New Discussion Forum launched Talk & Share is our new discussion forum service which replaces Your stories. This allows people affected by lung cancer to share experiences and discuss lung cancer issues. There are four separate lung cancer message boards covering support, information, advocacy and remember a loved one. Click here
|
 |
 |
Your stories
Just wanted to talk about my dad who died 1/3/2007 after receiving the diagnosis 16/11/2006 of ling cancer following a few weeks of coughing and generally feeling unwell, He was admitted to Hope Hospital 9/12/2006 and stayed on a geriatric ward as we were told his illness and subsequent dihydration was age related, being the stubborn daughter I am I would not accept that this person in the bed was my dad he may have been 77 but his mind was 21 he even drove a Nova SRI car he was the oldest boy racer you,ve ever seen, I queired his confusion and got the top lung cancer consultant involved, who said dad was in need of a calcium infusion and two units of blood, once this was carried out dad became less confused and we felt like we had our dad back for christmas , this was after spending two weeks just lying in the bed with no obvious inprovement. He had one large dose of radiotherapy on 28/12/2006, and his breathing improved slightly, we were told to look into residential nursing care as this would be what dad needed, mum and my brother and I were told he he needed 24 hour care but was not at the stage of his life to consider the local hospice, we found the perfect place The Fountains Swinton , dad went there on 22/1/2007 . He had prior to this been a patient at the gp practice where I am the Practice Manager, but we were advised to get him registered with a new GP nearer to the nursing home, we arranged this, his new gp visited him weekly just to make sure he was okay , we went every night , he was happy the staff became extended family and dads friends we were happy with his care . Imagine our shock when I received a call from dads new doctor , she wanted to discuss his deteriorating health with me, she asked me was I aware of dads condition I said yes ,she then read the discharge letter she had received to me it stated dad had extensive cerebal mass to the left lower side of his brain, dispite having many meetings with the doctors in the hospital nobody had informed the family of this , I think she was trying to prepare me for what we knew what was going to happen would happen a lot quicker than we than we expected, I questioned the sister in the nursing home , they to had not been told by the hospital. My Mum who is 56 went into hospital with severe breathlessness 6 weeks ago and they did a chest x-ray. A week later they told her while she was on her own that they had found a 'black spot' on her right lung. My sister was called to the hospital and because she is a nurse was shown the x-ray. She was shocked when she saw the 7.5cm 'black spot'. Mum was lined up for a bronchoscopy but for some reasons they only took brushings of the tumor. My Mum asked the consultant if he felt it was cancer and he said yes. Then she asked for prognosis and he said 1-2 years. Mum didn't know how to react to this news and didn't ask was this with or without treatment. The results of the brushings came back inconclusive. Then they decided to do a CT guided needle biopsy but the CT scanner broke down. This happened about 5 times. Finally Mum had the biopsy done last Monday. Now over six weeks on since Mum went into hospital we are still waiting for results. I keep trawling the internet for answers and find that one minute I'm up - thinking she'll be a candidate for surgery and the next wondering if her size will prevent this, also she has been on antibiotics for bronchitis and has been having a temperatur on and off for the whole six weeks? I know I shouldn't try to diagnose but it's hard not to with all this time on our hands before we know what's really happening. To complicate things further, I'm in Scotland with two very small children and she is in Ireland. It's so hard to travel and deal with the emotional side of things and keep things normal for the children. I suppose I will have to remain strong and this week we will hopefully know what stage things are at. Hi i would like to ask anyones advice my gran was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer 15 months ago, she got some bad news last week that the cancer had spread to her brain. She is adgitated all the time, carnt relax and says her body is jumping inside. Were going to cookridge hospice to see if theres anything that can stop this but in the meen time has anybody else experianced this or now of anyone who has as its driving my gran mad. CHEERS Hello Hi there, in response to Pauline and claire, I too feel the same anger, frustration and sadness. My dad also died very suddenly of an asbestos related tumour which was situated near his heart. We found out on Monday last May and he died on the following Friday morning and all that time the doctors didnt even spot it. It was actually discovered afterwards from the coroners report. Dear Claire, 4/3/2007 at Durham. We cannot put rhymme to reason why nobody told the truth about asbestos and the destruction placed upon any person who suffers from an industrial disease. I think that is why we are so angry and realize that lives could have been saved if the evidence of the knowledge of asbestos was used correctly. It is with a saddened heart that I understand. My grandma was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer 14 months ago, she had four sessions of cemotherepy and it prolonged her life a little longer as she was given only four weeks to live without it. We went to cookridge hospital for a check up yesterday and her specialist there told us the cancer had spread to her brain, grandma choose not to know so only her close family know the extent of the illness. Aparantley there is nothing more that can be done for her so she has been transfered to St Gemmas as a out patiant as she will not go and sty in, she wants to stay at home with her family looking after her. My question to anybody would be do you think that TARCEVA would be a opption, as i did not know anything about it until today when i looked at this site. CHEERS. An update since 16.01.07 - My Mum finally has got the CAT scan results today whether or not the chemo & radiotheraphy she finished at xmas was successful. They have shrunk the tumor from 4cm to 2cm (don't know if that is a good result) but now found 1/2 cm x 2 spots nearby. I can't understand how they could have possibly started growing whilst undergoing all that treatment during up until xmas. Does that mean you go through all that treatment & then new tumors can start growing immediately? My mum is devastated as feels this could keep happening & all she is doing is continually having treatment to stay alive.The latest small tumors have gave her more pain & breathlessness than the previous 4cm large tumor she had with hardly any symptoms which is weird. I don't know what to do to keep her moral up now as thought we'd have a bit of respite & quality of life for a while after all that previous treatment? I didn't think for one moment we would find more cancer today? Can anyone hearten me please? I asked the dr today about Tarceva, as I heard that a patient with the the same NSCC as my mum,who was covered by medical insurance & underwent same treatment was given tarceva immediately afterwards as a precaution to prevent tumors reoccuring. We were told there are only certain tumors taceva will be effective for & was give the impression that this hospital can't obtain it for patients - is there some sort of criteria??? Also is it worth going through all this gruelling treatment if a month later new tumors are there? I don't know what to do for the best for my mum anymore - it was heartbreaking news today! Can anyone enlighten us? My dad's been diagnosed with innoperable lung cancer, we were told there's nothing left that can be done. He seemed fine up until today when he was rushed into hospital with a blood clot in his leg, apparently it's unlikely that they can operate because of his weak lungs and heart.just feel numb! An update to 10.2.07. We went to Christie's last Monday and were told that the tarceva hadn't worked. My Mums tumour had grown so big it had collapsed her lung and she had a big pleral effusion there too. They said there was no further treatment for her and made no futher appointments. They said She had on avarge 3-4 months left. They have been fantastic however and we do appreciate everything Dr Blackhall and her team have done for my Mum. So now it is paliative care. I am a nurse and have gone off sick to care for my Mum. It is incredibly daunting, even with my experience. Remembering my dear Dad who died from this terrible desease 16th march 2006 one year ago.....still missing you so much....will love you forever Dad.....xxx Can anybody advise me on how and from where you can purchase tarceva? I'd love to hear some success stories of this drug. I've had a look on line but some advice would be great. My Mom isn't doing well at all since she was diagnosed 6 weeks ago, I've noticed people saying that it could have helped if their relatives had started tarceva earlier so I'm hoping it may work for her. It's a hard time but I'm trying my best to stay strong and do everything within my power to help her...Mom is due to start radiotherapy in 2 weeks