I just found this site yesterday

[junelusd]

Hello, everyone:

I just found out this site yesterday, and truely loved it! My daddy who is 66yrs old was diagnosed NSCLC, stage IV in June 2003. He was visiting us for our new born baby from China during that time. He found there was an ulcer on the skin of his head while he was taking a show one day, and the ulcer did not heal for about one month. First, we thought it was a bad infection (even the doctor), but later on as the thing was still going worse, I asked the doctor to do a biopsy for him. And it turned out it is Adenocarcinoma, we were told 99% it was met. (sorry, I can never spell it right) from other organs, like Lung, Kidney, Stomach etc. So my parents had to go back to china, coz my daddy did not have health insurance here, even I knew if I could get him in MD Anderson here in houston, he could get the best treatment. After he arrived in Shanghai, China, he went to the Cancer Center there, and was diagnosed as Lung Cancer, Stage IV.

I was devastating, my daddy looks so normal, his overall condition is so good, he never smokes, he joggle 2 miles/day, sometimes running. He does not have any symptoms, like breathing problems. How could he get this disease? And is in later stage? And only have 12 - 18 month to live even with the chemo?

Anyway, he started the chemo in June 20th with Taxol and ? (I don't know the other chemo drug's name in english), again chemo in July 10th. His general condition does not change much, the one on his head did shrink half size, but we don't know his lung's condition yet. We kept praying for him, hope he will get better.

I just found this website yesterday, and was very impressed. Hope I can share the information with you, and get some encouragement to cope the lung cancer.

June

[norme]

OH MY DEAR,

SO SORRY TO HEAR ABOUT YOUR FATHER. CANCER IS A STRANGE BIRD. IT GOES THROUGH THE BODY WITHOUT ANY INDICATION OF A PROBLEM UNTIL ONE DAY, BOOM, IT SHOWS ITSELF. IT IS THE ONLY ILLNESS I CAN THINK OF THAT DOESN'T SHOW MANY SIGNS. ONE CAN FEEL GREAT. I KNOW MY HUSBAND WAS OUT WORKING IN THE YARD THE DAY HE WENT TO THE DR FOR A GENERAL CHECK-UP. HE DID HAVE A NAGGING COUGH. HAD I NOT TOLD HIM TO HAVE HIS COUGH CHECKED HE WOULD NOT OF HAD A CHEST X-RAY.

I WILL KEEP YOUR FATHER IN MY PRAYERS AND YOU TO. BEING SO FAR AWAY WILL BE EXTREMELY HARD ON BOTH OF YOU... GOD BLESS

[Don Wood]

Greetings, June, from a fellow Houstonian! This is an excellent place for info and support. My wife is 9 months out from her diagnosis of NSCLC, Stage IV, and is doing fine at this point, after chemo and radiation treatments. Keep us posted on your dad and yourself. Don

[Anniemac]

Welcome, June. I'm so sorry to hear about your father. It must be hard being so far from each other during this illness. It's a good sign that his head met is responding to the chemo. I hope his chest scans comes back wtih good news too. Keep in touch and let us know how he does.

[David P]

Hi June.

Please do keep us posted about you dad's progress. Many lung cancer patients have never smoked - me included - I'm not certain what percentage it is, but I think it's quite high. Take care,

David P.

[Jenny G.]

Hi June and welcome to the group. I hope we can offer you some support and information. At least you are not alone in this, but it must be hard to be so far away. It's good to know that he is responding to treatment, hopefully it will continue to improve.

Jenny

[mday]

I know how you feel June. My Mom did not smoke either and it is hard to believe that she has this d--- disease. I appreciate every moment with her. Keep a positive outlook, even though it may be difficult.

[mday]

You're right Katie..no one deserves lung cancer. The first question someone asks me is "does your Mom smoke?" which means to most people if you smoke they think you deserve cancer. Makes me very mad because there are so many other diseases caused from bad habits, but smokers get no sympathy.

[teresag]

Amen, Katie B! My Dad smoked for 50 years before he got lung ca. He stopped cigarettes decades before, then smoked a pipe for years and years, then quit altogether two years before being diagnosed. He was one of the many who got cigarettes with his rations as a WWII soldier.

The generation most affected now by lung ca (my Dad's generation) didn't know about the risks, and indeed they were suppressed, as we've learned recently from our dear friends in the tobacco industry.

I think this advertisement from the 1946 says it all: http://www.forcounsel.com/shop/browse_i ... rodid=1455

On a brighter note, thank heaven things have changed somewhat (not completely, to be sure). I hope the next generation will be healthier, and fewer people will get this awful scourge called lung cancer.

Blessings to all of you battling the beast, teresag

[Karen]

Even though my husband says that way down deep he expected his father would end up with cancer someday (smoking since he was 14)nobody in the family feels he deserves this. That is, nobody except maybe himself at certain moments. He makes comments about that he has nobody to blame or be angry with but himself for his cancer recurrence...almost seems like he thinks "if I deserved to win this battle I wouldn't have to fight again". I am trying hard to remind him that nobody made it clear back then how damaging cigarettes could be, he did try so hard to quit so many times, folks who never smoked have gotten cancer, etc....plus he needs to focus energy on fighting in the present not the past.

Every single person fighting cancer deserves as many victories in this battle as it takes.

You know...just a thought that popped in...

I think the idea of cancer seems so scary to so many, that if they can just find a reason why someone got the cancer then folks aren't as personally affected by the news of someone getting cancer. Maybe they feel they can distance themselves a bit more from the emotional impact of the word they just heard by knowing that... Not a comfort to some of us, but a comfort to themselves I suppose.

[teresag]

I think the idea of cancer seems so scary to so many, that if they can just find a reason why someone got the cancer then folks aren't as personally affected by the news of someone getting cancer. Maybe they feel they can distance themselves a bit more from the emotional impact of the word

I think you've said it all, Karen. Too bad that people forget that in protecting themselves emotionally, they hurt the person living with the beast.

[David A]

My Brother who was in the Marines in the turbulent late 60's once told me that if you smoked that you got extra breaks that was when the dangers were better known.

I started smoking regularly when I was 12 or 13 and store owners and cashiers didn't think twice about selling cigarettes to me, now that I'm 45 with LC I find this very disturbing and hope that that practice no longer exists. By the time I was 18 (legal age to buy tobbacco in Michigan) I wanted to quit, attended classes and clinics to help me stop, wasn't able to quit till 2 weeks before my dx for lung cancer and thats because I was terrified. Needless to say nicotine and the other addicitive chemicals that they put in cigarrettes and other tobbacco products are very powerful.

Damn them and the Tobbacco industry for all their deciet and for not valuing human lives over money, last time I checked God wasn't green!

[JudyB]

Have you all seen the hypocritical ads on TV put out by Philip Morris (I think that's who)? Saying how concerned they are about smokers and how bad smoking is for your health. I GET SO *&%##$%$# MAD WHEN I SEE THAT!!!!! If you really are concerned then STOP MAKING CIGARETTES!!!! Grrrrrr