Don Wood

No one responded to this, but the rash went away in a few days and never worsened. Blessings for us! Don

Zimbo, I can empathize with you and your Mom. My wife has NSCLC, but it took them a while to identify it because there was little or no tumor in the lungs. The main tumor was on the upper spine, which the doctors now think migrated there from the lung. They took a biopsy from this tumor but, because it was on the spine, it was too dangerous to get much of a sample. They could only determine it was an adeno carcinoma, and not its origin. She has bone mets also on a rib, her skull, a hip and a shin bone. The shin bone had a large enough tumor and more accessible, and that is where they got the second biopsy that confirmed it was NSCLC. Then when they looked back at the lungs with this knowledge, they could make out a small shadow on the top of the left lung, just opposite the tumor on her spine. So they think that is where the cancer started and it just migrated a short distance. She was in the hopsital nine days while all this was going on. A very trying time for all of us. We really to need to have patience and perseverence in the diagnosis and treatment of this disease. Always vigilant. Best to you and blessings. Don

Mary, Lucie and I also choose life. Sh is Stage IV NSCLC with mets to the bones. No one knows how many day son this earth he or she is given. Just look at the young athletes recently who died of various conditions. Lucie has gotten dehydrated too (she was taking radiation as well as chemo in November) so we are well aware of the need to eat and drink. She has restarted chemo and it is going fine this first time around. Her spirits have improved with me working on that, and having the help of caregivers (both of us). Hang in there. We all have each other to get through this. Blessings. Don

Have a wonderful trip! You all need it. Don

You may feel lost but you are not alone. You have many friends here. First, doctors speak from statistics when they make a prognosis, which means there are people in the statistics that survive longer than the average. We were told my wife has 9 months and our attitude is she will survive longer than that and have as good a life as she can with what she is given. Some things have to be put in order (wills, etc.) but we should do that anyway. The thing my wife and I are working on together is to stay in the present and not try to second guess the future. Make the most of the time you are given -- do the little things that make the quality of life better -- heck, even do some big things, too! Best to you and blessings. Don

Karma, your dad and my wife have much in common. She has NSCLC with mets to the bones. She also took radiation at the same time she started chemo. Actually, it is a known fact that doctors' offices and hospitals are the worst places for a sick person, because there is so much sickness in the air. When my wife got the staph infection in her port, and had to be hospitalized for two weeks, I worked to get her out of there as soon as she was well enough to go home, and I could take care of her (with the help of home health care)j. My main reason was to get her away from infection, and I became more determined when the guy across the hall kept hacking. My daughter was skeptical that I could take care of her, but I am proud to say, I was able to do so. And I think I did the right thing to get her home in her own environment. Hoping all works out for you and your family. Don

Cathy, good for your dad! 'We tend to forget that the patient really has the final word, not the doctor. I'm glad he remembered. I personally don't cater to doctor ego stuff. My wife had radiation on her upper spine where the main NSCLC tumor is. She became hoarse and had trouble swallowing. It wasn't until we confronted the radiologist that he admitted this was probably from the radiation. He did take a visual probe of the throat, we all looked at it, and as he said, it looked normal. However, he really did not acknowledge her symptoms as important. She felt dismissed. We only had a few more treatments left, so we went ahead, but we told our regular oncologist about it and how unhappy we were. He suggested we go to another clinic if in the future we need more radiation. He at least heard my wife and her anxiety and acknowledged it. Don

Karma, my wife has NSCLC and is under chemo treatment. Two main things to watch: (1) nausea, which can be helped by medication, but I also have found that rather than three meals a day, my wife does better if I spread the food over the day, like six times. She does better with something on her stomach. (2) dehydration, which my wife had to go in the hospital for several times. It is so important to drink a lot of liquids over the course of the day, so this does not happen. I trusted my wife at first to take care of this, but now I monitor her and make sure she has a lot of different liquids -- water, juice, tea, Ensure, etc. - to drink. Best to you, your dad and mom. Blessings. Don

Hi, SteveW. My wife is also 65, diagnosed w. NSCLC 10/02. She had no idea this was growing in her until she went to a neurologist to complain about pain and loss of function in her arm and hand. With further testing, the cancer was found metastasized to five bone areas, including the upper spine (that is the cause for her arm problems). She had a series of radiation on three spots, and is now taking chemotherapy (carboplatin and taxotere). Sorry you have to go through this, too. Reach out and let this group here help you with support. Blessings. Don