but is so weak that I don't know if she'll be able to. My Mom is constantly feeling sick, is this from her morphine patches?? She's taking her sickness tablets but sometimes they just don't work. Advice would be greatly appreciated....x We are fast approaching the 1st Anniversary of the death of my dad. Not directly due to Lung Cancer however, working hard for a living in the shipyards caught up with him on 29th March 2006. Following a post mortem an inquest was opened into his death,a long 7 month wait resulted in "Industrial Disease," named on the Death Certificate. Asbestosis!! It is so hard to read about all of the suffereing that cancer is causing in peoples lives. My father died of pancreatic cancer in 1971 when I was sixteen years old. I could have so used a father all my years growing up, never did find a decent man to marry. The pain of the loss is still with me. I am still my fathers daughter, mourning for him, thirty six years later. My mother died of colon cancer, but was given five good years through cryosurgery, freezing and melting of tumors. on her liver. This was done at Robert Woods Johnson' in New Brunswick, New Jersey,USA. An excellent research hospital. Dr Ravi Kumar saved my mothers life and gave her five good more years before she passed. Hi its 3 weeks since my aunty jean passed away im still so upset as she was my choice of a mum . i miss her so much i still cry myself to sleep every night ,i sit up until the early hours just waiting for her to come and say shes ok (she never has ) i feel shes not with me and that hurts me so very much .i got in my car the other night and if it wasnt for my 3 children i wouldnt of come back ,i feel i need to look for her where is she ive never been alone before .my children 15,11,and 9 miss there nan (they called her nan ).who will buy them choclate every sunday when we go shopping . we have cleaned out her flat this week and the things she kept where so very specail to me and i took comfort from that. i also have a lock of her hair and i can still smell her on it . where do i go from here im sitting here now just waiting for her just to say shes ok ,will it ever be ok shes the one person that really cared for me i was her kaylate . i cant really talk to my family thank you for this site and take care everyone kay xxx Hello My name is Sue, my partner Simon was diagnosed with lung cancer in January 2006.It had also spread to the neck and chest,we were told it was inoperable. He had both chemo and radiopheropy which at first seemed to be getting good results. However it then started to grow again, and also spread to one eye. re Victor Shackleton's recent entry. Dear Victor I cannot support you in constantly raking over an old story -please use your energies to go forward for the benefit of lung cancer patients as many of us do. I suspect Roy would have forgiven people who wrote contentious articles. I've just looked down & there is a puddle of tears on my desk. My dad was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer two weeks before christmas. We where told that he had tumours in his liver & lymph nodes too. Until that point i thought i knew what pain was, i guess there's worse to come but i can't face that thought at the moment. Even though i'm 36 years old with two small children of my own, i feel like a lost child all alone in the world. I feel like i've been abandoned & i feel scared of what the future holds. I thought i was doing a good job of putting it away in a box somewhere but today i realised i can't hide from the fact that my dad is going to die soon. Although i come from a big family we don't communicate much & i feel that i can't say how i feel because i don't want to upset anyone. My mom is in complete denial at the moment & it's hard for me to get over that too. Sometimes i feel like screaming!! I work in pallative care but it's so different when you're emotionally involved. The thing i think about most is my own childrens future, my youngest is only 2 & i'm frightened he won't remember his grandad. I'm not particularly religious but i pray that dad won't suffer. Husband diagnosed with stage IV nsclc sqauamous with brain mets please help me I am losing my mind I was so grateful to see my story published on your marvellously comforting site, --5th August 2006. I had wrote of my horror at an article that appeared in the Manchester Evening News in January 1995, just months after the death of Roy Castle. Journalist Chrissey Iley in a disgusting and unbeleivable attack on Roy Castle mocked not only Roy's incredibly brave efforts in his last days that raised millions of pounds for the benefit of other cancer sufferers, and readers of these pages will be very aware that without Roy Castle, these pages would not be published. I am rather dismayed that there has been little response from what I wrote. since the article appeared, I have explored every avenue that may have led to some kind of apology or explanation even from Chrissey Iley, yet although she enjoys a most lucrative income from magazine articles in such as 'Hello' and 'OK', and newspapers as 'The Mail on Sunday', Iley has coldly ignored to even acknowledge the great hurt she caused not only Roy's family, but the families of cancer sufferers. I lost two brothers to cancer and my wife lost her left leg to a sarcoma bone cancer. I just cannot accept how Iley did avoid the slightest reprimand for the horrible things she wrote. In the same piece, she also vilified Larry Grayson, Peter Cook, and Olivia Newton John. I certainly would be most grateful if all you good people who of course are going through the genuine trauma of losing or nursing a loved one, if you could scroll down to find my letter of August last year, just to read some of the terrible stuff Chrissey Iley wrote back in 1995 about a very decent and caring person we knew as Roy Castle. i will never give up my fight to preserve Roy's good name and honour. Roy cared about you all! If you feel strongly enough, as I , please help my cause by at least writing to the Mail on Sunday to question their judgement in employing this woman journalist who gives not a damn for the Roy Castle's of this selfish society we live in. I would be pleased to receive too, your own thoughts on my letter of last August. When someone close to you dies, all you want to do is talk to them one last time. Is there life after death? I want to know that they're happy and well, free of the Lung cancer that killed them and, most importantly, together. I also want to say 'I love you' one more time, and the pain of seeing my mum alone is almost as heartbreaking as the pain of not having my Dad. I live in fear of losing her now as I know what the pain of losing a parent feels like, and that it is not just a fear but a reality, but then I would know that they were together and my Mum doesn’t have to be tormented by the loss of my Dad. She wouldn’t have to look at his empty chair or lay alone in bed at night or look at his books that he will never open and read, never see the flowers he so lovingly planted grow . My husband was diagnosed on 1-31-2006 NSCLC squamous with brain mets. He has undergone radiation to the head and the lung. He has also undergone three chemotherapy treatments. The doctor said that this would just prolong his life and it is not curable. He told me when I called him that he would say 12 to 18 months that he had to live. Today, my oldest son went with him for treatment and they said they got rid of the tumors in the head with radiation and his lungs were looking good. Also they said they thought that he was doing better than expected. Please help me as a I confused. Anybody know anything about squamous cell. Thanks. After reading these recent messages I feel compelled to write, its painful to read how others are suffering from losing a precious person dear to them. I lost my wonderful Dad on 23rd December 06, just 9 weeks ago. They say grief is a personal thing, everyone deals with it differently, I do only beleive that only others that have the same experience can only understand as I find it hard to write in words. It is a physical pain sometimes and a feeling of absolute despair and I truly hope one day there is a cure for this awful disease, so families like ours do not suffer this anguish. I just live in the hope that one day we are reunited with our loved ones that have been taken from us so cruelly and so soon. I wish you all strength and comfort. xxx and Dad, I will miss you forever x but I am determined from now on only to remember the happy memories xx Hello again, I dont really know what to write but feel that its something I should do. I lost my brave Mum in October to NSCLC and like you would all imagine - I miss her terribly. It seems everything is happeneing in reverse to me. I HAD to be strong and cope with it all as everyone else struggled under a year ago when Mum was diagnosed but now, everyone else is becoming happier and carrying on with thier lives and I am at a loss. I of course keep up the pretense that I am fine and mostly manage to convince myself that I am really ok but then it comes to night time and the same vicious circle happens. I lay down and relax, hear my husband fall asleep and then like a brick wall - BAM! all these images, memories and feelings come rushing out of nowhere and I end up crying myself to sleep. After reading so many of your messages ,im going to tell you my story. I am an oncology nurse in Canada and am