Guest Estrea Posted January 11, 2003 Share Posted January 11, 2003 I know that it is difficult to deal with any stage of lung cancer, but us early stage folks have a set of issues all our own. We can't talk about or relate to the trauma of treatment and the only physical issues we end up with are very short-term and self-limiting. Mostly we are dealing with the psychological scars and the fact that, while we have a good chance of survival, we will not really be out of the woods for almost ten years. We don't look like the "typical" cancer patient and most people don't understand how the words lung cancer and survivor can even be in the same sentence. Support for people with any stage of LC is limited, but for us it is practically non-exsistent...except in New York now where there are two groups going on. Any other early stage people out there with similar thoughts/difficulty coping? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gail Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 They told me I was very lucky that I was stage 1A. So why didn't I feel lucky? Why did this cancer send me into a tailspin? Because it was still cancer, it was deep inside my body, and I knew it only takes one sneaky cell to escape and find a new home somewhere in my body. And in my next breath, I always say I could be dead from a car accident too. I also hate the question "Did you smoke?" Yes, from 1974-1984. Less then a pack a day. I quit before I got pregnant. Didn't want to screw that up. I was an obnoxious non-smoker. HA. I know, non-smokers get lung cancer, and we need to remind people of that. So why do I feel like slapping the cigarette pack out of people's hands in the WAWA line? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Estrea Posted January 15, 2003 Share Posted January 15, 2003 I couldn't agree with you more...knowing that one little cell could still kill me haunts me every day of my life! I don't really feel very lucky either 00 but I tell everyone that I was lucky because only IA survivors know what it really feels like. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiny Posted January 21, 2003 Share Posted January 21, 2003 Hi guys, It doesn't matter what stage we are, this disease is sooo sneaky and debilitating. The statistics by themselves are enough to make a person loopy if you let them. After my surgery, my oncologist and I started looking for clinical trials that I might participate in, and I felt like the proverbial kid who had fallen through the cracks...there were several studies available for Stage I folks, and lots of trials for Stages III and IV, but there was a dearth of options for Stage IIs and I didn't meet the requirements for the few that we found. Oh, well, the world has continued to turn ( I no longer say "life goes on...") and I'm just thankful to enjoy each precious day. This new board is great, Estrea et.al. Thanks so much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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