Addie

Geri, honey...it may take a load of Decadron for me to wage war...but you don't need meds! Just your good ol' Brit tenacity, brilliance and chutzpah! Dr. ER Resident sounds like a real clod. I wouldn't even wanting him diagnosing a hangnail. Glad you set him straight and ALSO your cardiologist there. If they don't have a bedside manner...then maybe they missed their calling.....auto mechanics! Sheesh. Glad you're on the mend, honey. Check your email.

Well, I'm slow. Perhaps it is the decrease in my dose of Decadron....but today it finally hit me too, Fay has named her tumor Bill! I have a friend out in Colorado who had thyroid cancer. She didn't even like to say the word "cancer" so she named it Charley! Whenever she talked about cancer, it was "Charley this" or "Charley that". I hadn't really thought about doing that...but it's not a bad idea...is it, to name the little buggers? That way, I can curse and hex them individually! I have four tumors in my liver...so I could name them Leroy Liver, Lennie Liver, Lars Liver (he's the one with an accent ) and let's see...what'll I name the last one? How about Lester Liver? As far as my brain tumors (which should now ALL be gone) I coulda named them the Mormon Tabernacle Choir! Thanks Fay...and I'm glad to see so many of you were not only on the same track as I...but actually beat me to the punch! I must be slipping, eh...deprived as I am of Decadron.

Thanks for posting this, Karen. It must have been wrenching to attend. Too many fresh memories. But I really like the thought that David and Beth are together, after being so supportive of one another here...and that neither is struggling anymore. I hope David doesn't have a blonde wig and a lipstick up there... My heart goes out to Beth's kids and your little doll, Faith...for having lost a parent. But I know the remaining parents will fill the gap as best they can. Keep in touch...huh? Let us know how you are doing...and how Bethie's family is getting along, too. Thinking of you all....

Well, turkey poop!! Kasey, it really was a great article about Ray...so I hope that at some point, he can repost or link to it. I guess your 15 minutes of "fame" are up, huh Ray? That's okay. You came closer to it than most of us do ....fame, that is. Even more important, you're still here and doing well...so keep that up, please. Far as we're concerned here...you're still a "star"!

It's probably a plot devised by the Chicken Cult...that the monitor and keyboard are so far apart. They're trying to frustrate ya into getting better so you can go home! So glad to hear from you Fay, and actually you did fine with the spelling but for a couple of words. I've been looking but have not yet come up with "tet wekk" in the dictionary. You just keep on healing and feeling better each day...till you're home and all like brand new. We've been missing you lots...and need you back here.

So sorry I didn't catch this yesterday, Hebbie...but hope your day was as sunny and bright as you are! And I hope you partied till the cows came home!

Hugs to you both and am hoping the "three times" is the "charm" for Charlie. Keep us posted...and tell Charlie to hang in there!

A funky little British film that I saw with two girlfriends at a matinee. Cannot recall the name of it. But it was several months ago. Prior to that? It was TOP GUN No lie. DH doesn't "do" movies. But on my 40th birthday in 1986, he took me and the kids to see Top Gun...at my urging, I might add.

Hey, Ray.. If you weren't supposed to post the article here due to copyright issues....are you allowed to post a LINK to it? Usually that is acceptable. If you can link to the article we might save Kasey some frustration!

Fay...sorry that the news wasn't more benign...but very glad the surgery is over for you. Hope you feel a bit better each day, and get yourself home before the Chicken Cult arrives again. Make sure they take excellent care of you. Tell 'em you're a star here at lchelp....and they're obligated to take special care of you! Heal. Then hurry back.

I should have known you'd already boned up on this as much as you can. Your info is far more pertinent than mine. Hope somebody here knows something that will be helpful, Jen. I'm at a loss.

Every woman should have: A friend who will share such a wonderful piece with her friends! Thanks, Ann. Haven't seen this before and it made me laugh, feel warm and cozy....experience a lot of nice emotions, reading it.

I assume they looked at, and have ruled out hemachromatosis...too much iron in the blood? Basically ferritin is iron in the blood. I guess this, combined with your low HGB and HCT could cause fatigue...but I don't know that it would account for any of the other symptoms you've had, Jen. I know a guy here and one of DH's cousins has hemachromatosis...and basically the treatment for it (as I understand it) is that they periodically have to have blood removed in order to get the excess iron out. But again...I would think if they suspected this..they'd have told you. Still it's something you can ask about. Hope they track down what's going on so you can FEEL better, Jen...and SOON!

Oh, what fun...and the pictures are great!! Can't wait to read Doug's journal entry...and how nice of Stan and you to take them out fishing, Susan. There is nothing like Pacific Salmon...nothing. So flavorful. We had salmon for dinner tonight...but it wasn't Pacific salmon...so....taste was so-so. Hurry home, Dougie....we await your journal!

Take the wheelchair with you...and tell her you're so afraid of a fall and broken bones you want her to agree to use it till you get to the stands. Then maybe she can sit on one of the lower benches on the stands...at the end. You know, hubby and I are planning a trip out to Oregon late in Sept. after my next chemo...and if I have to use a wheelchair to get thru the airport...I will do it gladly. My stamina is not good right now...after radiation...and so I have no shame about using a wheelchair OR one of those little carts that airport employees truck people around in. Whatever it takes to achieve the goal. Your mom isn't up to a long hike these days...so convince her in advance, if you can, that she needs the wheelchair. Good luck to you. Let us know if she agrees.

