Laurie

Hi David, I wish you the best with your treatments. I will keep you in my prayers. Laurie

Hi Dana, Welcome.. I'm sorry that your Mom has LC. I wish her the best and will keep her in my prayers. Laurie

Hi, I just wanted to say welcome. I am sorry that your Mom has LC, My Mom was DX in 10/02 with SCLC. The fact that she feels good is a blessing! I will pray for her. I have heard that Topectan is the common drug used for reoccurence. I wish the best with your Moms treatments. Hope to hear more from you. The people here are so helpful and supportive. Laurie

Renee, I'm so glad that your Mom is home! I'm so happy for you! I can feel your joy, so celebrate!! Hopefully the homehealth care will make it easier on both of you, and you will have someone else to monitor her care. Best wishes to both of you!!!! Enjoy your time together! Laurie

Yeah, Great News!!!!!!!!!! Celebrate.. Enjoy!!!!!!!!!!!!! Laurie

Deb, What a great post! Like a breath of fresh air... You are a really strong and amazing person. You have a great way of looking at things and your sense of humor is so refreshing. It is trully a gift to be able to put things into this kind of a perspective.. It is so good to hear from you. I was just thinking tonight.. hmmmmm.. Wonder how Deb's doing? Laurie

Cathy, Oh Cathy.. Enough is Enough!!!!....I'm so sorry to hear that your Dad is having all of these problems. I can tell how worried you are, I'm glad that you are going to be with them. I know how difficult it is to be so far away and it certainly will make you feel better to talk to the doctors yourself. Don't feel bad about posting! I am sending you my prayers and support. Have a good trip and give your dad extra hugs. Here's one for you too! (((((((((Cathy)))))))) God Bless you and your family, Laurie

Sandy, I am praying that you will have a "clear scan"! Laurie

Shannon, I'm so happy for you and Mike. I'm so glad to see posting and inspiring us again. You guys are so amazing and your posts fill me with hope and faith. I will continue to pray for you and Mike with all of my heart. That God will continue to bless you everyday with miracles.. Laurie "Trust in the lord with all your heart and lean not on thy own understanding in all of your ways acknowledge him, he will direct your paths.."

David, I'm not a doctor.. so I really not sure what to say, but my Mom had cysplatin and altough she got really sick with it, it did get rid of the tumors. Is there anyway the doctor could give you smaller doses of cysplatin over a longer period. Say instead of 6 treatments give you 8 or 9 and just hydrate you with IV's..and monitor you closely? That was one of my Moms options. Wishing you the best. I will pray for you. Laurie

Hi Ocean, I'm sorry to hear about your grandma's health problems.. My Nana had CHF and i took care of her she also had a stroke. CHF and Lung cancer which Mom had do have similar symptoms and advanced lung cancer can cause CHF... but CHF usuallly has swelling in the legs and i think there are a couple of tests that can tell CHF like the rate the heart is pumping the blood...pulse...the blood ox levels are low, as well as a gurgling sound in the chest..When Nana was sleeping i could here it and new it was acting up. I was afraid my Mom was getting that at one point because she was throwing up white foam, a sign of CHF. CHF can be treated with meds, my Nana lived with it for years. It is more difficult to have it with LC. I would ask for a CT scan. I hope this helps you. ((((((Hugs)))))))))) Laurie

Jenny, My Mom is undergoing PCI and is a little over half way through she is getting the most agressive amount that she can get 18 trmts. Her cousin is going with her and is having 30 treatments of preventative at the same dose for a brain tumor that was removed. I think we discussed it in more detail in SAM's post.. I'm still here.. the first one. So far my Mom is doing great, her memory seems to be in tact and talking to her one day she was yawning and seemed tired but today she was absolutely upbeat and sounded totally normal and great. As far as the long term, i think you have to look at your family health history and see what strokes, parkinsons etc are running in the family. I've heard that brain radiation can cause them to come out long term. I guess that what the doctor said is that the chemo doesn't penetrate the brain so the PCI is good in case there are cells up there undetected on the PET that can come back later. It is a hard decission but my Mom was all for it so thats what we are doing. Hope this helps you. Laurie

