MsC1210

Dear Lillian I can tell you that YES the food issues and the cravings for a smoke WILL GET BETTER! I quit almost 2 years ago and am so glad I did. It was, however, the hardest thing I have ever done. Give yourself time and be patient. I did gain weight, about 10bs from the not smoking and then more after Brad died. I am happier being smokefree and fat though. I had cravings for about 6 months or so. I would be walking down the sidewalk and someone in front of me would be puffing away and I would catch myself sniffing the air and thinking OH MAN that smells so good.. Now, however, I find it sickening most days. I do still have an occasional day that I think, hmm just one would never hurt. But I know that if I smoke one, it will lead to 2 and 3, and on and on and I worked too damn hard to quit, so no way am I going back. You will reach the plateau that things level out soon. I was told that it takes about 6 months for your body to adjust to the lack of nicotine. Not sure if that is accurate or not, but after my 6 month mark I do recall not having such severe cravings. As for the food, I tried to snack on more fresh fruit, organic snacks, veggie chips, etc. All the healthy stuff. I lost that discipline when Brad died. I was so devastated and food became my solace and my best friend. I have moved beyond that, now, and will be very glad to lose all the weight I packed on! I have about 25-30lbs of new me that I will be very glad to see go away again! One more comment about the forgetfulness. I went through a bout of that when I quit smoking. I do not know if the 2 are related but I have heard the same type of stories from others who quit. I wonder if there is some chemical thing that happens with the lack of nicotine that causes that. It was not something that lasted too long, but it was noticeable to me and annoying, too. I hope this will be the case with you, a temporary issue. Please feel free to pm me anytime you want or need. I will be more than happy to continue to share experiences with you if it will help. So sorry this got so long and rambling. Hugs and prayers to you. Chris

Grace, Sending prayers and positive thoughts to you and your family. I am so sorry to read about your busbands reaction. Hoping that the docs can get together and the clinical trial will be the ticket to kicking this. I will keep you all in my thoughts and prayers Chris

Carleen I just wanted to send you huge hugs and prayers for strength and guidance in this new life you have begun. I have no words of wisdom and I cannot even say I truly understand as I don't. I don't think any 2 people experience loss the same way, really. Please heed the advice about a financial advisor as there are so many options that may apply to you. You are in always in my thoughts and prayers, and you will continue to be, Hugs and love, Chris

Troy, It sure sounds like a lot of mix ups with the nurses and tests and all. I pray that now that you have your wife home again she can regain some strength and begin to fight even harder. Your strength and fighting nature as well as a positive nature will do wonders for her as well. My prayers for you continue, Chris

Sending continued prayers and positive thoughts to Rich Chris

Malou How wonderful to see you post. I have wondered how you are and am very glad to hear you are doing well. My prayers for you continue, Chris

Meg I am so very sorry about your losses. Please know that you have found a wonderful group of people here that will do so much to support you. My prayers are with you Chris

Jennifer My sincere sympathies and condolences on the loss of your sister. You and your family are in my thoughts. Chris

