mary colleen

Bill, as a general rule of thumb, men should just always listen to their wives:) Anyway - though I personally like statistics as a point of reference, I don't think you are bound to become an unhappy statistic. I somehow think that you are far more likely to become part of the statistics of success that others look to down the road for encouragement. Try to remain encouraged. MC

Wow - your Mom must have been one to really make a lasting impression. How nice.

I personally believe that your Mom was giving you a message of peace, and I'm glad that she did. Please don't have any misgivings about anything that you did in caring for her or helping her through this. You were a wonderful daughter.

I find the timelines very informational. I would have to read many, many posts to pick up the information contained in them.

So happy for your good results!

Me too - it is from the signature timelines that I really learned what to expect.

Thanks All, Yes Welthy, SOB (upon exertion, not when stationary) began to be a problem for him about 3-4 weeks ago. After his thoracotomy, he improved rapidly in that regard and was walking a couple of miles daily, etc. Around 12/1, he went back to work and his SOB began to escalate. Not sure if there is any relationship there, but he kept saying it was because he had stopped exercising. About 2 weeks ago, he caught a major cold (still has it), and at the same time his RBC issues began. I guess my point is that it's been very hard to distinguish one causative factorfrom another. He has a CAT scan of the chest scheduled for 1/25, so if there are any chest or cancer related issues there, I guess we'll know then. Anyway, he has sat up a few times and turned on the TV today for short periods, but that's about it. Mostly just lying down and semi-sleeping. I called the clinic, and they didn't sound too concerned. I guess it's on to the final chemo infusion on Thursday, and the CT scan the following week. It's helpful to know that others have had this experience!

I personally like the timelines. They've helped me to understand what is normal in diagnostics, monitoring, treatment, symptoms, and side effects. All of that has assisted me in my current role by providing me with a steady point of reference. I also find the surviving family members who contribute here to be invaluable sources of empathy and information.

I'm so very sorry. Prayers sent.

Thanks Judy. He doesn't have a fever - at least, he didn't late last night. He is sleeping so hard this morning that I don't want to disturb him to take his temp again until he wakes up on his own. He hasn't had radiation, just surgery and chemo. When the SOB started to develop a couple of weeks ago, the nurse practitioner thought it was probably being caused by his low RBC. Of course, he is also just 12 weeks out form a bilobectomy. He has been struggling with blood counts since about his 4th round of chemo. Why they weren't more insistent with him about seeing the doc yesterday, I don't know. I should have gone with him, but had to work. I have a call in to the Oncology clinic this morning because I think he needs to be evaluated, and I am going to work from home today in order to keep an eye on him. As bad as this is, it is probably just the cumulative effects of his 7 1/2 rounds of chemo catching up with him.

Wishing the same for you, Michele.

Hi all, My husband has completed 7 of 8 chemo treatments. All along, side effect have been pretty moderate and tolerable (with some allowances for days on the sofa, etc.) These last few days (in contrast), have been very rough. He is just so very sick, and in so much pain. He lays on the sofa all day and all evening. He is mostly awake , but keeps his eyes closed. He somehow got up for a bit this morning and tried to clear snow on my route to the car (like I cared - I don't). He returned to the house alarmingly short of breath and exhausted after maybe 3 minutes. He slept for the next 5 hours just to recover from that effort. I keep telling him that these are just the accumlated side effects of so much chemo, and that he is SO close to the end of it - just to hang in there. He has horrible body aches, nausea, and weakness. He went in to the Onc clinic today for a scheduled Neupogen shot, and the RN wanted him to see the doc, but he declined. I'm hoping that this is all normal after 7 rounds of chemo. He isn't interested in food, visitors, or phone calls from his buddies. I'm honestly out of ideas for helping him. I know that so many have a harder situation than ours right now...still, I'll ask for good thoughts and any spare prayers that might be out there. 10 days to the last chemo!!

Don - You're in my prayers, as is your nephew and his entire family. That one breaks my heart. I can't even begin to realize your feelings in all of this. Keep us posted!

Off topic, but I'm very happy that you have had good news.