Beth's humor and her spunk and how hard she fought thru so many awful side effects during her battle...will resonate here for a long, long time. My deepest condolences to her family. If WE will miss her spark and her *funny business*...think how much her family will miss it. Awww, Bethie dear...there is a funny lady appearing in Heaven now...first stage on the left...and honey, you'll have 'em rolling in the aisles...I mean clouds. We're gonna miss you....but you know, there is a little comfort in knowing you don't have to fight so hard anymore. You were much too young to leave us, it's true....but to think of you relaxed, at peace, being your funny self with out pain or struggle...well, like I said, there is some comfort in that. Godspeed, Justa......

Two. I know...hard to believe in this mobile society, eh? But for the first 37 yrs. of my life, I lived all but a couple of years of it in the same school district...virtually a 15 block triangle. Since 37 yrs of age, I've lived here...almost 22 yrs now. Guess I'm not only a homebody...but a city/town loyalist too....eh?

This news just makes my stomach turn over. Beth is a special gal. Her humor and spunk are unrivaled. My deepest sympathy to her family that it's all come to this point. I wish only peace for Beth and strength and any possible comforts to her family. Thanks for letting us know, Cin.

Beth... From the time of my first relapse in Feb., I've had two swollen areas sort of where my neck attaches to the shoulder, just above the clavical. The doc says it's NOT lymph nodes and his early suspicion was that something in my gut (the liver or pancreas tumors) was pressing on a vein causing the swelling. It's still there all these months later...and I point it out periodically...but nobody seems worried. When I had my portacath put in, I asked the doc who did it (in interventional radiation) to please ultra sound both jugular veins to make sure everything was okay there. He did...and it was okay. So...I wouldn't panic...but I WOULD call the doc since this is new. The amount of swelling in my neck will vary sometimes...but it's never gone away. This might be nothing for Bill too...but you'll feel better if you at least call in, describe the swelling and location and see what the doc says.

Ahhhh, good news. Been thinking about her all day hoping we'd get some word. Rest and heal quickly Fay...we need you back here!

Yo, Batman....you keep up that positive "live every day" attitude...because you can bet that is part of why you're still perking along, doing so well. And now, of course, you are FAMOUS, too! That is really a terrific and hopeful and encouraging article for anyone with l.c. to read. Thanks for sharing it with all of us here. Now....get to the Batmobile. I think your Batphone is ringing!

I've been pencilling my brows since the late 70's when I went thru a series of eye operations and lost most of them then. And then I got cancer and my hair started falling out after the first cycle of chemo and you know what? I WAS DELIGHTED not to have to pencil those dang things on anymore! They would have looked silly without any hair on my head! I still put on eye liner and some shadow...but I have about 6-8 hairs on each brow...little tufts in the middle above the inside corner of my eyes. But hey...I'm still bald too...so painting on eyebrows isn't going to fool anyone. I'm kind of hoping if/when I get my hair back (I'm finishing round two of brain rad so they tell me it may NOT come back ) that I will be so used to no eyebrows that I never again start painting them on. The eyeshadow and liner though???? That stays! I've heard others speak highly of the Look Good, Feel Good program (if that is the right name for it) but for me...at my age...after 8 years in my early 30's looking like a frog with Graves Disease and all those eye operations....I could give a rip! And come Halloween....I'm not even gonna need a costume!

The after effects of cyberknife would, I suspect, depend on where your dad's brain tumors were. I am currently getting whole brain radiation as I have many small brain "deposits" as my onc likes to call them I was told that because radiation would hit the pituitary gland, that all glandular functions in the body could be affected...such as thyroid. So having a thyroid panel done is a good idea. Also, some anti-depressants may not agree with your dad's "chemistry" and perhaps if you report his current mood to his doctor, he'll order a change in what dad is taking. It might help. With Dad's family history of mental illness...this could all be more complex...but you'd need a doctor to tell you if that is the case. A good chat with Dad's primary doc OR his onc, would seem to be in order. If Dad is currently getting chemo, then he is likely getting some steroids too...and THEY can mess with emotions big time. Another thing to check into. Does your dad drink plenty of fluids? Is he staying hydrated? I go thru 3-4 bottles (16-20 ozs) of water per day, plus a little coffee, milk, juices. Dehydration can cause some wonky side effects too...and staying hydrated is important especially during chemo. Pinch the skin on dad's forearm. If it immediately returns to normal...he's hydrated. If the pinched skin remains up and sloooowly returns to normal...he may be dehydrated. Meantime, as Leslie so wisely has counseled...take care of YOU and make sure Mom takes care of herself too. Getting some Caregiver counseling is a wonderful idea. Sometimes this disease IS harder on the caregiver, I think. Hope you get some of this figured out and that counseling helps both you and your mother. Keep us up to date...will you? Wishing you the best...

Godspeed, Dean. You were sort of the Poet Laureate of this site....so much wisdom, thought and beauty in your posts. Dean has left us all a wonderful legacy of taking Life for what it is, finding pleasure in the small things, and floating on the surface of much that might disrupt our serenity. We are all better for having "known" him. Please pass my sincere condolences on to Gay and thank her for taking such wonderful care of our friend Dean. We will miss him terribly, as I know she will...but our lives have all been enriched by Dean in some way. Dean Carl was a very special man.

All good thoughts, vibes, wishes, prayers AND chickens are on their way to you, Fay. Will be thinking of you especially around the time of surgery...and hoping to hear from you very soon, that you're on the mend and feeling lots better. Let us hold your pork chop...you just concentrate on healing and getting well, ok?