trishnmiller

To Fay, Your courage, compassion and competence have been a firm foundation for all of us. I pray that I may someday give back just a small part of what you have given to all of us. My prayers and heartfelt thanks for everything you continue to bring to us...Oh yeah, and bad karma to the contractors! Trish

Once the cyberknife is done we will be all done for now. Scans will determine the future. IMRT and cyberknife are just different form of targeted radiation that doesn't destroy surrounding tissue. Most doctors still don't use it much for Stage IV NSCLC so we are very lucky to live in a big city where there are lots of options! Maybe Jeffrey's results will help change the approach. Trish

I have to admit that I thrive on stress but when it is really bad (out of any control) I go for screen sucking (computer time) and playing mindless games,or just go to bed and read thrillers. Trish

Butts 'cause dudes don't have boobs..or shouldn't! LOL Country or city?

Just got to reading some of the sites I haven't been to lately what with Jeff's procedures and all. NED is the best guy around. Ilove it! You are the best baldie around. Trish Give us the web site when the pics go up..promise?

We knew the news was good when the PET scan came back with no evidence of active disease. today we got the results of the needle biopsy and the tumor is nothing but scar tissue. Whoeeeee! Trish

OK, I read about this over on the other site and now I know what the heck you're talking about..that's terrific (say it like Tony the Tiger) trish

What day? Oops, did I already miss this?? Was tied up with jeffrey at the hospital. darn! Want to catch it. Trish

Hi all, Here's what's happening. So we go down to South Miami on Monday and he has the needle biopsy and all goes well the first time but they didn't get enough tissue so the doctor goes back in with a higher gauge needle and his lung collapses. They put in a chest tube and had to admit him. Naturally this hospital is 40 miles from my house and the kids are in school. I called friends who picked them up and I got home around 6 pm. This morning I went by work and then took off for the hospital again. Jeffrey was in alot of pain from the chect tube so I finally got the nurse to get him some demoral. Then I sat, and sat...and sat. 2 hours go by and finally I get my "additude" on and go down to radiology and explain that I need to get hold of the pathology of the lung tumor and then know the rest of the game plan. To make a long story short..I got it within a half an hour. Here's the good news: The lung tumor shows no sign of cancer at all! He has to stay in the hospital tonight and tomorrow night for fiducial placement in the dead tumor. We are going ahead with the cyberknife because it is now considered "curative" to do so. "It can't grow if it isn't there" is my mantra. Thanks for all the prayers and keep on praying that the fiducial placement will go better than the needle biopsy! Trish

Dear peggy, Our husbands ages and cases were so similar that I grabbed onto everything you wrote during his treatment..and still do. I'm so glad you checked in. Be good to yourself, you deserve it. It's all so hard. I know I still miss my mom and she died of cancer 11 years ago. I don't dwell on it but..well, you know. love, Trish

So sorry for your loss. Peace be with you and the all that will cherish her memories. Trish

From day one Jeffrey has been on Green Tea extract, omega 3 oils, and flax seed. It's worked so well for him I started taking them as well. Trish

Hey All, I don't drink but I drive like a demon so you can designate me! I'm in with my bonafide "addietude' Trish

Kasey, I LOVED Dr. Kildare and Ben Casey! We used to argue over them at school! Donna Reed Father Knows Best Gunsmoke Man from U.N.C.L.E. 77 Sunset Strip Route 66 Where The Action Is American Bandstand Trish

I am so sorry. You are in the right place to share your enormous loss. The people here share your grief and pain over this devestating disease and the terrible toll it takes. Trish

I would definately contact a cyberknife facility and have them look at your scans. My husband is having his lung tumor removed by cyberknife next week. It might be easier on your breathing problems. Prayers are with you, Trish

Sounds like brain mets..specifically the gait and speech so he needs an MRI ASAP..Blessings and prayers. Trish

Well, it may be a new policy or it may have always been in place. When we had the liver tumor done we already had a liver biopsy from the original diagnosis so it never came up in conversation. According to the doctor, Cyberknife must have a biopsy from the tumor they are working on...period and the end. Now my question is (and this is remote)What if it no longer tests positive for NSCLC? Will they just leave it there? If they are going to cyberknife whatever is left anyway then why do they need a pathology? Ah well. We're doin' it I 'spose I should stop thinking Trish

Well I just spoke to the Doctor and he said that it is mandatory at all Cyberknife facilites to have an actual tissue sample of the site that they are working on. You know what that means...it's policy. So I guess we have the biopsy but I let them know that I was not happy or satisfied and we were only going ahead because Jeffrey has his heart set on it. Trish

Dear Bill, Not long ago I asked one of Jeff's doctors why the hospital didn't have cyberknife facility of its own and cut out the "middleman" so to speak. He smiled wryly and told me that Cyberknife Inc. has a 10 year non-compete clause wherever they set up shop. In the meantime I guess they can do whatever the heck they feel like doing. Well, whatever, I'm happy they're there. Jeffrey's results on his liver tumor were outstanding and the bill must have been paid in a timely fashion or they wouldn't be inviting us to this party, right? Trish

I remember "The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis". I wrote Dwayne Hickman the other day and he wrote me back..really it was very cool. I lived a block away in Anaheim when Disneyland was built..we used to sneak in when the entry fee was .60 cents and abeg tickets off of the tourists who weren't coming back (they had ticket books in those days) Trish

Nope, Have you ever ridden with a motorcycle gang? Trish

I still don't have a good reason why they need the biopsy of the lung. Naturally they have the liver biopsy as this is the same place that the cyberknife of the liver was done. I still had the foresight to to remind them that they already have a biopsy. According to the nurse they won't do the cyberknife without the biopsy of the actual site. What do they think is in there, a peanut? Anyway, cyberknife calls the shots as they are a stand alone facility unaffiliated with any hospital. Jeffrey wants to do this so I booked it but will continue calling to get a sound reason..personally, I think it is something that has nothing to do with Jeffrey's cancer but more to do with statistics and marketing. In other words, in case he lives they can prove it actually was cancer and they had this role in his recovery..I'm a skeptic but usually not too far off the mark. I will keep you updated. Thanks for all of your suggestions. Trish

I got the strangest call today from the cyberknife nurse. They wanted the biopsy report of Jeff's lung tumor. Well, he never had one. They took the biopsy from his liver tumor a year ago because they thought it too risky to go into the lung. Anyway, the nurse says,"Well, we'll have to schedule him for a biopsy' and I said,"Well, I think we won't schedule a darn thing until I talk to a whole bunch more people". The whole reason for cyberknife is to be non-invasive..kinda defeats the purpose if we do a biopsy. Just venting..I'll let you know more as I get this all sorted out. Trish

I can honestly say I was comfortable talking about cancer on a cerebrel level but there was no emotion behind it..even though my Mom had breast cancer1 I lived so far away and so much was kept from me that I never internalized any of her experience. Now, as I go through this with my husband,I look back and wonder where the heck my head was. Why didn't I get more involved? I was such an innocent idiot back then..ahh, nevermore. Trish