Rower Michelle

Hi Michelle, nice dress! Thanks. I'm more of a dress type of a gal anyway, much more forgiving what with the fluctuating hips and what not LOL! Looks very comfy and the price is something I can afford too! Do you know if the curcumin will mess around with my gallstone? I was taking Fish oil for a long time, but I stopped, can't remember why hmmm. I will have to ask about these combos, so far my weight has pretty much stabilized, I go between 154 up to 158.9, they tell me it's hormones! Haha! I'm 62 yrs old what hormones I say. Anyway, I have to go have a look see on Amazon and order 1 or 2 of those dresses they look so comfy.
Thank you again Michelle, I Hope all is well with you❤️
Lindsay,
Glad to hear things are A-Ok so far, we are here for you, if you have any questions or concerns, remember no question is ever a stupid question, one or all of us have probably experienced the same thing at one time or another 😃
Take care
Roseann
 

Hello Durva Club Members-
If you have any time, please give a warm shout out to your newest member in Canada, Lindsay under the Introduction page, just joined today.  I'm sure you guys will make her feel welcome!  
Michelle 

Yep.  My family is over the river in NNJ, someone set the 9-11 Memorial on fire yesterday putting the entire neighborhood at risk.  Homeowners jumped in dig firebreaks until  the FD arrived.  Total madness in the burbs too!
 
Be sure to ask about the biomarker results. It could help determine what the next course of treatment will be.   

Hello Durva Club Members-
If you have any time, please give a warm shout out to your newest member in Canada, Lindsay under the Introduction page, just joined today.  I'm sure you guys will make her feel welcome!  
Michelle 

I am a Viet Nam era Navy veteran and had my LC first detected by the VA during a lung nodule serial CT scan. I elected to receive my care outside of the VA through the Mission Act (formerly Veterans Choice). I haven't experienced any difficulties in getting care so far, and have used the program before for kidney stones and an abdominal aortic aneurysm open repair. There were some issues in regards to getting the providers paid, although it was finally resolved after the POTUS opened the White House Hotline.

Lisa66       enjoy the greatest new lung cancer drug with curative intent
this is true at my house

Hi Lisa66,
Welcome to our club! I've been a luker for some time, I just had #18 I'm feeling a little blah, but somewhat optimistic! I had my 9 months CT Scan and my tumor is now down to a mere 8mm.
So yay me! Everytime I think no way I hate this treatment, it's not working why am I torturing myself! I get good news. Then I change my attitude. So just know that we here have been thru things that you will probably experience, so be sure to check in. I wish you well on your journey!
Take care, have a great weekend, stay safe 😃
I don't know any cool jokes like Tomm
"keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see a shadow"
Namaste, Roseann

Hi all, 
I am new to the Durva club. It is a club I would not have thought of six months ago, but my reality has changed since then.
Barb, I was done with radiation on the twelfth of March and chemo on the 15th of March and now started on durvalumab a couple of weeks ago. I had a rough time of it with chemo and radiation and was like you, I just wanted to go somewhere and not think about cancer. We live in NC and was able to go to Myrtle beach when it reopened and it was wonderful. Take a little weekend and go somewhere it is good for the soul I think. 
Lisa

No beaches here in KS but we WILL head out to one of the “lakes” and camp out in some lawn chairs to celebrate Barb’s crossing of the Durva finish line!  Carry on Barb! 

No beaches here in KS but we WILL head out to one of the “lakes” and camp out in some lawn chairs to celebrate Barb’s crossing of the Durva finish line!  Carry on Barb! 

Barb, soon as I can take the beach chair, I'll head to the Jersey Shore and chill out there  foe ya' and send you the vibes. Several are open for exercise, but I'm more laid back type😁😁
Opal

Thanks Opal. I’m hoping I can get a hotel on the GA beach sometimes soon. I’ll bring my masks and clean the room if I have to. 

Hey Ron- 
You’re down but definitely not out!  We have ALK which is so rare the docs don’t see a lot of us which makes it an outlier they really don’t know what to do with us.   Sorry for all those extra diagnostics and it does sound like the targeted therapy is doing the job.   @Tom Galli got it right.  You gotta stay the course!   Hang in there buddy.  We’re all pulling for you! 
Michelle

Barb, CONGRATS and welcome to Done With Durva club.  Go take that vacation, even if only in your mind. 
Ron, sounds good. An optimistic ONC can make all the difference. Maybe a blessing your first doc sent your for that second opinion. Hang in and stay positive.
Opal

Hey Ron- 
You’re down but definitely not out!  We have ALK which is so rare the docs don’t see a lot of us which makes it an outlier they really don’t know what to do with us.   Sorry for all those extra diagnostics and it does sound like the targeted therapy is doing the job.   @Tom Galli got it right.  You gotta stay the course!   Hang in there buddy.  We’re all pulling for you! 
Michelle

Ron   ..this new information sounds good to me, my last CT stills shows post treatment things in my lung. When you wake up in the morning you know your still here and you have a large team watching after you. 
Barb  congratulations on making it to #26. I'm starting to feel much more energy now that I'm done
I hope all the Durva club has a great spring and nice gardens
Stay Safe
Do you want to hear two short jokes and a long joke?
Joke, joke, jooooooooooooke.

Well it’s finally here. I’m so excited for #26 tomorrow. I’m hoping that in a few weeks/months I will feel almost normal with no chemical induced side effects?  Ready for a much needed break. I only wish I could take a vacation. 