GPC Biotech Initiates Phase 2 Randomized Trial Evaluating Satraplatin Plus Tarceva® In Patients With Advanced Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer 03 Aug 2006 GPC Biotech AG (Frankfurt Stock Exchange: GPC; TecDAX index; Nasdaq: GPCB) today announced the initiation of a Phase 2 randomized trial evaluating the Company's lead drug candidate, satraplatin, in combination with Tarceva® (erlotinib) as a first-line therapy in patients with inoperable advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who are 70 years of age and older. A Phase 3 registrational trial exploring satraplatin in combination with prednisone as a second-line chemotherapy treatment for patients with hormone-refractory prostate cancer has completed patient enrollment. GPC Biotech continues to open additional clinical studies to explore the potential of satraplatin in a variety of tumor types. The Phase 2 study in advanced NSCLC is a randomized trial that is expected to involve over 20 centers in the U.S. and Europe and enroll approximately 120 patients. The primary objective of this study is to evaluate progression-free survival. The study will also examine overall survival, response rates and safety. "Platinum-based combination therapies are often used to treat patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer. However, elderly patients are frequently not treated with standard chemotherapy due to concerns about their ability to tolerate treatment," said Marcel Rozencweig, M.D., Senior Vice President, Drug Development and Chief Medical Officer. "A combination regimen of satraplatin -- an oral, well-tolerated platinum-based compound -- in combination with another oral, well-tolerated drug such as Tarceva could, if effective, offer an important new treatment option for this under-served patient group." Patients in the Phase 2 trial will be randomized to receive satraplatin plus Tarceva or Tarceva alone. A sequential dosing regimen will be used in the satraplatin arm. The treatment cycle for both arms is 28 days. Patients will be stratified according to smoking history and gender. About Lung Cancer Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the U.S., with an estimated 162,000 deaths expected from the disease in 2006. Over 170,000 new cases are expected to be diagnosed in 2006. The five-year survival rate for lung cancer in the U.S. is only 15 percent. Recent statistics for Europe estimated over 375,000 cases annually of lung cancer and over 345,000 deaths from the disease. NSCLC accounts for over 80% of all lung cancer cases, and over 50% of patients present with inoperable disease. Standard first-line chemotherapy for patients with advanced NSCLC typically involves a combination regimen, frequently with a platinum-based therapy. For elderly patients or patients with a poor performance status, a single-agent chemotherapy may be recommended due to concerns about these patients' ability to tolerate a combination regimen. Thus, there is a need for well-tolerated, effective combination treatments. About Satraplatin Satraplatin, an investigational drug, is a member of the platinum family of compounds. Over the past two decades, platinum-based drugs have become a critical part of modern chemotherapy treatments and are used to treat a wide variety of cancers. Unlike the platinum drugs currently on the market, all of which require intravenous administration, satraplatin is an orally bioavailable compound and is given as capsules that patients can take at home. In December 2005, GPC Biotech completed accrual to the SPARC trial that is evaluating satraplatin in combination with prednisone as second-line chemotherapy in patients with hormone refractory prostate cancer. Also in December 2005, GPC Biotech initiated the rolling submission of an NDA for satraplatin with the FDA. The Company has a co-development and license agreement with Pharmion GmbH, a wholly owned subsidiary of Pharmion Corporation, under which Pharmion has been granted exclusive commercialization rights to satraplatin for Europe and certain other territories. Satraplatin has been studied in clinical trials involving a range of tumors, and Phase 2 trials have been completed in hormone-refractory prostate cancer, ovarian cancer and small cell lung cancer. Other trials evaluating the effects of satraplatin in combination with radiation therapy, in combination with other cancer therapies and in various other cancers are underway or planned. GPC Biotech in-licensed satraplatin from Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, Inc. in 2002. Additional information on satraplatin can be found in the Anticancer Programs section of the Company's Web site at http://www.gpc-biotech.com. About GPC Biotech GPC Biotech AG is a biopharmaceutical company discovering and developing new anticancer drugs. The Company's lead product candidate -- satraplatin -- has achieved target enrollment in a Phase 3 registrational trial as a second-line chemotherapy treatment in hormone-refractory prostate cancer. The U.S. FDA has granted fast track designation to satraplatin for this indication, and GPC Biotech has begun the rolling NDA submission process for this compound. GPC Biotech is also developing a monoclonal antibody with a novel mechanism-of-action against a variety of lymphoid tumors, currently in Phase 1 clinical development, and has ongoing drug development and discovery programs that leverage its expertise in kinase inhibitors. GPC Biotech AG is headquartered in Martinsried/Munich (Germany). The Company's wholly owned U.S. subsidiary has sites in Waltham, Massachusetts and Princeton, New Jersey. For additional information, please visit the Company's Web site at http://www.gpc-biotech.com/.

