Barb73

Shelley, I LOVED reading your post. It was very uplifting. You and your Mom are wished continued success. Determination, and as you have said, "Never give up hope," Barbara

Hi Anne, It is good to welcome to this wonderful group. You have come to a place of many responsive and warm people. There is also so much helpful information. My husband is presently on Avastin/Taxol/Carboplatin and has completed three rounds. His side effects have been mostly a little fatigue, and a slight toothache. (Tooth is sensitive.) Wishing all the best, Barbara "Attitude, Support, Spirit and Hope",(Quote: Dave Grant)

I am grateful to have been accepted, and am glad to be able to relax amid my inner turmoil of emotion that is lung cancer. You have given me peace. Hope to know and be known for a long time, at this place of hope. Barbara

Dear Pat, I received an email telling me that there was a topic reply to my posting. When I clicked onto that link, it brought me here to this post. This is the only one, I think, that I received from you today, but I could be wrong. I truly hope I haven't confused anyone. Let me know if this is the post to which you refer? Keeping hope alive, Barbara Hi Barbara, I'm not sure how to post or reply. Did you get the post I sent a little while ago? Wednesday 3/19 PatK..the BWP

Hey Gail, Hello and a big (((HUG))), I am so happy to see that you have arrived here, even though we all wish you didn't have the reason for ever having to be here. Here, Gail, is where you will find the help you need. There are so many who are willing to share. This is the place where the treatment histories/ taglines are given to let you know that there are treatments, and there are ways to fight this. We understand the anxiety. It is only natural. Sending all the best to you and Hank. (I am so glad that Hank had a good day with the chemo. You have made my day!) Please, let us know how it goes. We care. As always, your friend, Barbara

Sandra, My husband was diagnosed three plus years ago with Stage IIIB. His treatment history is attached below. Barbara

Dear Judy, I am new here and was reading the postings. When I saw yours, my heart just sank. Your telling of your feelings made me want to give you a big hug, and tell you that my husband has been over to the cancer center - it seems - for eons. We are chasing the cancer. He has asked me if I would like to stay home and relax. What? I told him, "NO." This journey is for both of us. Our trip, of course, doesn't match yours in any way. We go over there in Hackensack (a 15 minute trip) and we share the infusion time. It's part of the deal. So far, the infusion times (Avastin/taxol/carbo) have been for four-five hours. He receives one of them very, very slowly. Please know that what everyone has told you is true. How would I feel if I were the LC survivor, and needed the support/comfort of Bill to keep me afloat emotionally? Know that being with someone you love is all part and parcel of being close. I need that as much as he does. It brings me comfort. Barbara

Well, Christine, that makes me feel a bit better. Bill has been walking around the house with a faux fleece jacket w/hood, and goes to bed with a wool cap, and a sweater. He is cold even when the heat is up. I am roasting and he looks as though he lives in the Klondike. I'm glad it's more likely related to the chemo and not something more ominous. The less worry - the better. His blood counts have been kept to good levels, so I didn't think it was from that. Thank you for looking this up at Onctalk. It's a relief. Barbara

Dear Lori, May I offer you a warm welcome. You have expressed the same frustration as I at the questioning of those with lung cancer on their smoking status. As Randy has related, it's a matter of education. The public needs to be educated on the fact that other cancers are being connected to smoking. In more recent news, there are: colon, pancreatic, head and neck. There most likely will be more forthcoming in future. Here is what I say when they ask about Bill, I say, "Why do you ask?" It stumps them. Then, if they say, "Well, it is supposed to cause lung cancer," my answer to that is the number and percentage of nonsmokers, and the litany of other causes of lung cancer - radon, second-hand smoke, chemicals at one's job, asbestos, and more - not to forget the least known - genetics. If I feel particularly energetic, the soapbox follows up with other diseases related to smoking: pancreatic, breast, colon, and heart disease(including atherosclerosis). It may be one individual at a time, but hey, it's a start. Thank you for bringing the subject up. Stigmas have no place in a medical situation. Actually, no one diserves lung cancer. Barbara