Hi Jenny, Welcome.. I hope you will find these boards helpful and supportive as I have. My Mom was DX SCLC (check my signature) and her main tumor was larger than yours and the collapsed lung, she had a biopsy on a huge lymph node in her neck that showed SCLC. She had four rounds of VP-16 and Cysplatin. She had radiation on the second chemo. I can't imagine her getting "zapped twice either" she had no problems like Sandys internally but she has this beautiful baby soft skin that got burned and irritated near the end. She is very fair and her and my Nana both have the softest skin. I love to touch them.. I used to put cream on her that would help but it was uncomfortable and she was not feeling well from chemo already.. I wouldn't want her to do that.. at all. Well the good news is the scans show that she is cancerfree and is having PCI. If i can be of any help to you just send me a PM. Looking forward to seeing your posts. Bless you Laurie

Hi Renee, I'm so sorry to here that you are having a bad day. What kind of specialized care were you looking for? I'm not sure about the state card and what that means but here are some numbers you can call and maybe they can help: The Patient Advocate Foundation (800) 532-5274The purpose of the Foundation is to enhance patient education about managed care terminology and policy issues that may effect coverage. The Foundation also assists in providing legal intervention services with creditors to negotiate reduction or deferment of payments during treatment and helps with legal aid referrals as indicated by patient need. The National Insurance Consumer Helpline (800) 942-4242A hotline established to answer consumer questions and provide problem-solving support as well as printed materials. The Hotline is manned by trained personnel and licensed agents from 8 to 8 EST, Mon through Friday. Cancer Treatments Your Insurance Should Cover (301) 984-9496 Describes standard and investigational treatments that should be covered and what to do if reimbursement is denied. You can order a guide from the Assoc of Community Cancer Centers. _________________ It can't hurt to call. I will keep you and your Mom in my Prayers and I will keep searching the web for info for you. Laurie

Shordy, That sure is great news! I'm so happy to hear that your Dad is doing so well. You are a wonderful daughter. Laurie

Marlon, I'm so happy for you and your Mom!! That is so great!!! Is there anyway that you can post the article here so we can read it? Laurie

Hi, I just wanted to say that I am very sorry that your Aunt has LC. I don't have any experience with NSCLC as my Mom has SCLC, but i just wanted to say Welcome. Many clinics have an online second opinion, I know Dana Farber in Boston has one. You send your medical records and they give a second opinion to you or your doctor. I think it costs $600.00. I used to live in Overland Park Kansas and Kansas City MO, and I know that ther is and excellent Medical School in down town Kansas City, MO and someone said that there is an extensive cancer research clinic and information facility at the University of Kansas Medical Center although i'm not sure if it is the same campus. There are also several others in there seventies going through chemo. My mom is in her late 50's and she had a terrible time with chemo, but she was being treated for a different type of cancer. I wish you and your aunt all the best. I will keep her in my prayers. Laurie

Hi Junior, I'm happy about the good news.. thats great. But the not so good news, i'm not sure about. It sounds like the have good sucess with treating it. I wish you and your Dad the best and i will pray that your Dad's treatment will be a success. Hopefully someone will have some info for you. God Bless Laurie

Hi Spanky, I'm glad that you posted. My Mom has SCLC too. She is currently cancerfree and is having PCI. I hope that your Mom continues to do well with chemo, sounds like so far so good! I will keep you both in my prayers. Laurie

Hi John, I'm so sorry to hear about your Mom. She sounds like an amazing, special person, like yourself. I too have been reading your posts and am thankful for your information. I'm glad that you are with us, your Mom, wife and daughters are lucky to have such a dedicated family man on thier side. Thanks for sharing with us and I think you would be an excellent additon to the medical field. Best Wishes, Laurie

Hi Lynn, Welcome. I'm sorry that you are here and your life has been affected by lung cancer. My Mom has SCLC too. I will keep your father in my prayers. Laurie

Hi Rita, Welcome, I hope that your pain goes away. I hope that you will find support and answers here. I'm sorry that I don't have any suggestions but just wanted to say hello. Laurie

Hi Candy, Welcome. I'm sorry your husband has Lung Cancer. I hope that you will find comfort here. The people here are so kind and understanding. I will keep you and your husband in my prayers. Laurie

Glad to hear things are going so well Laurie

My take on those questions are... plain and simple.. maybe it is because of my job.. But you are asking a doctor who is ultimately the person you are going to, to heal and yes cure you of this disease your prognosis. He is responsible for your treatment.. I'm sure the disclaimer is the answer.. like the blahahahahab ... Cancer is tough and in some cases it does reoccur..bad treatment or nature.. who knows??? If he tells you treatments will cure you.. You can sue him! He is working at his job..Hence malpractice insurance.. So he gives you the glass is have empty answer. A good doctor would say "well give it our best shot. Well treat it and there is hope." Thats just what I think.. Laurie