Connie, I did not see this post earlier, but am glad you got through the day. Just wanted to let you know you are in my thoughts and prayers, Chris

Pam Just wanted to send you prayers and best wishes along with tons of positive thoughts for your treatment. Chris

Ann, Thank you so much for posting this. My son has just this week signed on the dotted line and is enlisted in the Army National Guard. It means so much to see such support especially in such scary times. Chris

Sue, Sending hugs and prayers for you. Chris

Jen Wonderful news! I am so happy for you and your family. Chris

Hello Kate Further down in this forum, Debbiethewife has a post about chemo and hearing loss. You might read that and perhaps contact her. Not sure if that is of any help. Wishing you all the best and sending prayers and positive thoughts for you and your Mom, Chris

Wonderful news, I am so happy for you and your husband and family! Chris

Gail My sincere sympathies and condolences to you and your family. Sending prayers for strength and comfort, Chris

Hello Mary I wanted to say hello and welcome. Your sister is lucky to have you in her corner! Please keep us posted and let us know how we can help support you both in this battle. I will keep you both in my thoughts, Chris

Hello tbar and welcome. Sorry you have reason to have found this site, but I am glad you did. You have gotten some very good words of advice already here and I will echo those sentiments. Just be patient and let your boyfriend know you are there for him. This is a huge adjustment for him and his mom and in the bigger picture, you as well. As Jen said, do not take his silence personally. This is a very tough situation to process. Let us know how we can be of help to you and know that there is always someone who can offer words of advice and support as well as hope.. Chris

Doctors Grapple With Lack of Volunteers for Cancer Studies Too Few Cancer Patients Know About Ongoing Clinical Trials By JOHN MCKENZIE Aug. 1, 2006 — - When John Ray was diagnosed with lung cancer last year, he faced a difficult decision. He had to choose between a standard chemotherapy drug or enroll in a clinical trial testing two other promising treatments. "The standard treatment has had good success, and I just didn't want to risk not being able to have that," Ray said. His situation is emblematic of a major issue in cancer treatment. There are more than 400 cancer drugs now in clinical trials, many of which are experimental medicines with the potential to treat some of the most lethal and common forms of cancer. The only problem is that researchers are running out of cancer patients to test all these new drugs on. "Only about 3 percent of cancer patients participate in cancer clinical trials," said Dr. Robert Comis, a clinical trial expert and board president of the Coalition of Cancer Cooperative Groups. Three percent is not nearly enough to test the expanding number of cancer drugs now in development, Comis said. "There's no question that with the low level of participation, clinical trials take longer and the newer, more effective treatments take longer to become available to the overall public at large," he said. For the cancer patient, waiting for that new drug may come too late. "It may be the difference between surviving and not surviving," said Dr. Robert Pluenneke at the Kansas City Cancer Center. So why aren't more patients enrolling in clinical trials? "For some people, it's a matter of risk. Other people, it's a matter of convenience. Some trials require the person to return for additional testing," said Dr. Gary Hudes of the Fox Chase Cancer Center. Surprisingly, the most common reason patients don't enroll is that they don't know they can. The Coalition of Cancer Cooperative Groups did a recent survey and found that only 10 percent of cancer survivors knew of any clinical trial for their specific cancer. So, increasingly, researchers are encouraging patients to do their homework on new drugs. The National Cancer Institute's Web site, for example, has extensive lists of clinical trials sorted by the type of cancer and even the ZIP codes of the nearest trials. "If there is a new treatment that works and if you don't take your chances, you can't win. But again, it still represents some element of risk," Hudes said. Usually a small element, researchers said. Studies show that cancer patients in clinical trials generally do as well or better than patients who do not enroll. Copyright © 2006 ABC News Internet Ventures http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/Health/story? ... 2&WNT=true

Jen Check out this link.. it MAY be of some help http://www.biooncology.com/bioonc/profe ... nt/index.m My prayers are with you and your family. Chris

Hi Randy, No thanks needed, I pray that this will be of some use to someone, if only to add a ray of HOPE. Hugs Chris

Adding my prayers and well wishes for Rich. Chris

Jen, I am so sorry you are going through this. My prayers are with you and your family. Chris

Troy, Although I cannot add to the wonderful advice and comments you have already gotten here, I did want to say hello and welcome to this wonderful site. Chris