MIRACLES DO HAPPEN..THE GOOD NEWS

Okay, now the good news, I know you like to read the good news sooooo here you go!


If you never truly believed in miracles, heads up I believe I have been blessed. You all know I am stage four Colon Cancer…it is the stage where options rarely exist and chemotherapy does not cure, it simply keeps you alive longer or shrinks tumors to the point where surgery is an option, and it is surgery that cures. Today I met with a Liver surgeon at the request of my oncologist who told me that my recent PET scan (which highlights cancer cells at the origin of the tumor, at the area metastasized and any other areas infected) showed significant response to chemotherapy that I needed a liver surgeon on the team. OK for me that was good news as it meant we were doing well and at some point in the future, I may eliminate enough tumors to qualify me for resection of the liver…cut out the remaining shrunken tumors and let my liver grow back healthy. So, I meet with the liver surgeon and say," does my scan show that I may become eligible for surgery? " (Please note, that for stage four this is closely related to being part of the 20% who recover). His response was, your PET scan was so good, that you are a candidate now…. The he showed me the scan. The tumors on the liver (at least 15 plus) originally lit up like the fourth of July on the first scan done before chemotherapy. The second scan done a couple weeks ago, no sign of fireworks…nothing… no tumors are lighting up at all! Are they miraculously gone? Perhaps they are gone or maybe so small now they are not showing up on the scan. In any event, I am now a candidate for liver surgery (which also includes some colon surgery to remove what is left of the original tumor) and my chances are really good? This just does not happen so quick in stage four………….so MIRACLES DO OCCUR and I cannot humbly believe I am worthy but will not argue the Will of my Lord God and Savior, my friends and family who have sent prayers constantly, and to research tools which have taught me, I can participate in the healing process. Now we meet new doctors, schedule this event which will take place at Good Sam Hosp. and I will need to get off chemo for four weeks prior to eliminate the poison, improve my cardio health and diet in preparation. When chemo ends will be up to my oncologist, so we shall see. There is a plan B if we have a fluke and the liver surgeon cannot get all the tumors (if any) left without compromising my health (a certain amount of liver must remain intact to live and grow back) but we will discuss that later if we need to. When I started this blog, I initially said I fully intend to be part of that 20% who recover and we are now on that new path. Thank you all for your prayers, your emails of concern, your thoughts and well wishes for you are one of the healing tools I needed and I am, no matter the outcome, eternally grateful for my family, my friends, my doctors, my ability to stay focused and informed and for my spiritual Healer who holds my life in his hands. Here we go….stay tuned for indeed, miracles can happen. Stay healthy, stay happy and seek only Positive Pursuits.

Dark Days Extended

Sometimes I do not blog for awhile because my dark days have taken over my life and this past week I really got hit hard. It is hard to imagine sleeping for 16 hours a day, three days in a row, rising only to use facilities and attempt to eat but that is my body’s way of escaping the misery. My poor husband, keeps life afloat while I am in lala land and patiently lets me know what day it is when I rise from the cocoon state. I have now lost my ability to taste anything that is not extremely acidic, so I am not taking in protein which is not a good thing. It would be okay if I could taste nothing, I would then eat anyway just to stay relatively healthy but my taste has contorted my buds so such food tastes like a cardboard box or metal and after awhile your body revolts and refused to eat. So, needless to say I lost 8 pounds last week and that is not good. So, I am looking for information about protein powders to try to supplement my diet right now. I can afford weight loss, although to date I have lost 40 pounds since I was working and I need to keep my cardio working and muscle mass intact. Let me know if you have any advice I can run across my chemo nurses for approval.

Link to Symposium by Dr. David Servan-Schrieber FIND THE TIME/LISTEN

THIS IS A AN ABSOLUTE ASTOUNDING LECTURE BY A SCIENTIST M.D., AND PH.D FROM CALIFORNIA, DR. SERVAN SCHREIBER, SPEAKING AT THE U. OF PITTSBURGH MEDICAL SCHOOL BASED ON RESEARCH WITH SIGNIFICANT NUMBERS OF STUDY PARTICIPANTS REGARDING THE CAUSES AND TREATMENT FOR CANCER.