currently researching the needs of lung cancer patients and their families, also the patient/family experience. I have found reading the entries very helpful in my research toward truly understanding how people experience lung cancer. Hopefully the research I am doing will help nurses like myself to provide better care for patients and families on the "lung cancer journey". I hear and feel lots of anguish, anger, pain, frustration, fear, and sadness from the entries. I agree that hope and knowledge are power. I can also see the benefits of having a forum such as this where people can freely express their feelings. Thank you all for sharing and helping others in this way! Im very worried about my partner he has had a bad cough for 2 months he went for x rays and found out he has got scaring on lungs hospital has made an appointment for april but i am very worried and i know he is I am so devastated and sad at the moment and just can't come to terms with loosing my mum only last week to lung cancer. We only found out 1 month ago that she had it, and now she has gone and I can't believe it. The last 2 weeks have been so heartbreaking to watch, the pain she suffered, but thankfully it was just a short time. I am so thankful that when she found out we had time to talk about things and she could tell me how happy she was for me in my life and how much she loved me and I got a chance to tell how much I loved her. I just don't know what I am going to do without her cos I loved her so much it hurts. She was my best friend, my shopping buddy and my world. Luckily I have a wonderful big family, a close sister and wonderful boyfriend to support me. I just hope the pain gets more bearable because I am hurting so much and I never knew pain could be this bad. Has anybody got any advice that might help me. Hello to everyone. I have just had the honor of going to the foundation in Liverpool, and chatting to the people there. For those who don't know me, my husband died in september 2006 from scls. My mom was diognosed with Lung Cancer in July 2006, After having chemotherapy and radiotherapy, and putting up a very brave fight, she sadly passed away on 16th Februay. Two days later my sister gave birth to a beautiful baby girl (Ruby) 3 weeks early! I really believe my Mom sent Ruby early to help the family cope with her death. I have so many emotions at the moment, i fel angry that my mom is no longer here and i really don't know how i am going to cope without her. We are a very close family and are all supporting each other, but it's tough. I miss you mom and love you so much and maybe one day i will see you again. I haven't added an entry for a while.I last wrote back in September and went under the name Tallulah as my family did not know I was writing on here, as these were my private thoughts and I found it comforting letting my emotions out to strangers, not that any of you feel like strangers. My Dad's lung and heart was emptied of fluid again and we went for another appointment with the Consultant in October,he said Dad was stable and the Tarceva seemed to be working,but needed longer before any real effects would be noted. A follow-up was booked for the 13th December. Dad was still going to work but for shorter hours. It was my best friends 30th Birthday and we all booked to go away for a week. We saw Dad on his Birthday and we flew out the next day for a weeks holiday. We spoke to Dad on the Tuesday, but then had a gut feeling when we didn't get a text about the footie scores,My sister's name flashed on my mobile and I thought it was a call to say Dad was in hospital due to
the fluid again, but know the shock of when the words left her mouth Dad had gone. Once again not sure how I am feeling just loads of unanswered questions, why him? why then when we were not there? Mom says that's how Dad would have wanted it (but I didn't)I wanted to say goodbye. Hi there.. Having already lost my Dad to Lung Cancer nearly 8 years ago, i am now coming to terms with losing my beloved Mom to the same disease. Mom is the final stages of her illness and we were told yesterday that it may only be a matter of weeks. She is such a positve person and a real fighter. She was diognosed in July last year, but i feel sure she had the disease for a long time before the diognosis. She's had chem, and responded so well to that. We all thought she would be here for a long time yet!! My sister is due to give birth in 3 weeks time and our only hope now is that mom lives long enough to see her longed for grandchild. I feel so sad that at the age of 38 i will ha ve lost both parents and my children will miss out on so much. I miss my mom so much alreay, because the old mom has gone - relaced with a bed bound shell of her former self. Why is life so cruel and why does my mom have to suffer this awful disease? I have a good family support network around me and i know from bitter experience that when the time comes i am going to need all the help they can give and i can give to them. I love my mom and feel blessed that i have such a wonderfull person in my life. I lost my wonderful mother on the 13th of August 2005. My eldest daughter had just turned 2 years old and my youngest daughter just 10 months. Like so many other people on this site her condition went undiagnosed for months, she had the persistant cough that they kept treating with antibiotics, it wasn't until they did an xray that things started to move. She was given a scan which showed a mass on her lung, she was then given a biopsy. The day we found out is still one of the worst days of my life I can still remember waiting to see the doctor and saying to her it doesn't matter what he says they can do so many amazing things these days you'll be fine. Nothing in the world can prepare you for those awful words it's cancer it's terminal six months! my younger sister was 4 months pregnant with her first child and my mothers first thought was would she live long enough to see the baby. My neice was born on the 6th of July my mother died 5 weeks later almost 6 months to day of her diagnosis. I still feel numb I miss her everyday and wish I could just spend one more day with her. I'm sorry to go on. Our beautiful daughter was diagnosed six weeks ago with NSCLC (she had been five years cancer free after having Ovarian Cancer when she was 23) In the six weeks she has received no treatment and no offer of treatment. We pushed for a PET scan which she received three weeks ago when the results came back we were devastated - she has cancer in her pancreas and in the bone at the bottom of her spine. When we saw the surgeon he explained that as the tumour in her lung was so close to the main valve of her heart they could operate but would need to shrink the tumor first with chemo and radio therapy - then she had a phone call last wednesday to say she had to go in for a biopsy (which they did from the side of her neck?!) After repeated phone calls to her consultants secretary all day thrusday and friday we are no further forward. i seem to spend most of my day on the internet trying to find someone to help. Our own hospital do not seem to be unduly concerned and the fact that she is now finding it difficult to breathe tells us all that something needs to be done pretty quick! What is happening to our NHS. We are trying to find a hospital in America that will treat her. In sheer desperation we bought some drugs (Tumour X) from a site in Alaska, we are all so lost. Advice to dave yorkshire hi, i was brought up by my aunty jean she was told in march she had lung cancer my world fell apart even at 33 i needed her, then on tuesday 6th feb 07 she died i got there to late she had gone unexpectedly, i never told her i loved her before she went. she was so special kind and loving im proud to say if i could of picked a mum it would of been her. I dont no what to do i wish i was with her. My mum was diagnosed with nsclc adenocarcinoma stage 3b in June 2005 aged 58. The plan was for her to undergo 3-4 lots of chemo then undego a pnemonectomy (removal of part of the lung). During her 3rd cycle of chemo she developed foot pain which , we put down to neuropathy, which was one of the possible side effects of chemo. It got worse and she was eventually admitted with an embolism in one of the arteries behind her knee. They tried to shift it with heparin down a cathter in her leg. It didn't work and she almost died developing a life threatening allergy to heparin (heparin induced thromocytopaenia). She ended up losing her leg above the knee which was the worst day of my life. She caught MRSA whilst in hospital. She could no longer have her lung removed and had radical radiotherapy instead. She wa in remission for a while but in oct satrted to have pain in her remaining leg, had a bone scan and was found to have mets in her hip and spine. She was given 12 months in October. She is having tarceva and I wondered if anyone had experienced similar treatment and how they were going with it? My husband Dave was diagnosed with terminal nsclc in September 2006 and like many other men kept putting off going to the doctors after eventualy going it took several visits and an irate wife complaining to the Practice manager before we got a CT scan it was origin ally thought the tumour could be shrunk enough for surgery but unfortunately a a PET scan revealed that it had already spread to the spine and Renal Glands and is now undergoing chemo for palliative care. We found