Welcome Mary Lou. I am the friend of a patient as well and I don't live close to her either - although I live a lot closer to her than you do to your friend.
You need to do everything that you were doing last year because it sounds to me as though you were doing it right. I phone my friend loads, I send her e-mails and cards and in my case I am lucky enough to be able to plan to spend weekends with her. I know how you feel, it just never seems enough does it?
I also understand all too well your fears about this terrible disease. I went through a very bleak period a few weeks back and I posted a message here that I immediately wished I hadn't. However, I had such an amazingly supportive response from people who explained that fear about the future is normal. Your friend will have her own fears. There is nothing you can do to change the biology of what's happening to her body but you can support her soul and you seem to be doing that very well.
Dee