THE TITLE OF HIS LECTURE IS "ROLE OF BODY'S DEFENSE FOR CANCER TREATMENT AND PREVENTION. "HE SHOWS THE HISTORY OF THE EVOLUTION OF OUR DIET AND OUR LIFESTYLE CHANGES FOR THE PAST 4000 YEARS AND MORE IMPORTANTLY, SINCE ABOUT 1945.

HE PRESENTS THE 6 MAIN "HEALTHBUSTERS" THEN HE SHOWS THE VARIOUS "HEALTHBOOSTERS" SO IMPORTANT IN BOTH "PREVENTING CANCER" AS WELL AS "TREATING CANCER." HE PRESENTS AN "ANTI-CANCER" PLATE OF FOOD SHOWING WHAT IT CONSISTS OF AND LOOKS LIKE!


HE HIMSELF IS A SURVIVOR OF A BRAIN TUMOR.

THIS TIME WILL GO FAST BECAUSE THE INFORMATION IS SO INFORMATIVE, INTERESTING AND HUGELY INSTRUCTIVE. I THINK YOU WILL BE GLAD YOU DID!!!

EVERYONE COULD BENEFIT . . . . THOSE WITH CANCER AND THOSE WHERE IT HAS NOT YET BEEN DIAGOSED. WITH DIET AND LIFESTYLE CHANGES HE RECOMMENDS.

HE PRESENTS A 68 % REDUCTION IN MORTALITY!!! FOR EXAMPLE, WHEREAS OUR CURRENT DIETS ARE 80 PERCENT ANIMAL PROTEIN, IT SHOULD BE 80% VEGETARIAN AND PLANT-BASED! 

STRIKING ALSO IS THE POWERFUL AND MEANINGFUL SUPPORT PERSONS/GROUPS FOR CANCER SURVIVERS!

AT THE END, THERE IS A 5 MINUTE TRAILER BY DR. SCHREIBER WHICH IS ALSO INTERESTING AND INSTRUCTIVE AS HE DISCUSSES THE SOLUTION TO THE "CANCER EPIDEMIC" WHICH IS LIFESTYLE (DIET AND EXERCISE) AND IS SO OFTEN REVERSIBLE. SUGAR FEEDS CANCER GROWTH.

YES, I KNOW HOW IMPORTANT TIME IS AND . . . MY FIRST INCLINATION WAS . . . "I JUST DO NOT HAVE TIME TO TAKE 58 MINUTES TO VIEW/LISTEN TO THIS" . . . BUT SINCE WE ALL HAVE CANCER CELLS AND FULLY ONE-FOURTH OF US WILL DIE SUFFER AND DIE FROM CANCER, I JUST FORCED MYSELF TO TAKE THE TIME TO TO VIEW THIS AND TAKE NOTES. PLEASE DO THIS FOR YOU, NOT FOR ME.

RECOMMENDATION: IF YOU KNOW ANYONE WITH CONCERNS ABOUT CANCER, FORWARD THIS TO THEM AND URGENTLY REQUEST THAT THEY LISTEN TO THIS LECTURE. THEN, EVERYONE ELSE YOU KNOW NEEDS TO KNOW FOR PREVENTION AND BUILDING UP THE IMMUNE SYSTEM! I BELIEVE THEY WILL THANK YOU FOR THIS "HEADS UP!" (CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XaDt3AJQ98c

 PREVENTION IS A GREAT, GREAT WORD! TAKE THE TIME, YOUR LIFE IS WORTH IT!