waiting for results the hardest to cope with it seemed we were just lurching from one wait to another. Now the chemo has started and we are taking things as they come. The hardest thing to come to terms with is the effect this could have on our 14yr old son. after the treatment we are planning to take another holiday and spend as much time together as possible. hopefully we will be able to celebrate our 25th Wedding aniversary together in October My Mom has just been diagnosed with NSCLC tumor in her lung & chest Lymph nodes. She has been offered chemotherapy/radiotherapy or both together, I know she's really reluctant to have chemotherapy, does anyone have any information on the effects of having radiotherapy by itself on this type of cancer? I'm keen to know...hope everybody is staying strong xx My dad died at 3 am this morning. Hi i havent added in a while. In May 2006 my husband John was diagnosed with SCLC Stage IV. My whole world collapsed as I could not bear the thought of life without my soulmate. He started chemo shortly afterwards and after 6 sessions, he was given really encouraging news that the tumour in his lung had reduced drastically. He was then given the go ahead to have 10 sessions of radiotherapy to his lungs and his brain. After the initial shock of his diagnosis we went through a series of emotions, from grief to terror to anger. Why was this happening to us. I could not believe what was happening. I started to get very selfish and kept asking myself what am I going to do do without him. How could I bring up our lovely 4 yr old twins all by myself. I could'nt think of planning anything in the future and just wanted to curl up in a ball and lock myself away. Then during his chemo I realised this wasn'nt about me, it was about John, and if he was willing to fight and stay positive, then so was I. He was doing s! Hi My Mom has just been diagnosed with terminal lung cancer after a 17 year battle with breast cancer. I'm feeling the same as many people I'm sure, that my world has been turned upside down and has fell off it's axis, how do you begin to come to terms with knowing that you'll lose someone that you love so dearly? My Mom is being amazingly brave and still as optimistic as she has always been throughout her fight with cancer. For every day that I'm given with her it will be a blessing. I want to bring as much sunshine to her days as I can and keep on creating lots of memories. It would be great to hear from anyone who is experiencing this themselves...never give up hope. Hi, it's been a while since I first came on to this site, i've just been reading all the messages that have been posted since I put mine on, on the 7th Oct 06. My dad doesn't have much longer now but I've made some good memories that will stay with me forever, dad has always been in my heart if not always in my life and I'm going to miss him just as much as if he'd been in life everyday. In the past two months he has lost alot of weight and is now on 24hr oxygen, he has to have an injection into his stomach everyday to thing the blood clots in his lung and leg. My dad is ready to go now, he saw his birthday in and then he saw Christmas and new year in but would like it all to be over soon. My heart aches so much now that I don't think i can stand the pain that's to come. I know life will go on but right now I don't know how. I would just like to thank everyone that comes on this site to tell their story, as it really does help people like me and it's nice to have somewhere to tell my story too, to get my feelings off my chest. Dave, My Dad was diagnosed in a similar way. He had a persistant cough, went to the doctors in the July 2005 and was eventually Diagnosed at the end of August 2006, They operated on him and tried to remove the tumour but found it was too advanced, he was lucky enough to have chemo which shrunk the tumour a little and then radiotherapy but when he went back to the hospiotal after a six week break he was told the cancer hasd spread to his liver. My Dad lost his battle on August 21 2006. I feel for you and your Mum, you could have a long road ahead of you and it really is the not knowing that makes things worse because there is not a doctor on earth that can tell you how long you have with your loved one. My advise is to take each day as it comes, when your Dad is having a good day take the time to enjoy it with him, when he is having a bad day, make him as comfortable as you can and understand that he may want some time on his own to come to terms with what is going to happ! Good news to report: I posted our story about my Husband with nsclc a couple of weeks ago and said we were going for a pet scan. The results are great! The tumor in the left lung has strunk! the tumor on the lymph nodes can no longer be seen! the sac around his heart shows no cancer cells and there has been no spread to any other part of the body!! we start the drug Tarceva next wekand will have ascan every three months. Not bad concidering we were told Martyn would not make Xmas06!!! Also message to Angela Hodge i have emailed you hope you got it ok. To everyone els stay strong and remember to have a positive mind, its half the battle honest x Sharon Bryant I left a message a few days ago but mis-typed my e-mail address. Should be this one. Tried to contact Sharon Bryant but got failed messages - please can you contact me Sharon.Still would like to know of anyone having had chemo & radiotheraphy for NSCLC tumor & chest Lymph nodes and how succesful it has been. Also has anyone experienced voice affected with unsuccesful operation/treatment. To everyone out there with this illness don't give in. Angela Hi everyone I was last on this site a few months ago explaining how I lost my wonderful partner and soulmate Gerard to sclc. It has now been 6 months since my beloved Gerard died and I can honestly say not a seconed goes by that I don't think about him. Wishing with all my heart that he was still here with our beautiful son Matthew and me. Everytime I look into the eyes of our son I'm reminded of Gerard as they are so alike in everyway. In my heart I know that I will see Gerard again and that thought keeps me going and gets me through each day. I started writing a journal when Gerard first died and have already completed 4 books. I intend to give this to our son Matthew when he is all grown up so as he will know the type of man his daddy was. I also find this helps me try to ajust to life without Gerard by my side. Gerard was a wonderful partner, daddy and friend. I will always be thankful to God for bringing Gerard into my life and giving me Matthew, meeting Gerard was like coming home. I will never stop loving you Gerard xoxo Hi..writing in regards to Daves message.The best advice i can give you is just being there.You say you live abroad and i know this might not be possible but one thing that keeps me going after the death of my wonderful mum was the fact i done everything possible that i could have done.The caring side of it seems daunting but you really do cope even more so if you have other family members to help aswell.If you would like to chat more feel free to e-mail.. Message for Jan Maxwell. I have been reading some of the stories posted in support. As Pamela said its not all doom and gloom. Last Saturday 13th January, I celebrated 18 years free of lung cancer. I am shocked at the number of people who have had the same experience as we have regarding the diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer. My dad started with a persistent cough at the beginning of Sep 06 and went to see the doctor. He subsequently had scans which revealed a patch on his lung. This was dismissed as a chest infection and he was given treatment in the form of two types of antibiotic. Despite my mum phoning the doctor because of her worry at my dad’s decline in health he was not admitted for any real tests until Jan 07. We have now been told that he has advanced lung cancer. I have since found out that a persistent cough is a key symptom of lung cancer. I feel guilty that I didn’t do more research when he first developed his symptoms; I took the doctors word. I am disappointed that it took so long for him to have the correct tests and the ‘don’t worry yourself’ attitude of the doctors; they seem very blasé about the whole thing. The only treatment they can now offer is palliative and it is just a matter of time. It was only last year that my dad was organising ‘walks for health’ for other people which was supposed to raise health awareness and ease the burden on the NHS. As if to rub salt in the wounds, the last time he visited the hospital he was told that two or three months ago he would have been in a position (fit enough) to have been offered other forms of treatment. It was over three months ago that he first went to see a doctor complaining of a persistent cough. Hi, I hope you don't mind me posting. I'm working on Tonight with Trevor McDonald on a programme that looks at people who have turned to the internet to find drugs to help them fight their illness. Has anyone bought the cancer drugs Tarceva or Avastin over the internet? Or knows anyone who has? Please give me a ring on 0207 316 6484. Best wishes Name: Becky becky.colls@itv.com I am writing to Jan Maxwell from Stirling who emailed to this site to tell her to go to www.johnnytherazor.co.uk you will read his story about his lung cancer and I hope it helps you. Take care and I wish you well.
