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I'm New, So Bear With Me!!


Guest alblanken

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I am new to this so bear with me. I was dx'd in 02/10 with stage

1a adenocarcinoma in the upper left lobe. I had a uppper lobe lobectomy in 03/10...no chemo/rad. Everything since then has

been going great. I have had bloodwork every three months and

PET/CT scans every six with NED. The hardest part for me isn't

too much the scans, because I really rely on them for a "clean bill of health," if you will, but the psychological issues. There isn't a day that goes by that my mind rests on the issue of "do

I have cancer again?" It's been a year and a half!! Other health issues I have had have left my mind completely, but not this! I feel so extremely lucky that I even survived it all, dodged the bullet, as some say, but now I'm stressed out about not being so lucky the "next time." Family and friends don't even want to talk about any of it now because they just think "You've had the surgery, they took care of it, and it's gone." They don't know. Anyway, I guess I'm rambling because, here, I can. Thank you for listening. Dee

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welcome to the place no one wants to be, but is glad they are under the circumstances!!!

Post away and get it off your mind! Also take a look a to good news and inspirational threads for some pick me ups news!!

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Thank you for the welcome. When you said "but so glad you are," that hit home because, I AM SO GLAD I AM. I viewed

your memorial, and I want to say that I am very sorry for your

loss. I, too, have a "soul mate," and I cannot imagine my life without him. Thank you for your comments.

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Dee, Welcome - you have stumbled on a great great ... support site. Like you I was staged 1A (twice!) and had surgery with no follow up therapy. I still worry constantly - but you will notice that many of the people here have managed to get past that psychological aspect. I understand where you are coming from - so do most people here.

The shoulders here are broad - share, join the fun and know that our thoughts are with you.

Annette

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Thank you Annette. I appreciate the support and encouragement. I keep telling myself that the psychological

aspect will eventually get better. My prayers are with you and

everyone on this site.

Dee

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Good morning Dee!

Welcome to our home, which is now, of course, your new home. We understand. We get it. Nothing can erase that time when we hear "you have lung cancer". Nothing.

Sadly, our loved ones don't understand. Fear is what makes them say or think "you had surgery, they took care of it, and it's gone". They don't want to think about it because they feel vulnerable. It is simply not that simple!

If I may, I offer you this; Life is short. You were dx very early stage. This is rare. My story is very similar to yours. I have chosen to take each day for what it is! Another day. Another wonderful day that I get to enjoy because they found this cancer early! I choose to not allow this disease to control my life. Take each day, one at a time, and just enjoy it.

I'm glad you found us. Do check out the Daily Air in the Just For Fun forum. There we check in daily and write about our everyday lives. It's fun, and the easy way to stay in touch with the regulars here. We write about the good stuff, and the bad stuff. And it's okay, no matter what we write.

Take care,

Judy in MI (I'm in Michigan, and we have another Judy in Key West, so we designate ourselves by where we live :-)

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There you are! Sorry I missed this yesterday. Don't know how old you are but I remember the time when the words "you have cancer" were a death sentence. No more. You have every reason to worry, it's scary. But you have every reason to rejoice that they caught it early. The worry will likely ease as time goes by and you keep getting those reassuring scans. Stay with us and share whenever you feel the need. It's a great place to be with great people who become family.

Judy in KW

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Welcome Dee. I was staged 1B (because of the size) and had my upper left lobe removed. I did have chemo (again because of the size). It's been 2 years and 3 months for me since surgery. In the beginning I worried about it coming back every time I got a sniffle or an ache. Now I only worry when it's close to time for a scan. I get what we call here scanxiety. But I also tell myself that I am actually in the best health of my life because if anything is wrong my doctors will find it with all the tests I go through. Having lung cancer made me realize that you need to live each day to the fullest because you never really know what the future holds. And try not to sweat the small stuff!

Paulette

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Hi Dee and welcome. I understand your "fear" about recurrence. I live with that every day too. It's been almost 2 years for me. I've learned to ignore or hide it for the most part. I know the cancer team I rely on is watching out for me and I trust them completely. I also know that if it does come back, it'll be just like another round in a boxing match. I will answer the bell and I will be fighting. There is too much to live for and I'm determined to ruin all the statistics. Some say we are living from scan to scan. I say we are just living. I've come to accept all that. I try not to be anxious about it. When the next scan is approaching, I think we all feel the heat.Like Randy said, see the good reports for some encouragement. Plus, new technologies are making treatment better and easier as time goes by. I've been told that mine will recur and it's when not if. In that case, I almost can't wait to see what's next. Crazy huh?

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Welcome, Dee! I was found to have a small tumor that was thought to be stage 1, but the biopsy from surgery revealed that it had already spread to one lymph node, making it stage 2A.

But I've recovered well and been cancer free for more than 3 1/2 years now. Here's wishing you many years of being cancer free, too.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hi Dee,

I too experienced all of that worry, and I guess I still do to a certain extent. I've resigned myself to the fact that it just comes with the territory. What I can tell you, though, is that it all did get less intense with the passing of time for me.

Congratulations on your good reports so far-there is nothing indicating that they will not remain good from here on out.

This is a fantastic support site-you will get so much hope and encourgement from the people here. They have helped me through many hard times.

Cindy

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Welcome Dee. Just found your post. I guess 8/4 was my Birthday and I missed it.

I was a later stage than you but even still I seemed to have made it! It is nearly 14 yrs since the Dr. said " I am sorry to inform you but you have Lung Cancer" I will never forget that day!

Wish you well. Keep us posted.

Donna G

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