Cheryncp123

I personally, though I am definitely not a Polyanna, love those 4 words. Survivor, strength, hope and warrior. They somehow give me some of the power that has been taken away from me by words like death, weakness, no hope, no power. Thank you for your encouraging words, a good attitude has a lot to do with how you cope and deal with your challenges.

Thank you Tom, I do have a wonderful life but as a Christian I know that it is temporary so I am prepared mentally and spiritually for what ever comes my way. I am so sorry that you are having to deal with this dreaded disease however, I am thankful for you sharing experiences and giving others hope where sometimes with lung cancer in particular it seems there is none.

Thank you Tom for the encouraging words. Fortunately since I had the fluid drained from my lungs I feel better than I have felt in a very long time and have been able to contine living my busy, hectic life as usual but learning to pace myself a little better. Knowing that you have lived long past the expiration date that most lung cancer sites on the internet gives you, gives me much hope. If God takes me tomorrow I am ready however there are a few things on my bucket list that I still would like to get done. Thank you again for your very uplifting words.

I have only been recently diagnosed (3 months ago) with stage 4 metastatic non small cell adenocarcinoma of the (right) lung. I tested positive for the ALK gene and am taking Xalkori an oral medication. At this point (nearly 3 weeks in) I have had no side effects from this drug (thank goodness). I will see my oncologist on Aug. 7th to follow up. I do not smoke nor have I ever been a smoker so this was a surprise to me as I was under the mistaken impression that only smokers or people exposed to toxic carcinogens were at risk.( I was exposed to second hand smoke for 35 years, my ex-husband was a heavy smoker). Since I have been diagnosed I have been trying to get the word out that this is a deadly misconception. I was seeing my PCP for shortness of breath, tightness in my chest, hoarseness and a persistent cough. I was diagnosed with bronchitis/asthma and given an antibiotic (to no effect) and an inhaler for several months before I became so short of breath I couldn't walk across the room and I decided I would make an appointment with a pulmonologist who on x-ray found that I had a pleural effusion. I was sent for a thoracentisis to drain the fluid (1.5 liters) and have it analyzed. It came back positive for malignant cells and I was then sent for a CT scan which showed a tumor on my right lung. I had a PET scan that revealed the tumor was contained to the right lung. I underwent a VATS procedure to drain (2 liters) and seal the pleura and biopsy the tumor. They did a genetic marker test on the tumor and it revealed a defective (ALK) gene. Up until this point I have had no serious illness in my life. And that is my story.

Hi! my name is Sharon but all of my friends call me Sam. I am 63 years of age, I have 3 children, 5 grandchildren and 3 (soon to be 4) great-grandchildren. I share a home with my husband Bob and our cat Grayson. I work part time for a Chiropractor. I was recently diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic adenocarcinoma of the right lung. My tumor tested positive for the ALK gene and I am taking Xalkori with no side effects so far (thank goodness). I have been taking it for going on 3 weeks now and will see my oncologist for follow up on August 7th. I have never had any other serious illness in my life until this point. I do not smoke and have never been a smoker however, I did live with a smoker (my ex-husband) for 35 years, so I was exposed to a lot of secondhand smoke. I am grateful to have some place to come to converse with others who have been diagnosed with lung cancer.