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MsC1210

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  1. Also, I hope this information might be helpful...

    Q&A: Helping Children of adult Cancer Patients

    From CancerWise, June, 2005

    Should a child visit a parent with cancer in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU)? How do you explain the disease and treatment in a way that he or she can understand?

    One person who regularly answers these questions is Martha Aschenbrenner, pediatric outreach manager at The Children’s Cancer Hospital at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center.

    For years, Aschenbrenner directed the M. D. Anderson Child Life Program that provides emotional support to pediatric cancer patients. Now she runs a new program that supports the healthy children of adult cancer patients. Below, Aschenbrenner discusses her role and offers tips to family members on helping children cope.

    How can family help children of adult cancer patients?

    Be honest with kids in an age-appropriate manner. This means you will give more information to older kids, but for younger kids it will be shorter bits of information and in a more concrete manner.

    Tell children:

    The name of the disease

    Treatment basics

    What physical changes might happen

    How their routine might change

    What they want to know about death

    How do you handle questions from children about death?

    Don’t be surprised if children ask if their parent is going to die (this is normal). Don’t answer that question with any absolutes. Generally, it is best to tell kids, ‘We hope not. That is why we came to the hospital. The doctors and nurses are providing the best treatment and medicine.’

    But never promise children that their parent will not die. This is a good opportunity, if they ask about death, to bring up the topic that all living things die, including people.

    Sometimes when parents are worried about how much information to give their children, I ask if they would rather their kids get their questions answered from the Internet or from them?

    If a child does not ask questions, is he or she OK?

    If a child isn’t asking questions, it doesn’t mean he or she doesn’t want information. Sometimes it helps to sit down with children and say something like ‘You know, if my dad was in the hospital, I think I might wonder about ______. I was wondering if you have thought about that?’ There are times that kids are either afraid to ask questions, or they don’t know what questions to ask. And then sometimes, they really don’t have any questions! So just remind them that any question is OK, and no topic is off limits.

    How do you help younger children understand and cope?

    With younger children, age 2 to 5, play or books work great. By playing with kids you build a very special relationship with them. Sometimes through play we can visit with kids and find out what they understand or misunderstand about the disease. We can see how they might be feeling.

    Child life specialists and psychologists alike use play as a way to converse with kids about what is going on. Reading stories gives younger children an opportunity to talk about the illness while relating it to the character in the story… very safe for them.

    For older children, ages 7 and up, I encourage regular family meetings to discuss the latest doctor visits or any new information. I also recommend keeping a notebook someplace central, so kids can write questions or concerns they think of when parents aren’t around, or that they aren’t quite comfortable voicing yet. It gives them a safe place to communicate their concerns.

    Should a child be allowed to visit the ICU? At what age?

    Children younger than 5 are restricted from the ICU because they cannot understand what they will see. Otherwise, it is good for children to have an opportunity to see their parent, especially if the parent may not recover. I prepare children for what they will see in the ICU with the actual equipment. Patients are often sedated and I tell them their parent will look like they are sleeping, but might be able to hear them, so they can tell the parent about their day. I also reassure kids that they can leave the ICU at any time.

    What book might help cancer patients with children?

    How to Help Children Through a Parent’s Serious Illness by Kathleen McCue.

  2. I am so sorry that things have reached this point. You might find some helpful information in the Path Less Traveled forum, as there are a lot of excellent posts there regarding Hospice and other end of life issues.

    Please keep us posted as you can and know we are here for you.

    Sending many prayers your way

    Christine

  3. Hello, welcome and congratulations!

    I hope you will post more and tell us your story! We love to hear about successes here and it gives so much hope and inspiration to us!

    Warmly,

    Christine

  4. Alyssa

    Thank you for the update! I am so happy to hear that your Mom came through the procedure so well!! Onward and upward now!!

    I have never heard anything bad about the Moffit Center. I truly believe that as long as your Mom is confident with her oncologist that is more than half the battle! If you are comfortable with the treatment plan then I say GO FOR IT and give it hell!

    Rylan is just beautiful and I am sure she will be an incredible inspiration for your Mom..

    Keep us posted!!!

    Hugs

    Christine

  5. I have another video that I am working on and will share the link to that one as well. I had so many pics that it seemed to make more sense to make some type of slide show rather than try and pick and choose just a few to share here.

    Thanks so much for the compliments. It means a lot :D

    Chris

  6. Hello Wennot

    Thanks so much for providing that link in the advocacy forum. Stephanie is an amazing lady and I am so glad you shared this here!!

    As for your profile, yes it would be very beneficial for you to fill in your time line with dx and treatments etc. It gives us a better idea of where you are now vs where you have been!

    Simply click on the profile link at the top of the page and you can fill in all of the relevant information in the spaces provided.

    Again, many thanks for joining us!

    Christine

  7. Hello Wennot and welcome to the family!

    I am sorry you had reason to find a site like this but glad you have joined us!

    Congratulations on your NED status! Your story is inspiring and I am glad you are here to share it!

    Please check out the Alternative Treatment forum as well as all of the others as there is a great deal of excellent information to be found!

    Warmly

    Christine

  8. I think a lot of us have struggled with trying to vocalize our feelings, especially at times like this.

    To this day, I still write to Brad although it is through journaling, but it feels so good to be able to "share" the things I would have shared with him if he was still alive.

    I'm so glad you found this post and that it is helping!