Aaron/Spicy: Just plan to enjoy Mexico - you'll have minor issues with Tarceva, but I'll bet that they will be nothing compared to the chemo you have already had. I am going to Mexico in March also, but it's inland and for work...I'll be envying you:) You'll be fine!

My husband is getting Cisplatin/Gemzar. In about the middle of his 8 chemo treatments he began to have rash on his chest, back, and scalp. We were told that it is a possible side effect of multiple chemo drugs, including his. It faded considerably after about 3 weeks.

Alli, welcome. Usually, people are diagnosed in Stage 4 have distant spread, such as spread to the liver, adrenal glands, brain or bones. However, you are right - according to the staging literature, spread into a second lobe is also listed as Stage 4. I wasn't aware of that until you pointed it out. Remember that being inoperable does not mean that it is untreatable. There are a lot of people here whose tumors were inoperable, but who have maintained good quality of life for extended periods through chemo, radiation, and targeted therapies like Tarceva. If you spend time reading the many posts stored on this site, you will find many such cases. Sometimes, tumors are intitially inoperable at diagnosis, but become operable later after shrinkage. resulting from other therapies. In addition, if you seek more than one opinion - and I certainly would, if the first opinion was that I was inoperable - you will sometimes get a different view on whether a cancer is operable. There are a lot of other important factors that play into your Mom's diagnosis and treatment - for example, whether the involved lymph nodes are within the lung, in the other lung, or in the mediastinum between the lungs. You may want to go to www.onctalk.com and register. Dr. West has a forum there for folks to e-mail questions, and is great about answering them in plain language. Again, welcome and let us know how we can help you as you undertake this journey.

Aaron, I'll let those who have had Tareva help you out with your question. I just wanted to congratulate you on finishing up your chemo. I know it wasn't easy. Big accomplishment!

Shauna, I understand your logic regarding the possible rationale that LC recieves less attention and funding because of the "stigma effect" of smoking. However,I find it hard to reconcile that reasoning against the fact that other diseases that are also sometimes correlated by choices and behavior receive plenty of attention and funding. Examples are heart disease and AIDs. I'm guessing that you are probably correct that LC recieves low funding and attention partly because of the the association to smoking. I'm just unsure why that dynamic would come into play specifically against LC and not so many other conditions. One other thing to consider is the sheer size and degree of organization some other disease coalitions have reached in comparison to LC. The size and degree of development in those organiztions is probably key to getting the publicity, press, and funding that they do. Maybe LC will be at that point in a few years with continued efforts of people like Katie and so many others. Just my thoughts.

I am so, so sorry for your loss. In the weeks to come, remember that we are all here to help you with this. Nina is right, in my opinion. Keep it simple - what goes into Mom's grave does not matter to her. Again, I am so sorry, and am here for you in the coming days. Mary Colleen

Good move not to go back to work during this. I'm happy to hear that you are doing ok. Would love to see you take a nap if you need one!

Ocean and Ayr are both good, gentle saline based nasal sprays. Walgreens/Ride Aid, etc. generally carry both. Humidifier sounds like a good idea, too - just be sure to keep it very, very clean inside to avoid any risk of fungal grownth. Thinking of you, and hoping you are doing ok!

Wishing you all peace for the remainder of this journey.

Welcome, and I'm so sorry that you have this illness in your family. My experience is not with small cell - my husband has non-small cell LC. However, lot of folks on the board do have experience with small cell LC, and will certainly be weighing in to help you as needed. (Might want to take a look at the SCLC forum category.) I also want to tell you that if someone is telling you there is no hope, you may want to look for another opinion. While SCLC is a very complex disease, I like to believe that there is always hope. Take care, and (again) welcome.

Thanks, John. I appreciate your response. I always notice how helpful you are to everyone with your research and information. I have done a lot of my own research on my question since last night - too much, probably killed some brain cells:) - and have learned some really interesting things. Looks like there MIGHT be a correlation, but that des not appear to be certain at this point. My husband finishes chemo next week, and has new scans on the 25th - I guess I had best focus my energies on believing that those will be clean. Thanks again.