Hi Jan, I would like to give some hope to Jan Maxwell and other sufferers Its not all doom and gloom My mother was diagnosed with lung cancer in November 2005 like everyone else we were devastated It was completely out of the blue she had started to have blackouts and was referred to a fast track clinic where a shadow on her lung showed up After numerous tests we was told it was lung cancer my mother started a course of radiotherapy January 2006 Its been a year now since mam has had her treatment and she is doing fine she hasn’t needed any further treatment It doesn’t mean she’s cured but so far the cancer hasn’t returned We are keeping our fingers crossed We see our oncologist every 3 months mam has a x ray taken before we see him so there is hope out there Another point I’d like to raise This is a message for Jan Maxwell from Stirling who recently posted a message. I'm a Patient Trustee for the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation. I successfully beat lung cancer 2 years ago after undergoing chemo, surgery and radiotherapy. As a Patient Trustee, I spend time talking to patients that are going through the same experience as myself to give a positive side and to say that it can be beaten if diagnosed early. Please feel free to contact me, I am more than happy to talk. My mum was diagnosed in May with NSCC. She was told that she was fortunate that the tumor was operable. Mum wqas so positive and under went surgery and was deeply traumatised to be told they couldn't remove the part of her lung where the tumor was because it had spread to the lymph nodes in the cente of her lungs. They hadn't said prior to the operation that the surgery wouldn't be successful. Also they took some biopsies at the same time and this resulted in my mum's voice being affected. We weren't warned about thi. She now speaks with a terrible rasping. At first the surgeon told her that chemo would help. Without the treatment mum was told she would have 3-4 months to live. After going through chemo and immediately afterwards -radiotheraphy, her voice is even worse I am writing this for two reasons. Firstly as advice to anyone who has a relative comtemplating similar surgery.Please please make sure your consultant carries out sufficient tests to locate precisely which areas of the lung & chest area the cancer could be. If we had our time over again I would have insisted on having a PET scan as CAT scans do not reveal everything. Secondly, to find out if there is anyone that has had a similar experience. I have never heard of anyone loosing their voice We are going for mums post radiotherapthy check up next week. We know the treatment has managed to shrink the tumor, unlike so many unfortunate relatives mentioned on this site. But my mum is worried sick as to how long she has got before the tumor starts growing again. I know NSCC isn't curable but are there experiences out there to give us some hope ?? My husband Martyn age48 became ill July 2006 with a chest infection he collasped at home and an ambulance took him to russell hall hospital while there he became very ill and ended up in criticle care for aweek he pulled through and had 3 litres of fluid drained off the sack around his heart and another 3 litres off his left lung. when they tested the fluid it had cancer cells in it and following a scan they found a tummor in his left lung. The bed side manner of the doctor was dreadful. The news was broke to him on his own!! they should have waited for me his wife to be with him. He was told to go home and live each day as it comes!! We had a lovely macmillian nurse who came with us to see the specialist, they told us it was nsclc and it had spread to the fluid around the heart and to the lymph nodes but they would still offer us chemo! we started chemo two weeks later, Martyn would have his session in a day and go home, he lost loads of weight and his eyes were sunken and he looked so ill, the nurses were great but they were run off there feet under staffed and we felt the treatment was rushed and painful. we decided to go private we had been paying into a private health insurance but did not know we would be covered, we was and we have not looked back. The chemo martyn has is done as an inpatient at the priory hospital birmingham he stays in for 2 days and his kidneys are rehydrated and flushed for 8 hours! he has put on weight looks really well (apart from sleeping alot you would not know he was terminal) we had six cycles of chemo and finished the last one on 19th december and flew abroad with our children aron 16 harriet 14 and ellie 8 for christmas and new year! our family flew out as well and we had a wonderful time. On wednesday 17th we will be having a pet scan to find out if the tumor has strunk. Fingers crossed!! We feel positive and feel we have been given a better fighting chance because of the way the treatment has been carried out. Martyn was originally told he might not make christmas 2006 he was terminal and inoperable! we now feel we will fight this and we have better odds now. We have lost our business and our lives have been turned upside down because of CANCER, but we have agood strong supportive family and we love each other very much. Yet another horrendous posting about treatment on the nhs. oncologist seem to have a mind set in this country. they read lung cancer and immediately almost give up. they have no access to the latest treatments and apart from gemzar and taxotere there is not much to offer patients. gamma knife, radio frequency abalation, avastin, tarceva are available elsewhere. they do not help all patients but there are substantial subsets who can be helped. any decent oncologist can identify these groups but in the nhs it is a waste of time. instead of allowing tarceva nice recommends best supportive care, I will leave you to interpret that phrase. I feel I am banging my head against a brick wall when I try to raise awareness of what is going on. the head of NICE this week when asked what he would do if any of his grandchildren needed a vital drug. his reply I would sell the house. so there you have it. My wonderful adorable Fun loving Dad die on 23rd December 2006, just 3 weeks ago from Lung cancer. He was fit and well until the beginning of November and then diagnosed on the 14th November and just to be taken from us all so quickly. I adored him all my Life and was adored by him too, how lucky to have such a Dad. The pain of watching him suffer, watching him die and letting him go will never leave me but neither will the wonderful memories he filled my life with. Thank you Dad I loved you so much and always will x life will never be quite the same x My mum was diagnosed with nsclc on the 24november2006 it was the worst day of my life.the doctor was very clinical and said mum only had a couple of months to live we were devastated.since then mum has had one round of chemo but it was to much for my mum and she decided to stop.i love her so much and it pains me to see the hopelessness in her eyes.each day is a blessing and thats how i will through this by taking one day at a time. Today I was diagnosed with non small cell lung cancer. The doctors think that I might be able to have surgery. I've to get something called a PET scan first (I think thats the right name for it). It all is so unreal. I'm scared but trying to stay positive. There are so many sad stories on this website. Can anybody give me a positive story and some hope? I really want to beat this and could do with some encouragement. My husband has lung cancer, with a secondary tumor on his liver, being the small squeamish cells, and has been receiving his second lot of chemotherapy through in Edinburgh this last week, having had 5 months of chemotherapy which seemed to shrink his tumors, but they returned in september so he was put on tarceva for 8 weeks, but that didn't do any good, the cancer returned so we now hope this next chemo works. I would like to hear from anyone in the same position as me, I feel very helpless, and unable to say or do the right things, apart from give him his pills. having never been in the postion of a carer before, he has always been the strong one and looked after me ever since we married 25 years ago. My adorable Dad was diagnosed with nsclc in September '06 which had already spread to his lymph. It was undoubtedly the worst day of our lives, only 24hrs earlier my mum had suffered a cerebal anyrisum, two massive blows within a day. I must admit the way in which we were dealt with at the clinic seemed somewhat underhanded, having just been told Dad was terminally ill, we were ushered out of the back door with no future appointment, i.e treatment options, scans etc. It was horrenduous! No consideration of the rollercoaster of emotions we were all suffering let alone how my Dad felt. It was heart rendering to see my Dad cry, he'd always been our rock, our strongman, our anchor, our wonderful Dad. He was visited the next day by a Lung nurse who believe me had a spirit of doom and gloom. Eventually after some hankering he was offered a trial drug/placebo and you don't know which one you are getting which seems very unfair. It's now Jan '07, we really don't know, nor want