My wife, Lucie, started chemo (carboplatin and taxotere) in November. After the second treatment, she broke out in redness on her face and hands. Dec. & Jan. we had to suspend chemo because of infections and recovery time. She just restarted her chemo yesterday, same chemo, and last night her face broke out again with red. Anyone else have a similar experience, and what did you do? This time it does not seem to be as bad -- there is no itch, just redness and heat. Thanks. Don

Laurene, what a wonderful testimony to hope! Thanks so much for adding your story here and giving us all a ray of sunshine. My wife, Lucie, was dx last Oct. with NSCLC, Stage IV, and has undergone radiation on three bone met sites and two chemo treatments. Dec. and Jan. were lost to hospitalization for infections and dehydration, then recovery. We start chemo again next week. So happy to hear your good news. Right on! Don

A very happy birthday to Dad!

This really goes under "Taking Charge". Lucie, my wife, had to stop chemo treatment all of December and January because of infections and such. She is now to the point where two of the bone mets are beginning to give her pain again, indicating the cancer is growing. My goal was to get her well enough to restart her chemo. She takes morphine for pain, but if she takes too much, she gets nauseated. So we try to find the medium that will give her the most relief without the nausea. Anyway, I took her to the oncologist last week and he said they could start chemo as soon as the surgeon says he can put in a port. We went to the sorgeon today and he says he can put it in as soon as the oncologist (whom we are to see again Thursday) schedules the chemo. I said, "Can you two doctors talk on the phone and get this all scheduled?" (The hospital also has to be in the loop because it is outpatient surgery.) He says, "Yes, we can do that." I said, "Can you do it today?" He says, "Oh, yes". I said, "Now?" And he says, "Yes", and it was done. We are scheduled for port Tuesday and chemo Wednesday of next week. The caregiver sometimes has to step in and take charge of the process. Anybody else have this kind of experience? I know the doctors are busy, and understand that. We really do have to "squeak" if we want the "oil"! Don

Yes, I think we have to forgive th0se who say or do the wrong things, because they don't have a clue. If you haven't been touched by cancer, you have no idea what the person (or the family) is going through. We here all know that. On occasion, I have to screen phone calls for my wife, so she doesn't have to endure thoughtlessness when she is down. She is beginning to tell people when she doesn't want to talk. We figure those who really care will understand and those who don't understand -- well, that is their problem. But we all need to reach out to others who do understand because they are in the same place and to support each other. And that is why we are all here. Blessings! Don

Ginny, I had to chuckle about you having to nag your husband. I am going through that with my wife and my daughter deemed me the "food Nazi". That's okay. It has worked and she is now eating better. Don

Tania, I am a spouse of a Stage IV NSCLC patient. She has five bone mets that we know of, with very little residual tumor in the lungs. She was diagnosed Oct. 2002, has had radiation on three bone mets and has had two chemo treatments. But she got a staph infection in her port, so the chemo is on hold until we get her well again. She is doing well this week. We even went out to dinner with our daughter Saturday night. We have a lot of support from our church and other friends. But it is still overwhelming. I try to find time to work out at the gym, take rides or walks, do chores -- just to get back some normalcy in my life. I also have a caregiver assigned to me by the church, who is super. Many prayers, many prayers. I am optimistic also. I feel this bolt of lightning in our lives had brought us closer together as mates and as a family. Best to you all. Don

Yep, go figure! My wife never smoked (nor did I or the kids) and she was raised by parents who did not smoke. But she got NSCLC anyway. I understand that constant irrritation of the lungs, such as asthma, or polluted air, can cause this. Best to you and your mom. Don

Thanks for all of you getting this category started. My wife of 43 years was diagnosed with NSCLC, adenocarcinoma, Stage IV, in Oct. 2002. There is only a trace of the cancer in the top of her left lung, right lung is clear. But she has five bone mets: spine, rib, right tibia, left hip and skull. She has had radiation treatment for the spine, rib and tibia. And she has had two treatments, three weeks apart, of chemo (carboplatin and taxotere). The first went fine but the second one really put her down. She was in the hospital three times in December for infections. We went to the oncologist today and he said it would be at least two weeks before she would be healthy enough to start the chemo again, and he may use a different combination. Right now, we are trying to get her strength and good feeling back. Doctor said this kind of cancer usually gives a prognosis of 9 months, but that about 10% get to five years. We plan to be in the 10%. I am trying to keep her spirits up as well as take care of me. I'm glad I have understanding company here. Don