Don Wood

Keep on keepin' on, Sam! You can do it. Don

Hi, Mrs. B! Welcome to the board. Your plans sound very good. It is obvious you are a good caregiver and advocate for your husband, and that is what he needs most. Your husband is the same age as my wife (I didn't say that, guys!), and she is in the 10th month of her survivorship after chemo and radiation treatments. She is now on maintenance to keep the beast at bay. Good luck and prayers. Don

Hi, Genie! Welcome to the site. Cute little lady in the picture! My wife has Stage IV non-small cell lung cancer. She has had chemo and radiation since her cancer was mostly in the form of bone mets. Right now she is on maintenance to try and keep the cancer at bay. Good luck and keep in touch. Don

Great news! Don

Christy, that is great news! And congratulations to your dad for a whole year of survivorship! Don

Cathy, it is true that the patient (your dad) should have the last say in what he does or doesn't do in the way of treatment. If his feeling better might change his outlook, what is there to do that would make him feel better? Meds? Focus on something of interest? Outings? What would change his mood? When I was diagnosed the first time with prostate cancer, I had to decide between surgery or radiation or do nothing. I chose radiation. My urologist gave me sage advice at the time: Once you decide on a treatment and you see it through, don't look back and start asking "what ifs". We never really know if a different path would be as rosy as we think. I think you gave your dad the best advice as you saw it at the time. Radiation has helped countless people. Don't beat yourself up about it. Your dad said, "Yes" to it, so ultimately, it was his decision. I wish you and your dad a good path coming up. Blessings. Don

Yes, shrinkage is definitely good news. My question, since it is not gone, would be: What is the next plan for controling the beast? Don

Peg, Lucie takes MS Contin, which I think is a relative of Oxycontin, both morphine based. It has definitely taken away her pain. We are moving now to cut down on the dosage. She took steroids for a few days each time she has chemo, for nausea and it seemed to help. But she has not taken steroids over a period of time == I am leery of taking steroids for too long. Our modus is to be sure we understand what the med is for, agree that is a target, and then see if it works. If not, out it goes. Of course, side effects are a factor with any med. Is the benefit greater than the problems that might come up from it? Good luck. Don

Debi, I just don't have a good feeling about your oncologist, but that is just from what you write. Is there a possibility of visiting another oncologist for a second opinion? I realize you have opinions from your surgeon, regular doctor and pulmonologist, but I would put more weight on the oncologist normally. You will probably get varying opinions here, and have to make up your own mind anyway, which is as it should be. Good luck and may you remain clear of cancer from now on. Don

A 20-month survivor is very impressive to me, and still fighting and winning! Thanks for your post. Don

Veronica, as people have said, cancer is not good news, but you can overcome it. Be sure you get the best treatment possible, get emotional support, get an advocate for your medical journey (someone who will accompany you and fight for you to get the best, like a family member or a good friend), and keep positive. It is normal to have funks, even depression, but it behooves you to get yourself up each time and fight back! Good luck, and keep posted here. Lots of caring, info and support. Don

Yep, no growth is good news in this arena. Hope it continues to be stable or regresses. Don

Best to you, Dave. Don

Welcome back, Dot (I don't knw you from before because I joined this past January, but you state you were here). Anyone like yourself who is over a year fighting this disease is a welcome sight to my wife and myself. Please keep us posted. Don

Hi, Glo (is that short for Gloria? My sister's name.)! You sure got the run-around. I agree that you need to have a general oncologist running the show with you, and you need to get out of the system you are in -- medically speaking. You both have the strong spirit it takes to see this through, from what I read in your note -- that is a plus. And you are a great advocate for your husband, which he much needs -- another plus. As you have already learned, you and your husband must take control of his treatment and take the medical field as consultants and advisors. If they are not as aggressive about the treatments as you are, fire them and get others who will. Good luck and keep plugged in here. There ismuch info and support. Don

Cheryl, so glad to hear the good news. That story is so "teet"alating! Ha! Don

Shelly, thanks for sharing about your grandma. She was quite a lady! Don

Andrea, wonderful news! I'm praying for good news on the PET also. Don

Christy, some bone mets hurt and others don't. If they hurt, they are usually constant. Lucie had bone mets on her upper spine, left pelvis and right sacrum that hurt a lot. She also had mets in her skull, a rib and the right tibia that did not hurt. The three that hurt a lot were irradiated and the right tibia was also irradiated because it was threatening the integrity of the bone. Don

Faylene, what a beautiful tribute to your mom! Thanks for sharing that with us. I am about 20% Irish and did get to go to Ireland several years ago. That could be blarney! Ha! Don

David, thanks so much for the great update on you and your family. Sounds like things are going well, and I pray they will continue for you all that way. Don

Candy, what an awful and incredible day you and Hugh had to spend. I'm glad you were watching over him and keeping the wolves away. I keep saying each patient needs an advocate, and you're a great one for Hugh. Here's praying that things get better around there for you two. Don

Kathy, my heart is heavy for you two. Please let us know what is going on and how we can help. My prayers are with you both. Don

Veronica, prayers said. Don

Hi, Laura. Sounds like your mom is doing okay. The chemo does get worse, but the patient often surprises us and comes through fine. My wife had a very rough time the last two treatments, but got through it okay. She is now on maintenance. We do not expect our children to devote their lives to my wife -- they need some normalcy in their lives. We do expect them to devote more time to their mother than they would normally, and they have done that. Lucie tells them if she thinks they need to do more, and I am proud of her for that, but she also does not expect them to spend all their free time with her. If she were really terminal at this point, it would make more sense, but you might consider if you hover too much it sends the message that you think she will go at any time. We need to do all we can to keep the patient's hopes up. There are many hard decisions with this cancer thing, aren't there? Good luck. Don