to know how long our Dad has left, because as a Christian I believe that all our days are in the Lord's hands, we've just celebrated his 68 Birthday & Christmas, he underwent 5 days of radiotherapy early in December which made him quite poorly, however he's improved slightly since. He takes morphine tablets and medicine to top up on when the pain worsens. But I thank God everyday for my Dad and whatever the future holds. I know that I have been so blessed to have A Dad like our Dad, he's simply the best. It has given me great inspiration to read the letters on this web site, I feel encouraged to know that such a site exists. Dad has good days and bad days, he gets frustrated because he is unable to do the things he always took for granted. He's lost lots of weight but hey, he's still here! and every day is a new day with new blessings. Faith and hope keep us going. It's a horrible disease, so undignified, remember we can't add days to our lives, but we can add life to our days. Keep smiling, remember all the good times and how blessed we all are to have had the pleasure of being loved by our Dad's and Mum's of course. I'll update when we have more news, he's due to have a ct scan soon and a trial check-up again. Hi. I lost my Dad nearly 7 months ago now to NSCLC. It was very difficult at first but I now feel I am coming to terms with it at last. Can't believe it has been 7 months though already! There has still not been a day gone by that I haven't thought about him. Anyway, just thought I would give a piece of advice following my experience - if anyone out there has chemotherapy for lung cancer it is worth asking your Consultant/Doctor/Nurse about taking aspirin after having chemo or during. My Dad had a blood clot which travelled from his leg to his lung and knocked him out cold. This was 2 months before he died. This was just another complication he could have done without at the time. Anyway, we found out later that people who have chemo are at an increased risk of blood clots and therefore it is worth taking aspirin to thin the blood. This is yet another thing that "they" don't tell you at the time and which you only find out about after the event! Hope this helps someone as my Dad got quite depressed after having the blood clot as he had to go to the hospital/doctors every week, sometimes twice a week to give blood samples whereupon they measured his haemoglobin or something like that which determined the dose of drug he needed. This hindered his life considerably in his last couple of months. If anyone wants to email me for support or just share experiences after losing a loved one or anticipating losing a loved one - please feel free as I feel I have a bit of experience now 7 months on. Good luck to everyone out there, my thoughts are forever with you. XX I lost my brave wonderful mum on the 18th December.She was diagnosed with adenocarcinoma in march 2006 after a doctor diagnosing asthma!!I still dont know how people get over this..she was my life and as a hot-headed family she kept us all sane:}I still feel her treatment was not properly expained and in hind-sight if she didnt have the last few chemo sessions she definetely would have had a better quality of lfe..she just slept alot and got quite confused.The only good thing that did happen was she died at home with us all around her. God i miss her so much... My mum was diagnoised with sclc at the end of November 2006, she is 58. The doctors didn't want her to have chemo as she has no spleen to fight infection, needless to say my mum was determined she was going to fight to the end and begged for chemo. She had her 1st course 10 days ago and doesn't seem to have had many of the side effects, just a little nausious. We have not been told how long she has with or without treatment as she didn't want to know, sometimes I wonder though. She was told she has a tumour in her lung and has spread to her lymphnoids. I'm 30 years old and the prospect of losing my mum fills me with dread as I would imagine anyone who is on this site feels the same with regards to their loved one. I felt so lonely when we were told, mum handled it fine like it wasn't her the doctor was talking about, me and dad took it hard. There are so many un-answered questions. The most heartbreaking is looking at her and she looks fine when the realisation is far from that. I welcome anyones e-mails, anyone in my situation that wants to share. Missing you dad. everyday. just like eveyone else. x x x x when they lost there parents. x x x There is no happy new year. Two years ago on Christmas Eve my Mother passed away. On the death certificate it says breast cancer but it had spread to her lungs and that is really what took her away. She was diagnosed and cleared of breast cancer some 7 years ago but in 2004 it reappeared in her bones and her lungs. The bone cancer was resolved in a few treatments of radio therapy but the lung cancer kept reappearing. Mum was given at least three different kinds of Chemo and even offered an experimentally treatment but each time the treatments failed and her lungs would fill with fluid. One time it got so bad that the scan showed she had less than ¼ of her lung capacity – it was like drowning in her own body. Very recently a close friend of mine lost her Father to lung cancer too. She has a double burden as she lost her Mother just 2 years ago as well. I want to wish my friend and all those who have lost some one recently a release from your pain. If I believed it I would pray for you but instead I just reach out to you and squeeze your hand just like my Mum did in her last days – when that was all she could do. PS Lung cancer doesn’t just affect smokers. My Mum never smoked and my Dad gave up more than 20 years ago. She ate healthily all her life, exercised and drank sensibly. Name: Susannah Taylor susannah.taylor@intervalintl.com Location: London, UK Date: 29th December 2006 5:47 I wrote a while earlier, to inform everybody that my pops had passed away. it would have been his 67th birthday today. I love you pops, keep close. Its makes me feel so much better.xxxxxx My dad was diagnosed with NSCLC in October and died after a short 7 weeks. He had been ill with a "chest infection" since last Xmas. The doctor kept perscribing him antibiotics and various inhalers which obviously didn't make any difference, he had a chest xray in April where they found a shaddow on his left lung but just said that it was the infection, he had another Xray in June where they found a couple of nodules on his left lung, again they said not to worry it was just the infection and again no further tests were made depiste the fact that his mum died of lung cancer, his breathing was terrible, he couldn't eat, he had lost loads of weight and was very tired all the time! In other words, all symptoms of lung cancer! Finally on the 12th September he saw a different GP who straight away rang the lung cancer consultant at our local hospital (we didn't know he she was at the time but soon got to know her!) and told dad to get to A&E straight away. He had another chest Xray and a CT scan and spent a week in isolation as they thought it was TB (the doctors said that they were not even looking at cancer as they didn't think it was that), fianlly after 10 days or thereabouts he had a broncoptospy (or however you spell it!)and biopsy and on the 6th October was informed that he had very advanced NSCLC on both lungs which had spread into his lymphatic system. They said that he would