gerbil runner

I think what we all want is CHOICE for the PATIENT. The choice for more pain relief, the choice for less medication, the choice for treatment of complications even if the primary disease has no further options... When you can't choose an outright cure, it's the least health professionals can do to allow full informed choice of everything else.

Welcome! I responded to Gay-anne's post earlier, and I must apologize - didn't realize you mom was getting chemo along with (possibly) the thalidomide. I hope your mom will do well.

Wa-hoo! What terrific news!

Well, glad it's gone anyway. We don't use traps or poison here... I'm an animal lover myself, have had hamsters and gerbils for pets, but our house out in the boonies is a real mouse-magnet. Fortunately, one of my 2 cats is a truly dedicated mouser. (Warning - gross stuff ahead ). I know we've had a mouse intruder when I find the pre-digested remains, usually down in the basement. For some reason, they are a feline delicacy . But a whole mouse is too much to fit in a kitty-tummy, so... Kelley learned quickly not to bring his "toys" upstairs when we took away the barely living/freshly killed mice he dragged up. One night, he was raising h@ll in our bedroom - I was convinced he had a hair scrunchie - and when I chased him out of the room my foot contacted the still-warm body . We never see any "calling cards", so I know Kelley gets 'em before they get cozy. Our other cat, Ollie, is too lazy to catch mice. I think. I've never seen him with one. If any relatives show up, Andrea, consider the low-tech solution from the local shelter . Great therapy, too.

Many congrats, David!

Berisa, I can imagine how much this will mean to your dad and the rest of your family. I pray it will be a beautiful day.

This beast is ugly, but it can be beaten back. Is there a specific reason your mom is going straight to a clinical trial? SCLC typically responds well to chemo, and a couple of types are very well-documented. My mom has the same type of cancer, so I'm really curious from a personal standpoint. Welcome, take a deep breath, and visit often.

Chrissy, I'm so sorry the treatments have brought such serious problems. Thank you for the warning - it's crucial for patients to know what to watch out for with any medication. That a side effect is very rare is of no comfort to those who get it.

Well, Mo, you have my sympathy. I can't leave chocolate alone. And food addiction is tough because, well, you can't just quit eating! It's why I run - that's the only reason I'm not a Lane Bryant woman . As far as sugar feeding cancer goes...I'm no scientist, maybe it does and maybe it doesn't. I try to keep the sugar level down anyway. But enough cancer pateints suffer from malnutrition to make it a secondary concern when appetite suffers. If milkshakes are the only thing you can eat, go for it. I do like Splenda for some things...we use Davinci sugar-free syrup for coffee and italian sodas. Aspartame scares me, since it came from Monsanto. BTW, RC diet cola has Splenda, not aspartame. I've also tried the sugar-free chocolate, and mostly it is very good. It's also self-limiting - eat too much and it's like Ex-lax .

Boy, you're tough, Mo! I pray you will have good results and a great scan.

I've heard some chemos will drop BP. And I think low platelets can make one feel tired. Low BP can certainly take the wind out of your sails! Hope your mom gets some relief. I know my mom slept a lot when chemo and rad hit hard, but she feels much better now.

That's terrific news!

Hi, Charlotte. Glad you found us, though it's always sad to see someone joining this struggle. Make sure your husband reports all side effects - some meds can be changed. My mom doesn't get the decadron anymore because she hates how it makes her feel. I don't know how many oncs will let a patient drop the decadron, but mom seems to be fine without it. Hope your husband feels better soon.

I'll vote for a second opinion, too. My mom has 2 oncologists, her main one and the one who will handle stem-cell treatment. They do not agree on PCI, but they DO agree that there is a lot available to treat SCLC. Having PCI, I think (not positive) means any brain mets that do occur may be harder to treat due to limits on how much radiation can be used. Good luck in helping your dad with his decisions. I'd suggest a tape recorder for the office visits so you don't miss anything, if the dr. will agree.

Ok, I'll admit that as the parent of 3 boys, ages 12, 4 and just-turned-two today, some strange things get said in this house. Please feel free to add your own personal favorites. Don't sit in the dog's food bowl. Don't eat the dog's food. You cannot eat a golf ball. You can't go through the wall – quit running your trike into it. That's not Daddy – let go of his leg. Quit playing with the dog's tongue. Is that corn in his nose? Yep – he did it again. Don't pig-pile on the cat. Drinking bath water is yucky. I see you've been spitting out your grape juice again. Quit torturing the jade plant. Paper is not for eating. Newspaper is not for shredding. Please don't take the heat register apart again. Don't lick the windows. Pull up your underwear before you pull up your pants. Mommy's folding laundry – please get out of the basket. No blood? You're ok. What the...here's the diaper and pants, where is he? It's too quiet. What are they doing? Hello...excuse me? Hmm?? What?? Sorry, I have kids, can you speak up? I am NOT going to hang you upside-down again! Sorry, no popsicles for breakfast. EEWW...if you feed him that many olives, YOU change his diapers! Trust me, your head will not fit through the cat flap.

I'm so sorry Bill and Peg don't have more treatment options. Prayers going out for them both

It seems your onc. is a firm believer in hope. I'd say that's a good thing. Quitting smoking will do you a world of good, so go right ahead and ask for the help you need. "Cure" is a misleading word. "Remission" and NED are where you want to get first. Those goals are certainly possible. Long-term survival is possible. Out-lasting the beast while waiting for a true cure is possible. I hope you will do well with treatment. Many people do.

Great! Hope the ct scan is clean as well.

Judy, be kind to yourself. Nobody chooses this disease. Major anti-depressants may be needed to help you kick the habit. And cancer treatments are hard enough on the body without the stress smoking will add to your body.

Congrats, Angie and Fall54! We love good news.

I think (could be wrong of course) that the one thing we ALL agree on is that the patient (and then close family should the patient not be able to adress changes in circumstance) should be the one to decide how far treatment goes. A dr. who does not agressively treat any and all problems brought up by a patient who requests full, agressive treatment is not much short of a murderer. People who choose hospice care with the understanding that there no curative treatment for their specific disease still deserve treatment for any other condition which is of concern, whether it is starvation, obstruction, or a d*mn hangnail. A patient with a life-threatening illness should be able to have full, informed choice over treatment. It is my understanding that hospice became popular because too many dying people had painful, unwanted life-prolonging treatments forced without consent. There must be a better way...hospice should not be the end of choice.

Talk about turning a lemon into lemonade! Great news! Now you just have to get the insurance co. to add the sugar...

Glad you're home - hope you continue to gain strength.

Good news is a wonderful thing - enjoy! Thanks for sharing it with us.

Ginny, GETTING the choppers would involve oral surgery, too! (We had an employee who wanted to find a dentist who would pull all his bothersome teeth - when he got the details, he changed his mind) Ry, I hope the second half flies by for you. And maybe they should up your pre-med antibiotics?