Hey Ron- 
You’re down but definitely not out!  We have ALK which is so rare the docs don’t see a lot of us which makes it an outlier they really don’t know what to do with us.   Sorry for all those extra diagnostics and it does sound like the targeted therapy is doing the job.   @Tom Galli got it right.  You gotta stay the course!   Hang in there buddy.  We’re all pulling for you! 
Michelle

Hey Ron. Good news!  Stay positive!

First of all I would like to sincerely thank everyone who messaged me regarding my last post.
Secondly I would like to apologize for not responding back sooner, however between the March CT Scan results that my ONC implied showed probable reoccurrence in my right lobe and likely progression to additional lymph nodes, and then being told that in his opinion that I should seek a second opinion consult elsewhere on possible treatments going forward, including clinical trials, sent me to a very dark place in my mind. It was somewhere that I have rarely ever visited. As a result, I just needed some serious alone time to get my head screwed back on straight. Suggestions and words of encouragement were deeply appreciated, but I needed to work through it all in my mind.
Since then, I have met with the second opinion ONC who had me have a new PET Scan, followed by a Bronchoscopic EBUS fine needle aspiration of both the primary tumor location and several of the lymph nodes. Of course in the middle of this, the hospital initiated a policy that anyone having a pulmonary procedure done must have a COVID-19 test first and it be negative. I never realized just how far back someone could actually insert a swab into your nose. It felt like it was coming out the back of my head and actually made my eyes water! I can guarantee that I've never my finger or anything else that deep in there.😆
The PET scan results were pretty unremarkable. IMPRESSION: 1. The previously noted nodular opacity in the right upper lobe has decreased in size and FDG activity with current metabolic activity slightly above the blood pool. Since the prior PET/CT scan, there has been interval increase in size of right suprahilar consolidative opacities with mild associated FDG uptake. This is favored to represent post treatment/post radiation changes although evaluation of underlying malignancy is limited. Continued attention on follow-up imaging is recommended. 2. No definite evidence of FDG avid distant metastatic disease.
The Pulmonologist debated whether to perform the EBUS with sample being taken from both the primary tumor and the lymph nodes identified however the second opinion ONC wanted tissue samples to send off to CARIS for more in-depth biomarker testing.
The biopsy remarks from the Pulmonologist Report states: "Lymph node and right lung biopsy are both negative for cancer - this is good news. I think we can continue current therapy and monitor. This suggests this is mostly scar tissue, not progressive cancer." 
I have a videochat meeting with the new ONC this Friday to see what she thinks. My normal ONC is conservative and says that the EBUS aspiration may have not taken samples from exactly the right spot so although preliminarily findings look good, there is a possibility that they are not.
I will update again once I hear from the ONC and what the plans are going forward, but at least things are not as bad as I thought they may be. Plus I found my way back from the dark side. Thanks again to ALL. I sincerely appreciated the thoughts and suggestions, they truly helped me when I was at my lowest.
Ron

Congrats on making into the home stretch Barb!   Sounds like we're all living in scan land.  Hopefully they will get spaced out over time.  A few of my friends on immunotherapy are moving to the six month schedule.    Hope and wait.   

Opal, thanks for letting me know about Ron! 
Ron, 
I'm so sorry about the most recent report.  So it begins all over again, the diagnostic process.   Hopefully the comprehensive bio-marker testing will reveal another targetable mutation such as RET or MET.   Transferring to the University is your best bet, the University of Ohio has a stellar reputation.  There's a few international lung cancer experts there, who knew?  
Have you reached out to the GO2Foundation to participate in the SPACEWALK observational trial with Dr Oxnard at Mass General?  It's a free liquid biopsy with treatment recommendations based on the national ALK tumor data base they are curating.  Nurse Alicia is the point of contact at GO2.   
Stay in the game and keep fighting!   
Michelle 

Barb, way to go! One and done!! 
I know exactly how you're feeling about getting done. It is strange after so many appointments, treatments and scans...always something to keep it in check and now only scans every 3 months. Can be a little scary. It seems to always be in the back of my mind until I forget about it. Then I try to be normal, the old me again.  I try and remind myself anxiety is not good for the immune system. It CAN make you sick.
I don't agree with you on the rear ugly head part. That's not a given. Yes, we hear about reoccurrence but I also heard of survivors who had only one go round and are living long lives. I prefer to keep that in mind. 
So for now Jersey Girl, let it go and enjoy your new found freedom. 
Opal

Tomm, CONGRATS!  Welcome to the I'm done my Durva club.
Barb will be coming around the corner very soon.  Seems like just yesterday we were all embarking on this Durva journey one by one. With 😎 Bob the leader. 
Stay positive and stay well.
Hey Tomm, the K9s are asking why humans are wearing muzzles..  

infusion #26 for this Thursday canceled today. The  CT due after the final canceled, port will not be removed.. canceled.  Doctor didn't think the Cancer Clinic was a safe place for me. There will be no future infusions for me with a maybe sometime in future when things settle down. They did not close the clinic but the fact that I was NED 3 months ago was part of the decision. Anyone else canceled or delayed? 
I wish the best for my fellow travelers on this journey ..Stay Safe
 
Why do they call it the novel coronavirus? It’s a long story….
Why didn’t the sick guy get the joke? It flu over his head.
Why don’t chefs find coronavirus jokes funny? They’re in bad taste.
I’ll tell you a coronavirus joke now, but you’ll have to wait two weeks to see if you got it.
Nail salons, hair salons, waxing center and tanning places are closed. It’s about to get ugly out there.
Finland just closed its borders. You know what that means. No one will be crossing the finish line.