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Dear Suzanne: I was pleased to see your post to Mary. I have been thinking about you almost daily for some time now -- wondering how you're doing. They're really hitting you with it, aren't they? I know how Taxol and VP16 are. They make you very sick -- then with all the other stuff thrown in. You don't sound as down and exhausted as you once did, though, and I find this encouraging. You, Angelo, and Greg have ALL stood out in my mind, and I've tried to send you telepathic encouragement almost daily. Hope you've all been getting it! I feel really good right now, Suzanne, and for this, I feel almost guilty. My friend, Art Atwell, who is so brave and so determined, told me yesterday that many of the people in his group begin to lose interest once they feel better -- they don't want to think about their cancer ever again. I can understand this, but I don't necessarily agree. I think we must think about it, but not dwell on it, and that anything we can do to help someone who is where we have been is a good and positive thing and may contribute to our good health as well as theirs -- who knows?
Keep up the good fight, Suzanne. I'm cheering for you, and I mean that! Let's work on a Happy New Year. Love, Kathy in Boise
-----Original Message-----
From: suzanne1@erols.com [SMTP:suzanne1@erols.com]
Sent: Tuesday, December 29, 1998 4:36 PM
To: mol-cancer@lists.meds.com
Subject: Re: [MOL]Mary and Angelo
Dear Mary - I can understand you not remembering what everone's health
status is as there are so many of us. :)
I am 52 years old and have stage IV nsclc. This was staged by my surgeon
at the end of June or beginning of July - geesh, talk about your memory! LOL
However, I have rcently heard an administrative assistant in my doctors
office refer to it as stage iv andrecarcenoma. Not sure what the
difference is, but it appears to me that it is not a great different. One
day when I come out of this fog, am sure will all be clear.
Anyway, as I recall (correct me if I am wrong) that Angelo is also stage 4
and it seems you said one time he had a spot on his brain and somewhere
else as well and that he was 42. Is my memory correct? Your and your
family's determination to support him loving and completely really stood
out to me for some reason. Not sure what it was as every caregiver on this
list is determined to support and care in ways that in no way could be
called reasonable - just loving and unselfish. And that's true of all the
caregivers here.
But for some reason you and Angelo stood out in my mind. That is why I
think of you so often.
As for my diagnostic stuff, been pricked so many times am beginning to feel
like a very large pin cushion, had both internal and external sonegrams, so
many chest x-rays I have lost count, 1 bone scan, and this Friday will be,
I think, my 4th CT scan - all with contrast and one with the upper GI stuff
or maybe all the GI stuff - been a long time since I Had GI stuff - like
1968 :) Think the way the procedures are done might have changed a bit.
As for treatments - I am constantly on Procrit. Over 13 weeks, I had 10
weeks of Taxol and Navelbine. At the end of the time, my cancer markers
had almost doubled. So more book work, etc, and finally it was decided
that I have a 3 week treatment which included a portable pump for one week
- the pump had a drug called topotecan. The following week I took VP16
orally 3 times a day and the followin week I had off.
the second sequence was somewaht diffused as oral VP16 temporarily became
unavailable from the manufacturer, so in the last cycle I got increased
doses of it. Oh joy? Oh Rapture??
And because of the holidays I have received 2 weeks between 3 week cycles.
With this treatment cycle I am more fatigued than ever before and my short
term memory may a well be long gone considering how often it is present and
working, but one siginificant has changed.
I now have the WILL to do things, not just the feeling that I should. I
don't always have the way, but with the will I am actually getting more
things done, albeit slowly, than I have for a long time.
So that's everything up to date and I hope it answers all your questions Mary.
Love to you both and continued good news.
Suzanne
P.S. Re Angelo's back pain - I am quite tall and have had back pain all my
life because I have to bend to do everything. Since cancer, it is worse,
but if I move around a bit it will ease up
At 02:48 PM 12/28/98 -0800, you wrote:
>Dear Suzanne,
>
>Glad to hear from you. Angelo is now scheduled for a CT scan and a
>Bone Scan in two weeks to see whats going on in the rest of his body.
>We will know more after them. He has been having a lot of back pain
>lately. They did a lower lumbar x-ray Wednesday and I have been trying
>to contact someone with the results. The Dr. seems to think that his
>lower back pain is due to lack of exercise ( since Angelo has had his
>back go out on him before) . The dr. said depending on the x-ray report
>he may have Angelo do some physical therapy for his back. I pray that
>that is all it is and not the cancer in the bone causing the pain.
>
>What treatments have you received and have you gotten any encouraging
>results from them? I did not realize that you had NSCLC also. What
>stage were you diagnosed with and when? I'm just full of questions.
>I have probably talked to you about this before but forgotten who has
>what kind and everything.
>
>Hope you had a nice christmas,
>Love,
>Mary
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