fillise

Bruse, I'm sorry to read this. I think you've done your part and other cancers need to leave you alone!!!!!!! But since it appears that hasn't happened I hope you will stay around and let us support you in this battle as well. We may not have all of the answerd to questions for leukemia treatments, but we can love on you and we can pray. Let us know what you find out regarding treatment. Susan

Ned Interesting you should bring this up. I wrote a blog post on the article Monday. I'll state right up front that it frightened me. I am not a fan of the healthcare reform as it is currently proposed because I have seen no evidence that it would actually lower costs and am afraid that it will worsen care across the board. Susan The NY Times yesterday published an article from Pete Singer arguing for the necessity of rationing healthcare. It's a long article, but well worth the read if you want to understand the fallacious reasoning underpinning the argument for healthcare reform. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/19/magaz ... are-t.html The article begins with a discussion of the costs and efficacy of Sutent, a drug used for the treatment of advanced kidney cancer. It's expensive, as a lot of the drugs to treat cancer are. The question, as Singer frames it is "how much are we willing to spend collectively to extend a life by a few months?" He then approvingly discusses the British health care regulatory agency, NICE's, initial refusal to approve payment for the drug citing that the cost is not worth the benefit. Nowhere in the article does Singer discuss the flip side of Britain's thriftiness: their cancer survival rates are among the lowest in the civilized world. I hardly think that the United States, where citizens currently enjoy the highest cancer survival rates in the world, wants to emulate the British health care system's approach to the treatment of cancer. Singer's justification for his approving discussion of healthcare rationing is based on the following claim: "Health care is a scarce resource, and all scarce resources are rationed in one way or another." Really? Singer offers no evidence to back up his claim, but it's an important one because it is one often used to justify Obama's rush to overhaul our entire healthcare system. It's also completely wrong. There is no scarcity of health care in the United States. We have plenty of doctors, hospitals, clinics, and medical personnel in this country. There is nothing scarce about health care. It may be expensive, but that is not the same thing as being scarce. There may be places where there are few medical facilities or personnel, but it is not a nationwide scarcity by any means. Let's not forget that 84% of the US population has health insurance and access to health care. It is not the US that has long waiting times to be seen by specialists, or have access to imaging facilities or for elective surgeries. No, those items are scarce in countries like England and Canada with single-payer health care plans. The argument that we need health care reform in this country because it is a scarce resource is not just mistaken, but fundamentally dishonest in framing the underlying assumptions for the debate. Finally we get to the discussion of costs in Singer's article. Singer grossly overestimates the cost of the leukemia drug Gleevec in order to make his point. "For Medicare patients drug costs can be even higher, because Medicare can require a copayment of 25 percent of the cost of the drug. For Gleevec, a drug that is effective against some forms of leukemia and some gastrointestinal tumors, that one-quarter of the cost can run to $40,000 a year." A quick search on the internet found a monthly cost of about $4,000 for 400 mg of Gleevec daily. The total cost would be $48,000--only a little higher than what singer cites as 25% of yearly costs. 25% of $48,0000 is $12,000. That's still a lot of money, but it's nowhere near $40,000. Moreover, if Gleevec is covered under Medicare, it would be under a Part D plan because Gleevec is an oral medication. Checking the formulary for a pretty standard AARP Medicare part D plan, Gleevec, falls into the Tier 4 which has a 1/3 co-pay. So the initial prescription would be about $1,300. At $2,700 a Medicare recipient hits the doughnut hole and is responsible for 100% of the costs of the drug until out-of-pocket spending hits $4,350. At that point the catastrophic coverage sets in and the Medicare drug plan pays for 95% of Gleevec's costs, leaving a co-pay of about $200 per month. A Medicare recipient with a standard part D drug plan will pay about $9,000 yearly for Gleevec. Again, that's a lot of money, but it is nowhere near the $40,000 that Singer uses as a scare tactic. To sum up, Singer's argument for rationing is based on (1) emulating the system in a country with one of the worst cancer survival rates in the world, (2) the lie that health care is a scarce resource, and (3) misleading figures involving the costs of specialized cancer drugs. If you aren't alarmed by the rush to "reform" our health care system, perhaps you should be alarmed at the lies being told in support of the effort

It's 5:00 and I am headed home for the evening. Will water the flowers and tomatoes. It is uncharacteristically cool for Alabama in July. Love it! Susan

I'm glad to hear that your mom's treatment went well. Hopefully the rest of them will go well to. Susan

((((Marci))))) I'm so sorry you are going through this. Susan

Congratulations Joe!!!! They are beautiful. I am glad to hear that everyone is fine (including Dad). Best wishes to your beautiful family. Susan

Wow. Too young. Far too young. Stupid disease. Susan

Jen--if it's small enough to remove surgically, that's GOOD! They are looking at a curative effort. That's GOOD! The Mayo Clinic is one of the best. That's GOOD! We will be here for you every step of the way. Susan

