his chemo treatments,a severe form which required him to be hospitalised during its administration,on more than one occassion his family was called to his bedside,since his doctors did'nt think he would see the next day.Well to everyones astonishment Robert went on to make a full recovery. Robert about ten years later was then dxd with NSCLC,had surgery and chemo,again made a full recovery, He became the UKs longest survivor of both types of lung cancer (20 years).A couple of years ago Robert was dxd with both stomach and throat cancers,Robert being determined to beat these too,asked for surgery to erradicate these cancers ,due to the reduced capacity of his lungs he failed the lung function test prior to having surgery.Still refused to be beaten,he asked his Doc for more time for him to work on his fitness and diet to have a retest of his lung function.Well he had his retest,he was clocked at a 36% improvement on his previous test,enough to allow surgery to go ahead.His surgery involved two teams,one on his stomach and one on his throat.His surgeries were completely successful,in fact he became instantly a celeb in the medical profession,doctors came to visit him from other hospitals just to chat with him,he gained the nickname Lasarus.During his recovery whilst in his hospital ward,his son phoned me to tell me he had entered Roberts ward at visiting time to find Robert dressing himself,he felt great and thought he would just discharge himself.It took his son a bit of time to persuade Robert to get back to bed and wait for the Doctors to decide when he could be discharged.Sadly Robert took a chest infection that even he did'nt have the strength to fight off.It was my pleasure to give a eulogy on Robert at his funeral.I met Robert initally at the end of my LC treatments when I was still feeling a bit low,concerned about my future survivability,well Robert just picked me up no end gave me the confidence I can beat this desease and here I am nearly 8 years later enjoying a life my Doc originally gave me two years max.Best wishes Glenn that your treatments allow you the success I have experienced.
  7. Great news Bruce,Best Wishes
  8. Good Morning Everyone, I just thought I would drop in and share a wee post with you all.I do hope you are all well and enjoying summer.Our Scottish weather has been a bit on the dull side thus far although I did take my campervan for a few days to Pitlochry in June we were lucky,the sun blazed for the duration of our break,Pitlochry is just beautiful,we had such a fun time there. I am just home from a weeks holiday in sunny Spain,a place called Playa Flamenca,we were also in the area to look at properties that we could buy to enjoy a second home in the sun.We travelled about the area,thousands of houses there,probably better described as a sea of houses,in areas they call urbanisations,but its not for us,really not much on an infrastructure has been bedded in with the houses,only the odd shop or restaurant. The UK has just held a referendum on its membership of the EU,it was brought about to satisfy a rump of malcontents within the ruling Conservative Party,the leave campaign was called Brexit,it had a lot of support from the right wing media,it was pretty pathetic and vaccuous with slogans like "Lets put the Great back into Britain" and "We want our country back",in fact it reminded me very much of Donald Trumps campaign.In my view the whole debate should have been about the economy,if we leave a trading bloc of 500,000,000 customers,where will we find a replacement?,Germany and France had warned us out means out there will be no special favours if you vote leave,even President Obama had warned the UK,we can expect no special favours too.Well the voters were more concerned about the issue of immigration than the economy and voted leave,its just unbelievable.Scotland voted 62% to remain,so there will now be the possiblity of a second referendum for Scotland to vote again for independance from the UK and remain as members of the EU,its a tall order since Spain is worried about the region of Catalonia also seeking independance,their government will veto Scotlands application for continued membership. On a personal note on how Brexit has effected me,my dreams of owning a Spanish home in the sun has overnight become $10,000 more expensive with the fall in the UK pound against the Euro,plus there may be other ramifications for Brits living in Spain in having such things like free healthcare recinded that is part of a reciprocal arrangement with the UK with Spanish citizens living and working in the UK,the whole thing is such a mess. Sorry about my ramblings,particularly on such a subject like Brexit if you find foreign politics irrelevant and dull,my 2016 would be a complete disaster if to crown it all Donald Trump becomes El Presidente,LOL. Did you read about Donalds trip to Scotland a couple of weeks ago?,he was visiting his recent purchase of Turnberry Golf Course, he was met with the Mexican Flag flying on his clubhouse roof a Mariachie band (Scots) calling themselves Juan Direction sporting a wheelbarrow full of building bricks. Bye for now.
  9. Hi Yankeegirl, Welcome to LCSC,I am sorry to hear about your dx,I can well understand your anxiety,which is par for the course at the outset.With a bit of time and the support of family,friends and the buddies here I am certain you will become more able to cope.I was dxd in 2008 with NSCLC (squamous) with local spread to the lymph nodes.I had chemo and surgery all completed by January 2009.Here in Scotland the post treatment follow up is six monthly check ups for five years.A couple of major differences in Scotland compared to the USA,we dont do CT scans in our follow up checks,only X-rays,the next is, we dont really go into staging in our relationship with our medical specialists,so I was never told what my staging was? I suppose my best guess would be 2A?,however its something I dont obsess over,its enough for me to trust my medical team in providing for me the most professional support through my treatments.A couple of years ago I had the last of my 5 yearly checks up,my oncologist after checking me out and a look at my latest X-rays,turned to me and said "Eric,we do have success in treating lung cancer and you are certainly one,I would go as far to say with confidence,you are cured,now go away,I dont expect to see you again",we shook hands and parted as friends. My best wishes for your treatments and the successful outcome I have had the priviledge to experience.
