TAnn

Addie, You have been an inspiration to me and I am sending my prayers of peace and comfort. TAnn

Kerry, It sounds like you have hit upon a wonderful doctor that is thorough and attentitive. Oh how I wish my first GP was as involved.... Anyway, many doctors will do an x-ray as a "base-line" to compare any future x-rays to. It will make it easier to see if there are any changes. This is probably why they ordered another set of x-rays in a couple of weeks. Now they have their "base-line" and since your husband has 2 risk factors, they can keep an eye on him. Hope this makes you feel a little better TAnn

Pat & Brian, Sending you my heartfelt prayers TAnn

Pat, I am sending my prayers for you and Brian. Sounds like a very special Christmas. I am glad that Brian is comfortable and that you seem to like your hospice team. You are a very loving wife and Brian knows how lucky he is to have you there to love him and support him. Remember that the pain meds will knock him out and contributes to his just wanting to stay in bed. My prayers will continue for you both. TAnn

Charlie, So sorry to hear that your chemo is causing you such discomfort. Yes, the wonderful people here always know just what to do and it usually works. Glad you are feeling better with the Zofran, steroids and lots and lots of water. I usually stock up on Gatorade at chemo time and just down one glass after another for the first 4-5 days. You are one brave soldier, Charlie. TAnn

Pat & Brian, This is a very difficult time for you both. Brian is not ready to give up yet, and Pat, you are such a warm and comforting person for Brian to lean on. You are not doing well, of course not. But maybe the chemo break will perk Brian right up and the Christmas holiday will be one full of memories for you both. We are here for you. It is time for you to lean on us. Don't hesitate...... Love & prayers, TAnn

Cindi, What's up with that? Unbelievable!!! Maybe after you explain to them that you moved they will be more understanding. Let them know that they are wrong! Give 'em He**! TAnn

Connie, You have the greatest attitude and outlook. I'm so sorry that you are going through this. January 18th I'll be sending you my most positive thoughts and prayers. Enjoy your holidays with the family and take it easy. TAnn

I had WBR for 6 very small brain mets in October of 2004. 1 year and 2 months later, I seem to be doing fine in that area. Still have a little trouble with the memory, but that could just be "me", I always had a little trouble in that area. I think everyone is different, like we continue to say with this disease. TAnn

I was wondering, how much chemo can a person's body tolerate? Of course I know that everyone is different, I'm speaking in general terms. Can someone take chemotherapy drugs constantly over a number of years? Or for as long as they continue to hold someone stable? What about the damage the chemo does to the "healthy" parts of the body? I've been on some sort of chemotherapy drug for 2 1/2 years now. Taxol, Carboplatin, Taxotere, Clinical trial drug ZD6474, Iressa, Tarceva and currently Alimta. A few of our members lost their battle because of the treatments, not the cancer. I'm not expecting any definative answers, I'm really just wondering "out loud". I'm planning on telling my doctor on my next visit, Dec. 28th, that I want to take a break from chemo. The last break I had only lasted less than 2 months before progression. If my only option is one of the "older" chemo's that I haven't been on, I'm not sure that I want to suffer that again. I'm still hoping for one of the trials that my doctor talked about, but you never know what the side effects will be with Phase I trials. Guess I'm just thinking too much tonight. Thanks for listening. TAnn

Bill, Didn't you say your wife is NED? There should be no throwing in the towel now. All the fighting and suffering and finally getting NED only to have to face the damaging effects of treatment. I saw that Lori's mom may have surgery for her necrosis. I know you Bill, and I know your voice will be heard. Going through the ER may be the only way to get your doctors attention. Whatever it takes..... TAnn

Jimben, I am so sorry to hear this news. This rollercoaster just won't stop. The Taxol is the really long infusion. Everyone has different reactions to the different chemo's and I hope yours isn't too bad. Hair loss, neuropathy, fatigue, nausea, really horrible taste in your mouth, and muscle pain are some of the side effects that I experienced with the Taxol/Carbo combination. I've never had Avastin, but some here have had it and I'm sure will let you know what to expect. Prayers..... TAnn

I've had the same problem especially since it has turned cold. I'm pretty sure in my case, it is just dry nasal passages from running the heater at night. After the first "blow" in the morning, mine clears up too. Keep using the saline drops, and if he wakes up in the night for any reason, have him use the drops then too. The more, the better. TAnn

When I had a problem "in that area", I got a script for Lydocaine gel. It not only forms a barrier, but numbs the area to any pain. Ask your doc.... Sorry to hear that he is having these problems. If it's not one thing, it's another! TAnn

Friday, I was feeling some pain in my right side just below my rib cage. By 4:00am Saturday morning, I could not roll over in bed, much less get myself out, so off to the ER we went. I was having horrible pain so they took blood and x-rays of my chest and abdomen. The x-rays came back "normal", but it felt like I had an exploding football in my abdomen. My blood work came back and my liver values were off the charts. They said the pain was definately in my liver and the liver was having trouble because of the chemo. They send me home with morphine for the pain. I took 1 30mg pill of the morphine Saturday night and slept pretty well. Sunday morning I woke up feeling horrible and ended up vomiting all day, apparently from the morphine. (I told that doctor that I can't take those hard drugs!) Today I'm feeling a little better. The pain is better and I can move around almost like normal. This last Alimta treatment has really done a number on me. I'm thinking I'll ask my doctor for a break on my next appointment. Don't think my body can handle much more of this...... TAnn