have a few months without chemo and up to a year with chemo. Three weeks later they offered him chemo but said that it wasn't really worth having as it would not have lengthened his life but may have helped his breathing but only had a 15-20% success rate and then listed all the side affects so obviously dad chose not to have it. A week after he would've started the treatment he died in hospital so it would've been too late anyway! He died on the 24th November with me, my mum and my brother holding him, talking to him, kissing him and saying goodbye. I love him so, so much, we were best mates and I miss him so much. My mum is not taking it too well but I can't be there with her all the time as I have 2 toddlers to look after. My oldest who was 3 last week keeps asking where Grandad is, I've tried to explain and then she says, "I love Grandad", it's breaking my heart. I'm trying so hard to carry on as normal, but I'm so dreading Christmas and want it all to be over. My dad was the bravest, most loving and caring person I've ever known and life will not be the same without him. He died knowing how we felt about him and he had told us what he wanted to tell us in the last few weeks (that he was proud of us etc) and although I can't get his last few minutes out off my head, I'm so glad I was there with him. Dad, I love you so, so much, you were the best dad and Grandad anyone could've ever wanted and I miss you, I hope you are happy now and one day I'll see you again, my dearest Aged P! xxxx I had a call at work to tell me my dad was in hospital and he has had a stroke because he had a bad chest they did an xray and with the results as dad was in a coma they told us he had 24hrs to live he was dignoised with primary lung cancer and 2 brain tumors its terminal there is nothing they can do he has since come out of the coma and we have made him aware of what is going on its being 15days now they have given him a morphine syringe driver to stop the pain and will let him come home to die i just do not know what to do im 26yrs old and trying to be strong for my mum and thec rest of my family but i feel im living on a rollercoster the hardest thing was telling my 2 sons that grandad will not get better its breaking my heart because he is now talking and moving about it just feels like its not real My husband was diagnosed with lung cancer in Jan 2006. It was stage 11 squamous cell with no signs of spread, he underwent a right pneumonectomy (Feb 06) in the hope of a cure, this was followed by 4 cycles of adjuvant chemotherapy. All was well at August review however in Nov, scans showed some abnormal tissue at stump of bronchus, where right lung had been removed, we were also told that he had liver metastesees. We had semi retired at this time and travelled to another part of country for these tests. After this diagnosis we decided to move his care to our local hospital and doctor. When we went to see them 2 weeks ago they questioned the diagnosis and wanted to repeat tests, as you can imagine we went from despair to elation as they were very positive in their reading of scan results. The surgeon even went so far as to say that he had never known a case of local recurrence in such a short time when margins had been clear at original surgery! He was con confident that it was nothing! My husband had a bronchoscopy and MRI scan which have confirmed a local recurrence in the stump and an as yet unconfirmed liver tumour. Oncologist suggested radiotherapy for stump and when we asked him about Tarceva he said it could be a possibility but as hubby had lost so much weight he was worried about possible side effects. I am looking for anyone who has had a local recurrence and how this was treated. We are also not happy with the communication skills and general relationship with the new Oncologist and wondered again anyone any assistance in changing/finding someone else? I think we have lost confidence in this new doctor after him giving us false hope and questioning the original diagnosis.We have private health insurance and all his treatment so far has been funded through this, we have been told that we may have to wait until end of Jan for radiotherapy and are wondering how we find somewhere that can treat him quicker? My aunt has what was described as a "massive tumour" on the left side of her chest at the top of the lung pressing on her wind pipe. I am floundering in the dark, looking for some help for us. She is about to be 78yrs old and has always been brilliant, self sufficient, caring, independant, just my aunty Bunny. I need to be able to help her, what can I do for her when her world has been pulled out from under her feet. I was delighted to come back onto this site after about a year and find that it has changed slightly but is still running I used this site two years ago when my dad Billy died of lung cancer we still miss him so much but at the time this site helped me just by letting me express what I was feeling at the time and although reading the stories at the minute still makes me feel angry and sad when the right care has not been given but i just want all who use this site that my thoughts are with them. On a positive note I left a story about my mum being diagnosed with sclc.After her first chemo treatment she is responding to treatment well and the tumour has shrunk enough for her to have radiotherapy as well! Stay Positive. xxx My dad passed away on the 25th Nov. From Lung cancer which had spread to just about everywhere apart from his brain. He was a great man, and my life will never be the same again. I love you dad and you will always be with me. I just hope that everybody else that visits this site understands that non of or loved ones wanted to leave us in body. They will always be with us in soul. God Bless .xxxxx Thanks for everyones help to my fundraising it was a brilliant night and we managed to raise £1000 for the foundation. thanks again My sister is living in NJ she has had surgery for colon cancer and now a tumor has been found between her lungs. Due to the fact that she is charity care she cannot get a petscan unless she pays $7000. If anyone reading this can help me find an orginization that can help her please let me know. Hi i left a story the other day about my husband tony sadley he lost his fight with lung cancer to day and passed away round 5pm. tony you were my love il miss you evry day you were my husband, my love and the candle that kept me going you fought cancer for 18mths but in the end you'd had enough il always love and miss you you'll be in my thoughts and dreams love u god bless kell and your boys oran and devon xxx Well the day is nearly here. ON monday 4th december 2006 i am doing my BIG REASON fashion show to raise funds for the foundation. My husband was told he had nsclc last march 2 days after our second son was born we have been given no support frm new cross im glad i found this site as i feel like im coping on my own my husband now has stage 4 cancer were not sure how long he as left or if there is any treatments which can help him each day hes getting worse at 1st he stayed strong untill he was told he had 6 mths to live that was last yr and hes still with us then he was told its spread to the brain before theyve even no were gonna get the results of the CT scan on tuesday. My husbands consultant is no help he cant wait to get u out the room and will not answer your questions or concerns we feel really let down by the care my husband is getting were now hoping to get a referral but its too little to late. tony just to let you know me and the kids love you and were gonna fight this together to the end. love kelx Giving up smoking was the hardest and best thing I've ever done. Having read lots of the messages today, I consider myself to be very lucky. I was diagnosed with nsclc last February after removal of part of my left lung. this was after being told for 7 months that it was 99% certain to be a form of TB!!!! After chemotherapy the cancer started growing back. I have now started a course of Tarceva - I have private medical insurance - and, despite worse side effects than the chemo, will know shortly after Xmas, hopefully, whether it is working. I have Stage IV cancer, and did as much research as I could using the Web. This helped in asking questions - unfortunately information is not offered