Hello and a very warm welcome to a great site. Peebygeeby, you will find help here - definitely. This will give you some confidence and much-needed support. I have just returned here myself, and just following the "history" tags following the posts is VERY helpful. If you write yours it will help others and you (it can become a "journal of sorts" for yourself. I took Bill (my husband's) over the years, and it was easy to see certain places where a treatment was given and the results. The dates do become crucial when formulating a "mental picture" of the journey. Sending you my very best, Barbara

Dear Katie, There is much appreciation at having received the warmth here. At this juncture in the journey this means so very much. Thank you for your lovely welcome, Katie. Barbara (I hope I didn't miss replying to someone.)

Hello Dear Bette, This is really great, Bette, to see you once again. Now, I feel even more at home. Welcome to this very warm site. You will meet many wonderful people. This site has a personal touch which is relaxing, and just being able to find a "history" following each posting is very helpful. As always, your friend, Barbara

Hello Connie, Thank you for the uplifting reply. I love the story about the 12-year survivor. Thank you, Connie. The only reason I didn't post here much back then was having become engrossed in posting news items, first at SLCA, and then at the former site. After reading your interest in lung cancer, you would appreciate the compulsion in searching out new, innovative, and effective treatments. It can become an obsession. Literally hours were spent searching, posting, and then trying to reply to those who either had lost someone to this disease, had good scans, and those who had wonderful celebrations of good news. The good news is that there are some very promising treatments out there and in the pipeline. Of course, we could do with a major breakthrough. Another hope is that this will truly become a more easily-detected cancer, and at a much earlier stage. Right now, Bill is doing well (thank God). May he continue to be so. May all of us who are survivors, and those of us who are their loved ones be encouraged. Glad to be back. Barbara

Hi There, Connie, Bill is beating the odds (our mantra). I keep telling him that. Today, over at the Cancer Center at HUMC, we saw a man (who both of us had known over sixty years ago). I was hesitant about approaching him, and had to put on my eyeglasses to make doubly sure he was who I thought he was. (I had heard them call out his name.) It was he. He had been diagnosed with lung cancer w/mets to liver. They must have thought it was "old-home week" in the waiting area. He and his wife were so happy to see a survivor (Bill). They remembered him when he was young, blonde and full of vim and vigor. He and his wife were almost kids when we had seen them last. Thankfully, they (the hospital staff)call out names very loudly, or we never would have connected. My hope is that we will all see more effective treatments coming down the pipeline and giving us even better, non-toxic chemos in which to place our hope. Barbara

Patti, Forgive me if this is a repeat of a reply to you. It is a wee bit "new again" to me. I can tell you that this board has always been great for responding, and for people posting their "histories." Without all that, we cannot tell the diagnosis, the stage, and anything that gives a clue to where a person is. That is why, for good or ill, I will always tell you how Bill is doing. We cannot help him or anyone else without that info. We want to learn how to beat this, as one wonderful person has called it, "this demon." I know, it sounds as though it is giving it personification, but it is a demon that needs kicking down - every chance we can. Barbara

Hello Gail, How nice that you remember. Yes, I am in New Jersey, and up here in Bergen County. Actually, the town in which I live is very small - one-mile square and was once called "Our Town," after the play. Good to "see" you again. I will try to get a photo. We changed our computer and I cannot figure out the camera thing-a-majig. But, I WILL. Barbara

Hello again, Kasey, Yes,I DO remember you. You wrote to me a long time ago. It was a really nice message. I think it was when the other site was still SLCA when Dave Grant was still alive. What a wonderful person he was! I am so very glad that you gave me this present reply. You have given me a lovely gift. May you be continually blessed, Barbara (aka BarbaraEllen)

Hey there, Jamie my dear, I am so glad to be back. To be honest, right now, I am glad to be back anywhere that I can read and post without having to figure out too much in the format. As things march on, I am seeing good things down the road as far as research goes. That is my favorite subject. Wouldn't you know it? My eyes are going just as I have become compulsive about reading? Thank you for all of your encouragement over the years, Jamie. Love you, Barbara