    Warmly

    Christine

  9. Alyssa

    There are a lot of members on here that have had this procedure done and it has gone very well and been very successful. You can use the search feature and type in pleurodesis procedure to see some of the posts regarding our members and their experiences with it.

    I know that several folks have posted about feeling so much better in short order afterward! Praying for you and Mom that will be the case for her as well.

    Keep us posted and let me know if I can do anything to help..

    And hugs for that baby!!!

    Christine

  10. JB

    So glad to read this update!!

    Hopefully you and Col can come up with a viable plan regarding the Zometa.

    In the meantime celebrate the great news of Stable and know I am so happy for you both!!

    Chrisitne

  11. Alyssa

    I am SO SORRY you are still having to deal with that negative doctor! I am glad your sister blew up at him. It sure sounds like he could use a few good lessons in bedside manner and a course in optimism! What a shame he has to be involved.

    You just keep focusing on the HOPE because there definitely IS hope. As someone else pointed out, once you get the treatments underway you won't have to deal much with a lung doctor and that will be a blessing!

    Keep us posted!!!!

    Hugs

    Christine

  12. Researchers Learn Why Some Platinum Drugs Are Toxic to Ear Tissue

    Ototoxicity, or damage to inner-ear cells that detect sound, is a known side effect of platinum-based chemotherapy drugs. The damage is much more common with cisplatin than with oxaliplatin, though the reason for this difference has been unknown. Swedish researchers have now tested some of the possible explanations by comparing the activity of these two drugs in the inner ears of guinea pigs. Their analysis appeared December 30 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

    Cisplatin and oxaliplatin are thought to work by attaching to DNA and binding the genetic material so that it cannot replicate properly, thereby preventing cell division. But because the cells in the inner ear are already differentiated and less susceptible to this mechanism, the researchers hypothesized that cisplatin and oxaliplatin may also have an effect outside of the nucleus by generating reactive oxygen species, or free radicals.

    They cultured colon carcinoma cells and measured the extent to which each drug induced cell death, or apoptosis, and found that cisplatin is significantly more dependent on free radicals than is oxaliplatin for triggering death in these cells. Guinea pigs showed more signs of free radical-induced apoptosis in their cochlea after exposure to cisplatin than to oxaliplatin.

    The two drugs also showed marked effects on the transmission of sound signals from the cochlea to the brain, with cisplatin causing more damage to the hair cells that detect vibrations, and ultimately causing deafness, while comparable exposure to oxaliplatin did not. Cisplatin absorbed into the inner ear more easily than oxaliplatin did, and it remained in the tissues for a longer time.

    “[it] should not be taken for granted that human subjects have the same cochlear pharmacokinetics [as guinea pigs],” the researchers noted, though they believe that the major aspects of their conclusions are valid for humans.

  13. ((((Rob))))

    It sounds like the doctors are very, very optimistic that the gamma knife will be successful. I will be thinking of you and praying that all goes well and smoothly!

    Your wonderful, positive attitude will only help, too.

    Will be waiting to see your post in the GOOD NEWS soon!

    Hugs

    Christine

  14. Alyssa

    Read through the small cell forum as well as the GOOD NEWS. I think you will find a lot of great information as well as a large dose of HOPE in those places.

    This is a very, very intense time with having just learned about the diagnosis etc. There is so much going on, so much information being tossed at you that it is just overwhelming. Please get a notebook or a small student organizer and write everything down. Questions for the dr's, their answers, test times, dates and results as well as asking for copies of EVERYTHING so you will have them for future reference or second opinions. (We are all for second opinions here!)

    Don't be afraid to ask questions. You are the best advocate for your Mom and knowledge is power!

    As I mentioned before, keep posting and let us know how we can help!

    Hugs to you

    Christine

  15. Alyssa

    Hello and welcome to the family! I am so sorry you have reason to be here but I am so glad you have posted so we can help!

    I agree that the lung doctor has to go!!!! Nobody can accurately predict how long your Mom has!! Don't pay any attention to the statistics! Your Mom is an individual and will respond uniquely to the treatments. We have members on this site who were diagnosed 12+ years ago and are still here and still living active and relatively healthy lives.

    Please give us more information about the type of lung cancer your Mom has as well as her treatments in order to give us all a better idea of what's going on. We are here for you and will continue to be here. Just let us know how we can help and know that there is always someone here to offer advice, information, support and HOPE...

    Warmly

    Christine

  16. Thanks Ned :D

    My new lap top has Windows Movie Maker on it and I just "discovered" it over the past week. It's got all kinds of neat features to edit the transition from pic to pic and the credit pages etc. Lots of fun! It's quite simple to use too which is a nice bonus for me lol

    Chris

  17. (((Tracy)))

    Thank you for posting and introducing yourself to us. I am so very sorry for your loss and as has been said repeatedly, Don was an amazing human being. We are all so fortunate to have known him in whatever way we did and his legacy will live on, not only through you and the rest of his family, but through his many selfless contributions to this site as well.

    Hug those babies for us and know that you are all in my thoughts and prayers and we will be here if you need us.

    Hugs to you

    Christine

  18. Hi Rose and welcome to the "family"

    As Randy said, I am sorry you had reason to find a site like this but so glad you joined us. This site is a great source of support and information and I am sure you will find many warm and caring people to help you.

    Please let us know how we can help you AND your daughter and know that we will do our best!

    Warmly,

    Christine

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