  10. Hi Karen, I had a upper right lobectomy in January 2009,the tumour in my upper right lung was actually in the airway leading to it.My oncologist arranged me to have was is called neo adjuvant chemo,which was administered to me prior to my surgery in a attempt to reduce the tumours size,this actually worked a treat,my surgery was successful,I live a very active and healthy life.My chemo was a cocktail of cisplatin and vinorelbine,which I sailed through without any side effects,although I did suffer one bout of constipation,which I could have avoided if I had paid more attention to drinking plenty of fluids during the chemo administration.Best Wishes.
  11. Hi Chris, Welcome to LCSC,congratulations on your survivorship,this brings such hope to many others here,as we say here in Scotland "Lang may yer lum reek"
  12. Hi Cassie, Welcome to LCSC,thank you Tom for my introduction,I am so in awe of the support and advice you have provided to so many correspondants to this forum.Cassie yes I am a Brit,Scot to be more precise,I am so sorry to read of your fathers current situation.My dx was a cancerous tumour in the airway to my upper right lung.Here in the UK,following the completion of all tests recommended by your fathers oncologist they are then collated and brought to a multi-disciplinary team meeting of all the medical practitioners that will be involved in developing the most effective treatment plan for your father.In my case as the treatment plan was underway,my responses to the treatments were carefully monitored and refinements were made to it.I went through Neo-adjuvant chemotherapy a combination of cisplatin and vinorelbine this was aimed at reducing the size of the tumour in my airway to make the prospect of surgery possible,after two cycles,I was sent for a further CT scan,my oncologists feedback to me on the CT scan,was that he had never seen such shrinkage in a tumour before and that I was prime candidate for surgery in January 2009.I sailed through my surgery with only minor discomfort ( although I am a Scot I am no braveheart). I can well understand your fathers reaction to his dx,it is a scary time for him and his loved ones,I found it took me some time to come to terms with my diagnosis,my sleep patterns were severly disrupted my jangled nerves seen to that.I discussed this with my GP and he prescribed sleeping pills and a anti-depressent,I found these drugs did really support me through that period immeadiately following my dx and after a short period of time I stopped taking them. More practical advice I can suggest for your father,is to prepare for any appointments in advance with oncologists and other professionals treating your father,that is to use a note pad to write down any questions or issues you would want a fuller explaination to,also write into this notepad the responses you receive from the consultants during your meeting with them. Take one day at a time, a saying I read some time ago which helped me was "Worry is like sitting in a rocking chair,it gives you something to do but it dos'nt get you anywhere" Another piece of advice is look after yourself,it is so easy to become overwhelmed with all thats going on with your father,you forget your own needs.If you do feel stressed look for support from family and friends. Please do pass onto your father my best wishes for the success of his treatments,do keep in touch to let us know how he is doing.
  13. Hi Fantine, Welcome to LCSC,I had a upper right lobectomy in which I lost almost half my upper lung.I do find climbing stairs and inclines can leave me a bit breathless but other than that I live a healthy and happy life.Some years ago following my surgery in January 2009 I joined a gym to improve my general fitness this gym also ran two weekly one and a half hour yoga sessions which I also joined,(I was the only male in a class of approx 16 women,I did enjoy myself-yoga that is) I found the yoga is particularly beneficial for lung cancer survivors it helps to improve your breathing,muscle flexiblity and learning how to relax your mind and body.I have even read yoga can help prevent cancer re-occurance?,I can recommend yoga to you,I am sure you will see an improvement in your general health. I wish you every success in your recovery and that you feel restored to full health mentally and physically
  14. Good Evening Everyone, Its been a while since I posted here,thought I would give you a wee update on my goings on in my neck of the woods.First off,my daughter Jennifer tells me I am to be a grandad ,provisionally booked for 24th Oct LOL.I am so knocked out by this news,something since my dx I feared I might never see,is'nt life wonderful?.Liz'es grandson has just whetted my appetite to have my very own grandchild,Parker is now 15 months old and is just so happy every time he visits,such fun to be with too.Not long back from a wee holiday in Spain,Puerto Banus in the Costa del Sol region,we spent some time house hunting there too,we looked at a place we discovered in You Tube called Puerto de la Duquesa,so we just had to pay it a visit since it was quite near our hotel ,we were'nt disappointed,the town was quite beautiful.We also visited Marbella and a town called Estepona.Finding a apartment to buy in Marbella is out of the question,that is until I win the Euromillions Lottery,however Estepona is such a lovely place we intend to focus our search for a property in that area.As I may have shared with you my daughter has moved into the family home and has successfully taken out a mortgage on it,due to some little legal items I wont realise my share of the equity until mid June (my solicitor describes that approximation would be a good result,his previous forecast to me last December was 4 weeks to completion,so I am not holding my breath for June).Liz and I intend to return to Spain to resume a apartment hunt in Estepona as soon as. Seems my life revolves around holidays now,we are looking forward to some decent spring weather to get out and about with our campervan,its only two berth,but its just super fun to spend time with.On my advocacy front with the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation Org,through them I was invited to give a presentation to some volunteers for the MacMillan Cancer Org,last year in Glasgows Mitchell Library,I did enjoy the occassion,the work these volunteers do is just so worthwhile,well it seems I passed muster,they have invited me back on the 10th of May to give another presentation.So thinking caps on I really dont want to bore everyone with repetiton. Looking forward to hearing you are all getting on,bye.
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