wendyr

Hi Richard, a very warm welcome and glad you found us. There are many here who were fortunate to have had an early diagnosis. It's very scary when you first get the diagnosis but I think your chances of beating this are very good. Hang onto hope & continue to keep us posted of your progress. We're here to help. Good Luck & God Bless wendyr

Thanks Dr West. Maurice was told no alka seltzer and no pepto bismal but no explanation was given. Thank you for clearing this up for us. wendyr

good one

Has he spoken to the Mayo in Arizona? wendyr

Maurice was told to eat whatever he could, whenever he could. Just keep up the calories any way you can. Forget about well balanced meals, just get as many calories in as possible. During the last 3 months, which has been tough, he mostly lived on oatmeal cookies, occasional mac/cheese & I would make milkshakes from Carnation Instant Breakfast. Use half & half instead of regular milk, add a good dollop of ice cream into the blender & presto, milkshake. He wouldn't drink Ensure or Boost but would drink the milkshakes. Good Luck & God Bless wendyr

Flowergirlie, so good to hear from you and so typical of you to do a bike ride in memory of your hubby in an effort to help others. Prayers for peace and strength. Good Luck & God Bless wendyr

Oh Tanner: my prayers go out to you and Karen and your precious girls. There is no doubt you are all on overload. Is there any community support you can tap into to help you get through this? Do you belong to any church group or anything like that? Prayers that this chemo cocktail will work and your lives will regain some sort of sanity. Good Luck & God Bless wendyr

Hello again Peg. What terrible news you've received especially coming so soon after the death of your mother. If your brother lives close to a comprehensive cancer center then that is where he needs to be. You don't say where he lives. Is he in Florida? There are many good cancer centers here. I agree time is crucial & he should get a second opinion immediately. Good Luck & God Bless wendyr

Hey Raney: we were told no antacids while on Avastin. I've checked back through the trial papers we signed & can't find anything on antacids & I checked the Avastin website and they don't say anything about antacids either. I thought I was losing it & questioned Maurice & he remembers being told not to use antacids without permission and especially don't use alka seltzer, so there you have it. If you're using prilosec with the onc's permission I wouldn't be too worried about it. You can always call Genentech on Monday & clear it up but if the onc knows about the prilosec I wouldn't worry about it. Of course NSAIDS are definitely a no no on Avastin, but you already know that. wendyr

Sounds like Tarceva is doing the job for Dad. Many here have had amazing results with it. I can't help with the Prevacid question as Maurice is in the Tarceva/Avastin clinical trial & cannot take any antacids because of the Avastin. Prayers for continued success. Good Luck & God Bless wendyr

Yes, it's important to continue with regular activities as much as possible but let's not lose sight of the fact that Dad is only recently diagnosed and the stress from that alone is huge and can wear you out. Add to that the treatments and it's no wonder he's exhausted. Moderate activity & excercise, good diet & lots of rest & don't overlook the importance of extra hydration. Good Luck & God Bless wendyr

Hello scman and welcome. You'll find a ton of info & support here. These folks have answered so many questions for me & have been a huge help. Good Luck & God Bless wendyr

Great news, Jane. So glad you got it sorted out. Good Luck & God Bless wendyr

A wealthy man was having an affair with an Italian woman for several years. One night, during one of their rendezvous, she confided in him that she was pregnant. Not wanting to ruin his reputation or his marriage, he agreed to pay her a large sum of money if she would go to Italy to secretly have the child. If she stayed in Italy to raise the child, he would also provide generous child support until the child turned 18. She agreed but asked how he would know when the baby was born. To keep it discrete, he told her to simply mail him a post card, and write 'Spaghetti' on the back. He would then arrange for support payments to start. One day, about 8 months later, he came home to his confused wife. "Honey," she said, "you received a very strange postcard today." She handed him the postcard and watched as her husband read the card, turned white and collapsed. On the card was written: "Spaghetti, Spaghetti, Spaghetti. Two with meatballs, one without. Request bread.

So glad you got the hospice thing straightened out. Isn't it wonderful how the people here can give input & take a problem that could be insurmountable to one & put it all in perspective with information & practical help as well. What a godsend. wendyr

Hi Yirol and welcome. I've already read your superb post regarding palliative care and look forward to further posts from you. As you've already discovered there are an amazing number of folks here ready & able to help answer questions and provide support. Good Luck & God Bless wendyr

Flowergirlie, hoping all is well with you wendyr

Wonderful news. Congratulations wendyr

My condolences on your loss. May you all take comfort knowing she's in a better place, wendyr

Jane, so sorry for this temporary set back. My mother was on hospice here in Florida & she lived alone. It was never an issue. Her nurse came out a couple of times a week. A social worker showed up once a week and a home health aid came 3 times a week to help with bathing & personal stuff etc. In addition they have 'friendly volunteers' who came around to either just visit or run to the store for her. That was when she first went on Hospice & was able to do most things for herself. Towards the end I moved her in with me & all the visits from the whole team just transferred to our house, with increased visits from the nurse for pain control. We lived about 10 miles away from Mom's. I just cannot say enough good things about them. Hope you can get this sorted out. Is there more than one hospice in your community that you can talk to? Good Luck & God Bless wendyr

Second opinions are very important, if not crucial. If possible go to a major comprhensive cancer center. It's a lot easier & faster to get appointments with them than most people realize. You don't tell us where your father lives, that could be helpful as members here have been to major cancer centers all across the country. Good Luck & God Bless wendyr

Fingers crossed, toes crossed. Hoping the treatment goes well for Mum. Good Luck & God Bless wendyr

I am not a LC patient or survivor, merely a caregiver so I cannot speak from the perspective of a person going through treatment. I have never had the experience of having a doctor look me in the eye and tell me I have cancer. I did watch the Koppel special & thought that most of it came across as Koppel's own personal tribute to his longtime friend. Most of the special revolved around Leroy. What his thoughts & feelings were. What he thought of his treatment, his doctors, his chemo nurse etc. The town hall meeting part could have been expanded and Lance Armstrong should have been given a bigger forum & more time. He is an articulate, outspoken advocate for all cancer patients and cancer research and his talents were not fully utilized. It was never made very clear that Leroy's cancer in his lung was actually mets from previous colon cancer. Having said all that, I suppose we should be thankful that at least cancer was getting some attention but since LC is the leading cause of cancer deaths I feel more time should have been spent addressing that issue & the lack of LC research funding.

Hello Jessica & welcome to the club nobody wants to belong to. I'm sorry to hear of your situation but there are many people here who will be able to help you with answers to your questions. Lung cancer is no longer a death sentence & there are many treatment options. As you get more information, continue to post & we will help you as much as we can. As you get more info, fill out the profile section so others can see what you're going thru & help you. Good Luck & God Bless wendyr

Since we don;t know your Mom's age & general health condition or which tests she's had for staging her lung cancer, it is difficult to answer your question. However, I get the impression that Mom is frustrated with the docs and wants to fight & get treatment. If this is true then she should get a second opinion asap at a major cancer center. There are many stage III/IV survivors here that were able to find aggressive doctors to help them in their fight. Good Luck & God Bless wendyr