Glitches

I have learned that a diagnosis of cancer gives one an increased and everlasting ability to deal with glitches.  This week chemotherapy would not work...as my implanted pump would not work. So after several hours of trying alternative positions to relocate the tube that runs to my artery, I was dispatched to Mercy Gilbert Hospital for a dye test to see what the problem was. And, after a three hour wait, I had the ten minute test completed. It showed no repositioning, and no kinks and while lying flat, the hospital staff could get a drip to go in but no blood to come out. So off the chemotherapy the next day (Friday) only to find that no position would get it to work. The resolve, I got hooked up to two mechnical pumping devices to get all my weed killer in, yet another 5 hour day and carried home a portable mechanical pump to keep the stuff running until Sunday. I also brought home a medicine/chemical that now resides in my fridge to be administered Sunday by the home health nurse. With luck.... the problem could be that my body does not like a foreign object inside of me so created a sheath around the tube to protect me. Problem is, I do not need the protection so the chemical injection on Sunday, into my port pump, should dissolve the sheath created by my body. If not, I will need outpatient surgery again to go in and fix the darn thing.  So............we are being creative in resolving the issue and I am being patient in that waiting is now just part of my life.  In the meantime, other than severe neuropathy in hands, feet and throat...being electrocuted when cold and now having lost most of the ability to taste anything except dill pickles and vinagrette, I am doing really good and remain, as always, positive. Next item...the dark days are coming and then we meet with the liver surgeon....go team! Stay well, be happy and seek only Positive Pursuits.

Reference and Referral

For the record, the information given below and future reference to diet, and tips regarding cancer patient conditions and preventative measures for healthy people comes primarily from the book, AntiCancer by James Servan-Schreiber MD, PHD and author.

Prevention Tips and Tips for Cancer Patients

We all live with myths that undermine our capacity to fight cancer. For example, many of us that cancer is primarily liked to our genetic makeup, rather than our lifestyle. When we look at all the research, however, we can see that the contrary is true. The lifestyle we choose is the primary cause for the development of cancer. Genetic factors only contribute 15% and it is not necessarily the same cancer found in our family as cancers have families also.
In the Western Hemisphere, one person in four will die of cancer, but three will not. What can we do to prevent Cancer from developing in our bodies? Here is just a tidbit to start:

1) Eat More Organic
Guard ourselves against the imbalances of our environment that have developed since 1940 that now promote the current epidemic of cancer. Non-organic meat and dairy products and eggs as well as large fish found at the top of the food chain furnish over 90% of human exposure to known contaminates,. These include dioxin, PCB’s and pesticides that persist in the environment despite the banning of many years ago. Typical vegetables contain one hundredth the amount of contaminates found in meat and dairy, however organic (grass fed beef etc and range free poultry and omega 3 enriched eggs) is far less contaminated. The demand for meat and dairy in this country has impacted farmers to the extent that artificial hormones, growth chemicals and other man made chemicals are continuously used to increase production to meet market needs, and the end result is we eat those same hormones and growth chemicals and inorganic phosphates that aid in feeding cancer cells in our bodies just waiting for an opportunity to develop into a tumor.

2) BPA contaminate in water and foods.
Avoid all foods and liquids heated in plastic containers or cans. Canned food is generally heated to 110 degrees during the sterilizing process, thus causing BPA (Bisphenol A) to diffuse into the food. Ban all plastic containers for heating in your kitchen and use only bottled water in #1 bottles (generally clear plastic and the recycle number is on the bottom of the bottle or water bottle container). If it is not a number one, and especially if you leave your water bottle in the car in the summer and it gets hot, you are poisoning yourself by drinking BPA. Also if you buy water in gallon jugs in the store, it should be only Spring Water in a clear #1 bottle. Often water is heated in the semi-truck during transport in hot weather. If not in a #1 bottle, high BPA contaminates could exist without your knowledge. BPA is a fundamental ally for tumors making them resistant to part of the arsenal we use to fight cancer. It literally blocks the effect of chemotherapy agents used to treat breast cancer patients. BPA is a component of hardened plastic or PVC which is everywhere: inner lining of soda cans, ravioli cans, tuna cans, green beans, and fruit preserved in syrup, soups and baby foods. BPA used to be found in baby bottles, but is now banned. It is still found in plastic kitchen bowls and utensils and storage containers. When PVC is heated it turns into BPA…now you are eating a contaminate that promotes tumor growth internally.