Hey there, Judy, I'm glad you got the info on both counts. Knowledge is power - even for the "little" things like responding individually. I see that you are in Florida. Our youngest son lives in Orange Park. They are due to come up here for a visit soon. That will be a treat. We haven't seen them in a while. Holding onto hope, Barbara

Janette, I can truly say that we have been there. Three plus years ago, Bill was diagnosed at Stage IIIB. Jumpy doesn't even come close to what my stomach was doing with sinking sensations, and negative thoughts were in the majority. I cried often (mostly in the shower) - didn't want to upset him too much. Our niece, who is an oncology nurse, came with us for the initial oncologist visit. She knew that people tend to "miss" what is being said when under stress. She was the extra set of ears. Bill was to receive concurrent chemo/radiation. Our hope was for surgery following any shrinkage. Later, it was determined to be "inoperable" due to location. The oncologist told us that he would be treating it as a chronic illness. That didn't mean much to me at the time. I wanted more assurance. Well, there was none to come, but I did know that there were treatments available, and more in the pipeline. Forget the statistics - they are old and rusty. Here we are a little over three years later, and Bill is once again in chemo after having had a chemo break, albeit had some radiation over a time. Bill has been leading mostly what we call "new normal" life. He has been actively involved in gardening, socializing, and (in winter) shoveling snow from sidewalks. This current regimen is Avastin/taxol/carboplatin. There are treatments, Janet, and there is hope. We do not know from day to day how it all will go, but we try to keep positive (easier said than done, I know). The immune system works for the better when we are not under too much stress. We keep an eye on nutrition, keep Bill hydrated (especially when receiving treatments - either or both radiation and chemotherapy). Blessings wished for you and your honey, and holding onto hope, Barbara

Dear Kathy, So good to see you. You are so right, Kathy, I read your "history tag," and you said it was a struggle. It is. It takes energy, strength, and anything else we can throw at this. Sometimes, we lose a bit of that, and at other times we gain some hope and some "chutzpah." We need that so very much. Many of you who have lived with this know that hope and uplifting information can give us the needed bolstering. You and your husband are wished good scans in April. I will be keeping you in my thoughts for April. Love, Barbara

Hello Ned, I thank you for the really nice reply. I always read the "history" of each person. That is where the information is of vital importance in our journey with this disease. Without a tag following the person, to be found somewhere on a site, there is a huge void. You might be surprised to know how, to some, that is a big dark secret. No one benefits from lack of knowledge - no one. How do we know how that person's story began, and what they did to receive helpful treatment? Thank you for the warm welcome, Ned. Holding onto Hope, Barbara

Sandra, Thank you for your patience in my response. I am a dodo. I couldn't find the reply button for each individual reply. Thank you for the reply. It was a very nice welcome. Holding onto hope, Barbara

Hello Judy, Thank you for the upbeat reply. Yes, being a Stage IV not long after being a IIIB can be dealt with, but we know, too, that it can be a challenge, as well. The thing we've come out of this with is the idea that observation re mets is very crucial. (Our oncologist had said from the start that he would be treating it as a chronic. That is how it has been since 2004 - actually, the treatment began in January of 2005.) The site that I left was "Inspire" which is attached to Lung Cancer Awareness. I originally joined it when it was "Survivors for Lung Cancer Awareness," and was encouraged there by its cofounder, David Grant. He, along with Estrea Johannasen, gave us the spark to get through. The SLCA site changed once, but was relatively the same warm and comfortable effort. Later it became a whole new site, and this last change was too much for me. I am sure lots of people like it, but I'm getting too old to have my head spinning with new formats. It spins enough as it is. Thank you for the welcome. When dealing with lung cancer, it is soooo good to be able to relax a bit when posting. Hope and all good thoughts, Barbara

Hi Patti, Actually Bill was dx in December of 2004 and not too long after (in 2005) jumped into bone mets, bringing him into stage IIIB/IV. He is OK, though, and takes it all pretty well in his stride. At the beginning of all this, he told me that it was going to be a "job." Was he ever right about THAT. Thank you for the hug. Needed that. Love and Hope, Barbara