MargoLubbers

I went to see Dr. Bunn last Thursday and it was great! At my appointment time they called me to the back. The nurse was a temp worker, but she was very professional. After blood pressure, temp, respiration, she took me to a room. I waited about 10 minutes and an assistant doctor came in. He was kind and compassionate and listened to all the answers to his questions. He then left and I heard him conferring with Dr. Bunn. Then He and Dr. Bunn came in. Dr. Bunn listened to me and to my husband. Dr. Bunn asked questions about more than just my cancer (Was I going to move to Colorado? etc.) Dr. Bunn said that as long as I wanted to fight he was in for the fight too! He said that we, together, will consider all options for success! So I'm moving from Oklahoma to Colorado. I really liked him. He is supposed to be the number 1 lung cancer guy in the United States. If you check him out you will find that the University of Colorado hospital is ranked #35 in cancer treatment and that last year, Dr. Bunn was the president of the Society of Clinical Onocologists. Now realize that he is not a very 'hands-on' kind of guy, but he seems to be bright, caring, compassionate and willing to fight a good battle. What more can a girl ask for!!!!

I'm going to see Dr. Paul Bunn, Jr. of University of Colorado hospital next Thursday. Has anyone met him? I'm am very assertive and hope he understands that I'm ready to fight this disease!!! Thanks for sharing!

I don't know what the studies say about using celebrex on sclc. I was dx'ed 4/03 with nsclc, 4 cm in right lung, nodes, both adrenal glands and maybe in ribs. After 3 rounds of chemo and after taking celebrex for 30 days, on Tuesday I'm having my first CAT scan. I'm scared sh--less!!! But I think that the outcome will be good. I am 10 weeks out from dx and I'm walking, talking, would be working but gave up my job for SSI (I had no insurance) and now I garden and do medical research. I don't have any problem breathing and am almost pain free!!! More painfree now then 2 months ago! So good luck with the celebrex and call the folks who make it and try to get it for free. Margo Lubbers

I don't know how celebrex does on SCLC, but it is a COX-2 inhibitor. Now the way I understand this works (and I am not a doctor!) is that cells are born by dividing, and then they live and then they die. We wih cancer have an enzyme that tells the cancer cells "Don't die, just stay alive and keep on dividing and making new cnacer cells!" That enzyme is a COX enzyme. Celebrex is a Cox enyzme inhibitor. It stops the enzyme from telling the cells to not die. And then the cells will go ahead and die like they are supposted to. The current studies are reserching anywhere up to 1200 mg a day so if your celebrex is costing you $150 / month you all should be taking 2 200 mg a day. If your insurance company won't pay for it, call the celebrex folks. I did n't have prescription insurance and I called them. Immediately they gave me some number to give to my druggist and I got 2 a day for 30 days for $5.00. The celebrex folks are sending me paperwork to get this same deal for the next 5 months. Great folks!!!!! Congratulations on your good news!!!!! That is wonderful!

I've been putting together a list of survivors of Stage 3B/4 NSCLC and here are the results so far: "What a great response I have had looking for survivors! I don't think I'm done but the first results are: 14 folks who are Stage 3B / 4 NSCLC who were dx between 1994 and now. The 1994 lady became Stage 4 in 1997!!! 6 of the 14 were dx in 2002 and 3 are stable & 1 is in remission (boy we don't hear that work for stage 4 !!!) and the other 2 are surviving! Of the rest, 5 are stable, one is NED and Herb Weeks has remission. And Mary is still surviving from 1999 (what great courage!). So the next time a doctor tells me that this is terminal, I'll only live sooo long, that I need to plan on the final plans, I'll show him this list and tell him that I'll be on it soon!!!!" If you would like to be included in this list please contact me! Thanks for your help in this matter.

I had a bone scan done and it showed that my NSCLC had not gone into me ribs, but 4 weeks and one chemo later I had a PET scan done and it showed 'uptake' in my rib. Now it wasn't much uptake (1.5 compared to the tumor at 3.5), but could the uptake be from a previous break in this rib (car accident 1979)?

I agree that its time for a new doctor. When I was dx, my doctor said that I was stage 4 with a 20% chance to live 1 year, but she has known people with my stage to live 15 to 18 months. I decided to get a new doctor, one that has 3, 4 and 5 year survivors of this stage of NSCLC! I am also putting together a list of stage IIIB / IV NSCLC folks who are 2 years of more out from dx. If anyone would like to join this list, please give me a hollar! Thanks!