HI! My mom did Carbo/taxol and handled it pretty well. She never had a problem with nausea on this chemo. She would feel pretty good the day of the chemo and the day after. Then she would feel tired and achey for 2-3 days. After that she would rebound and be feeling pretty good by time for her nect treatment (every three weeks). She also got a neulasta shot the day after each treatment to keep her white blood cell count up. The shot geerally made her feel wrose than the cheno (achy in her bones). She lost her hair pretty quickly because of the taxol. Other than that she handled it all pretty well. I hope your mom does too. Make sure she drinks lots of water to keep her kidneys flushed. Susan

I'm glad you went for a visit. I'll tell you a little secret--even though I advised not to jump the gun about moving back, I have found that visits are always good. Even though my mom will tell me there is no need to come, she is glad when I visit. If nothing else, I will tell her "I just needed to see that you are doing ok with my own two eyes!" Best of luck, Susan

What a great gift to receive. I think she misses you too. Susan

Hi Linda, I'm sorry to read about your mom's Dx, but am glad you found us. Hopefully, by now, you know to throw that prognosis talk out the window. There are many, many here who have shattered their initial prognosis. I'm glad you got the second opinion and have a doctor who will be more thorough in managing your mom's treatment. My own mom is a 2 1/2 year survivor of a stage IV diagnosis. Your mom was otherwise healthy at the time of Dx and that is a great indicator of the ability to withstand and respond to treatment. It sounds like she is already feeling the benefits. Susan

Jen-sounds scary even though there is a very good chance it is from something other than the cancer. I'm adding my prayers to the others here. Let us know. Susan

Denise--at least they caught this while the PRE is in front of the cancerouse part! She will be fine--I know it. It will be ok> Susan

Sandra, I'm sorry you are having such a rough time with the treatment. I don't know anything about navelbine, but wanted to let you know that you are in my prayers. Susan

Cynthia, I'm so sorry about your Dx, but Stage 1 with the option for surgery offers the best hope for a permanent cure. Think if it this way. Cutting the tumor completely out is the best way to make sure it can't grow or send out cancer cells to other parts of your body. Let us know what you decide, Susan

To pursue or not pursue treatment is a very individual decision and only you and Danny know if it is the right one for him. Given the experience with the last chemo, I hope he gains strength and you are able to enjoy some qality time togther. Stay in touch. Susan

I'm sorry you have to be here. It sounds like you are beginning to come out of the shock that sets in right after the initial Dx. There is a plan in place and it feels better knowing that you are doing somehting to fight it. The fact that the cancer has not spread is good news. Shrinking it with the chemo and radiation and cutting it out will offer the best chance for a full recovery. Read the stories here. There are many, many people who are long term survivors. For many of us, the first hopeful sign we had was reading the stories on this board. Susan

Kimberly--I love your mom's spirit! Once the treatment regimine begins be sure to check in with any questions. Lots of people will have suggestions for coping with the treatment and its side effects. Susan

Cassie deserves a vacation--and so does Katy!!!! Think how refreshed you will be and ready to continue helping Gene when you return. Go to the beach. Gene will enjoy the visit from your sister and her husband and you will enjoy the beach with your daughter. Go! Susan

April, Fluid should show up on your scans so if it isn't you probably don't have pleural effusion. Check with Dr. West at Cancergrace.org. I wonder also if some of the heat and humidity of summer has something to do with your SOB. My mom has only suffered SOB in summer. Susan

Hi Nicole, I live about 500 miles away from my mother who has been fighting stage IV lung cancer for 30 months. My first impulse was also to move home to help out, but my mom made it clear tht she didn't want that to happen. It's not that she doesn't love me, but she doesn't want to be responsible for uprooting my life. Before you uproot your life, I'd sugest waiting a bit to see if your father and stepmother want/need you to be closer. I'm luckly that my employer will let me work remotely if I need to head back to be there for a test, procedure or consult. The first month or so after a LC disgnosis, everyone is in shock. I recommend against making any major life moves until you see what the treatment plan is and how your father is handling it. There may be a time you are needed there, but it may not be for while. All I'm saying is don't do anything rash. Susan

It certainly is understandable that your mom is scared. There seem to be a lot of positive stories about WBR here, so I hope that brings some reassurance. In the meantime I will pray that it goes well for your mom. Susan

Welcome Mary, I am sorry to hear about your father's diagnosis. What chemo is your father going to be taking? My 79 year-old mom finished a course of carbo-taxol-avastin in March with minimal side effects. She got a Neulasta shot the day after each of her chemo treatments to keep her white blood cell count up. Those are the cells that fight infection and she had no problems with her immune system. You should ask your dad's oncologist about the Neulasta. Don't be shy about asking questions here. Folks here are happy to share what we have learned with folks like you who are new to this battle. If you have the time, I also suggest you read through our stories. There are a lot of long-time survivors' stories here that will show you there is HOPE! Susan

Denise, I'm so sorry. Susan