unless specific questions are asked. I am okay, apart from the side effects of the Tarceva, and some long term fatigue from the chemo. I consider myself to be lucky, because I am still here, some nine months after diagnosis. I have no idea how long I have, but with a 3 1/2 year old grandson, and 7 months grand-daughter, I intend to make the most of every single day. Keep positive - think of good things. Allow yourself to feel depressed and angry now and again, but don't lose sight of the precious days left to enjoy!!!! In memory of my dad who died on sunday I miss you already and I will never forget you Dad or stop loving you . I wrote my real life grief a few months ago when my mum passed in april 2006 of sslc. it has been a constant battle of emotions ever since. i try to sleep and life wont let me i know i done my best and looked after my mum but i just want her here and i know now im dreaming. i just want to say that they have councilling for drug addicts and alcholics and people who need help this has been my help....when you walk out of hospital after losing a loved one you get a brochure to the chapel and the arrangements ness. wheres the support for losing my mum to cancer i have my brothers but we all have our stories we dont talk cause we all have our own and dont want to talk incase we hurt each other.i m so glad of this web page why dont the hospital issue more info instead of leaving hand in hand ...is it taboo Jennie I think it’s absolutely scandalous and shameful in this day and age that a country like Britain, a small island with a relatively small population when compared with other countries, but that can yet still boast to be the 4th richest country in the world, cannot find the essential funding and resources to treat various serious medical conditions, whether the problem(s) concerned be the provision of drugs, medical equipment or N.H.S staffing levels! I am talking from personal experience myself because my father had to wait 3 months to start radiotherapy for non small cell lung cancer, diagnosis time included, the reason being my local hospital(s) do not have enough resources i.e. radiotherapy machines and specialist scanning equipment to cater for the needs of the local and surrounding population/area’s of Swansea! The N.H.S staff are heroic, faultless and extremely overworked! The equipment situation was reported in my local press because Swansea’s regional clinical director for cancer recently resigned in protest but unfortunately despite all this the resignation will probably be completely ignored because the ruling powers of this country would prefer to waste billions on a politically engineered war in Iraq, renewing our nuclear deterrent, over budgeted and ill though out IT schemes, get rich quick PFI schemes that redirect money out of the NHS and straight into the fat cat’s back pocket, the Olympic games in London, the Millennium Dome, Welsh and Scottish devolution etc etc etc! They always come up with and say that due to cost there isn’t enough money for some/certain medical intervention and treatment procedures but there always is and always will be countless billions available for senseless and negligent wastage! Disgraceful! I think it’s up to the government of the day regardless of political persuasion to start acting with common sense, start listening and living in the real world and to start putting real people first! Hello everyone. I posted on this site several days ago and have not received one reply. NICE must be made aware that Tarceva helps many. Another really helpful drug Avastin has been approved in the US. It will not be available here. Even people on the US site lchelp.com are disgusted. Yet not one reply here. The symtoms of Lung cancer are now all too familiar to me as my husband was misdiagnosed for 18 months despite repeated visits to his GP with a chest infection that refused to clear up. He was sent for x-rays but they always came back negative for cancer despite him coughing up blood flecked sputum. It was only seroiusly investigated when he eventually suffered a haemorrhage that refused to stop. He had to queue at our local hospital for 18 hours for a chest x-ray where a keen eyed doctor detected a slight shadow on his lung. Unfortunately it was too late, and he was formally diagnosed 2 weeks later with advanced lung cancer that was inoperable. My husband was diagnosed with small cell lung cancer in June 2005 the tumour was the size of his fist and located at the entrance of his right lung. He was staged as limited and had four chemotherapy cycles and twenty five radiotherapy sessions which concluded in December 2005. The Oncologist was delighted with his response to the treatments and declared him free of cancer last Christmas Eve. The six months following treatments were very difficult for him he suffered and is still suffering side affects. He is still unable to even contemplate returning to work but believe me we are delighted with the outcome so far and so very grateful to Northampton Hospitals excellent Oncology Dept. The website www.johnnytherazor.co.uk tells Micks story, he started writing to give hope to other fighters, and answers every email. Cancer affects us all at some time during our lives. In Lung Cancer Awareness Month I felt it appropriate to reiterate how important early diagnosed can be. Mick went to the doctor with a cough that he was concerned about but he had no other symptoms. Our GP sent him for an xray in her words to put his mind at rest because she was sure there was nothing wrong. After all he had given up cigarettes some 8 years previously. We do not know if or when it will return but plan to spend the rest of our lives together having a good time, be that for a few years or twenty years. Keep the Faith. My mum is 60 and has just been diagnosed with Small Cell Lung Cancer in her left lung a medium sized mass. She has had an MRI scan and they said the tumour was treatable and it didn't seem to have spread. They have started her on Chemo, and told her she would also be having Radiotherapy but now are saying the tumour size is borderline so she may not have the RT. We were devastated but then thought it's OK she has a tumour on her left lung which they are going to treat, she will start to get better now. They have now said she needs to have a CT scan and a Bone scan, I thought the MRI showed up any spread of cancer? Also she is having and has had for a few months before the lung cancer diagnosis Severe Headaches every night she is in terrible pain and has also been having nose bleeds...the hospital has said she can't take paracetemol only aspirin which she can't take any more of as she has Diabetes and has been taking aspirin every day in the morning as instructed to thin her blood. Does anyone else have such severe headaches every day or nosebleeds? Any suggestions we don't want to see her in so much pain with something like a headache. Any comments would be really appreciated, Thank you. My sister just told me today that she has been diognosted with lung cancer. We know it has mastisised to her bones because she had a rod put in her leg last week. She is being very closed mouth about what the doctor has said to her probabley because she is worried about how our 83 year old mother will take it all how do I make my sister talk to me about what is going on and how should we handle our mother. My mum is 76 years old and has been diagnosed with sslc 2 months ago. She has had 2 sessions of radiotherapy and has an appointment next week at cookridge hospital to discuss further treatment. She does not feel that she can face chemothrapy as she is feeling pretty week and frail. I have read some entries regarding the drug traceva and wonder if anyone can let me know how they have found the drug has worked. I had not heard about it until reading details on this site. Funding seems to be a bit of an issue could anyone also help me with how I could go about receiving funding for this. Hi i would like to thank all who answered my question ,my heart goes out too all who have visited this site .all the kind words , we have all been blessed with those we love thank you so much tony x Tarceva has been rejected by NICE. This drug plus its forerunner Iressa kept my husband sympton free and healthy for 18 months. It has been 6 weeks since I last made an entry on this site. |