TIP

*US National Cancer Institute, that asparagus is the highest tested food containing glutathione, which is considered one of the body's most potent anti-carcinogens and antioxidants. It is recommended to cook asparagus (fresh or canned) then puree and store in the refrigerator. Take two teaspoons, straight, mixed with water hot or cold, or over potato or however you like in the morning and also the evening. (4 tsp per day). This methodology is used to prevent cancer and eliminate tumors already identified.

More information regarding diet in next blog. Stay well, be happy and Seek only Positive Pursuits.

Good News

Nothing on this earth makes dealing with misery more tolerable than getting good news! And Good News is what I got today. The PET scan, after 2 months of treatment, came back with great results. No cancer cells anywhere in the body other than my liver and those multiple tumors are responding to chemotherapy like gangbusters! Tumor in the colon is shrinking and is no longer visible on the scan and is not really a concern right now. Chemo will continue to kill it… it is the liver that is my concern. My Oncologist was nearly dancing today when we met. So, what does this mean….it means I am forever in debt to all of you who have had me in your thoughts and prayers, it means I have the best, most loving and supportive family a person could possibly ask for; it means efforts to eat cancer healthy and organic have helped and it means a positive attitude is also a great healer. If I was not clear before, let me be crystal clear now; I am going to beat this! Next step is meeting with a liver surgeon which is in the works. That will allow me to establish groundwork for qualifying for resection and/or transplant sometime in the future, whichever is the way to go. It will give me new goals to meet, new hope. Today, as everyday, is the first day of the rest of my life… I am so grateful for all the blessings in my life. Be well of spirit, be healthy of body, and seek only Positive Pursuits.

A Little Humor

Temporary Escape

There are several wellness components that assist in nurturing positive steps toward achieving good health while living with cancer.
Nutrition is a key element and I will address some specifics in my next blog.
Some form of exercise, however minimal, is a must even if dragged down by fatigue; it provides oxygen and clears the chemo cobwebs. For me, that means housework as usual or a walk to the mailbox at my own pace. My husband, God love him, had a fit when he saw me cleaning the pool today. (Lol) We often have to stop and have a talk. I reminded him, that sick or not, who I am has not changed and that means I need to be actively participating in life. Sitting in a chair is not me, nor will it ever be me. He, on the other hand, reminds me that I never complain which leads him to wonder if I do too much. While that is probably true, I promised to pay more attention to my physical limits in the future.
Communication is another key element on the path to assisting good health; you must talk, either with your spouse, significant other or kids, parents or friends, doctors or someone….you must talk about how you feel, what you feel, what you desire in life and yes, what you desire in death.
Meditation is a must…for some people this can be structured: yoga, tai chi, transcendental mediation or perhaps only 20 minutes of uninterrupted quiet time. Stop the hectic world we experience and,in total silence, simply breathe…and listen to yourself breathe as you come down from that level of stress that sabotages our anti-cancer efforts.
This past week hubby and I flew away to Oregon to see our youngest daughter and husband, their brand new home finally finished, and two adorable grandsons, Carson age two and Logan,8 weeks. Considering our financial situation we should not have gone. Considering my diagnosis, how could we not. An opportunity presented itself and I while relatively healthy, I can still shoot hoops with a two year old and nurture a baby…God what a wonderful week. It was cold, rainy and snowy which fired up my neuropathy shocks and I developed a new stomach spasm but I am grateful for the time to love unconditionally, stop worrying about the mechanics of living with cancer, and escape the whole medical environment for a week which passed too quickly.
Back to reality; there was good news upon our return to the desert in that a huge insurance issue has been resolved. There are more but I will work on those, I am, however, always amazed at how helpful others are when asked. I was having no luck at a resolution until others stepped in and took that monkey off my back. I am grateful everyday for the goodness in others.
Tomorrow is my PET scan. This occurs every couple months and gives the doctors a look to see if the chemotherapy treatments are doing any good.This will be my first look after having chemo for awhile. While praying for good results I know that in the long line of people needing miracles, I am way in the back as there are so many others whose conditions are much worse than mine. I will wait my turn, I will be patient, I will trust in the Lord and in my ability to help myself and, I am eternally grateful, every day, for your prayers. Thank you all. We will have results soon on the path of Positive Pursuits.