Leslie, Sounds like you are feeling much more comfortable with the radiation treatments. And you are very well informed. Your doctors did a good preparing you. I'm jealous, your mask sounds "cool"! Hot pink! Mine was plain old white . My hair fell out too. I had 10 treatments total and the day after the last treatment it started falling out. My husband shaved my head for me as I've been through the losing the hair thing before and it is miserable to watch it come out slowly every day. Better just to shave it all off. I'm not a wig girl myself. Here in Houston it gets so hot, and after being bald with the previous chemos, everyone was used to seeing me that way. I also just go with a baseball cap and when I was really bald, I'd wear a bandana under the hat. It took 1 full year for my hair to even "start" to grow back. Some places it never came back. Good luck tomorrow. Let us know how you are doing. TAnn

I am so sorry to hear about your mom. I know how scary it is, but you made the right decision to get the final results so there is absolutely no guessing. Prayers sent for the best case scenario. TAnn

Leslie, Oh my dear, I know exactly what you are going through. I remember that feeling of hopelessness when my doctor called to tell me that I had 6 brain mets. Then my husband reminded me about all the people here that had successfully treated their brain mets and it gave me hope. My WBR was for 10 days. Once you are on the table and they have you all lined up, it literally takes 30 seconds on one side of your head and 30 seconds on the other. (I'm sure you're finding this out today!) The hardest part of WBR for me was having to get up and go to the hospital every day. I was very tired and had some short term memory problems, BUT..... now those 6 brain mets can't even be seen on my MRI! The worst of my symptoms were definately from the decadron. So Leslie, think about all of your friends here that made it through and know that you can do this. You are strong and this is just another one of those "bumps in the road" that we have to endure with this disease. Good luck, TAnn

Fay, You are such a strong woman. Just taking on the task of remodeling while undergoing treatment is amazing. That whole thing with your PICC line sounds absolutely horrible! Just when you think they can't come up with another way to torture you, they rip your muscle from your shoulder. OWW!!! Thinking of you this morning going through chemo. Hope it treats you well. Hang in there.... TAnn

Although Alimta has been keeping me stable so far, this last treatment, #7, is really kicking my bu**! I really feel as though that famous beer truck has run me over and then backed up to make sure it got me! Each treatment gets harder and harder and the side effects start earlier and last longer. My husband and son have been wonderful to put up with all my whining and moaning. My biggest complaint would have to be the pain I feel in my right lung. Wasn't too bad before chemo, but it's there now. Really bad fatigue too. This too shall pass, I just hope it does so quickly! TAnn

Soooooo glad you are home! I know you are much happier in your own home with your own things and your family. Now, keep gettin better!!!! TAnn

Bill, The news that your wife is NED is so wonderful, but the toll that all of the treatments take on our bodies is devastating. I'm not sure I really understand what exactly the diagnosis means for your wife, I'll have to do some research, especially since I had WBR 1 year ago. Thanks for the info, and it was good to hear from you! Sending my prayers for your wife. TAnn

I had my doctors appointment yesterday to discuss my latest ct scan. After 6 Alimta treatments, I'm still stable! So, yesterday afternoon I went ahead with my 7th treatment. What's so amazing about this is that I have never been able to have even 6 treatments of previous chemo's, but Alimta is treating me a little better. I have one more month of the Lovenox shots for the blood clot in my left lung and then I'm done with those!!! Yeahhhhhhhhhh! My doctor also said that there are many new clinical trials at MD Anderson that are looking really hopeful, all mostly along the lines of targeted therapy like Tarceva and Alimta, and some in pill form too. He said if the Alimta starts treating me bad in the future, these trials are definately an option. That was good news to us, as I was feeling like my options were dwindling down to nothing after Alimta.... Well, that's it for me, a couple of weeks of feeling crappy and then I'll be able to enjoy the holidays! TAnn

Janet, I have a couple of questions for you. First, there are procedures that can be done for the pleural effusion. One being the talc procedure and in my case I had a Denver Catheter to drain my fluid, which has not come back after a year and a half. Second, does the fluid in his abdomen contain cancer cells? Where is the fluid coming from? There are many options for Ron. I was diagnosed at stage IIIB/IV two and a half years ago and have been on many treatments that have held me stable. Currently, I just had my 7th Alimta treatment yesterday. The good news is that after the 6th treatment, I'm still stable. Don't let the doctor call all the shots. Talk to Ron and see if he even wants more chemo and then ask your doctor about the many options still available. Good luck and keep us posted. TAnn

So glad to hear you are doing better. 1 more week, you can do it!!!! Keep us posted, you are a super hero Addie! TAnn