Cancer Sucks

[hegs65]

I can't believe I am about to write this, but unfortunately there is a slight chance that my ds's leukemia is back. Unfortunately, we won't know until he has a bone marrow aspiration on July 3. To back up a little, my ds was diagnosed with acute lymphatic leukemia (ALL) on Feb 8, 2007. It has been a tough battle but we felt we were winning the war -that is until last month when out of the blue, his platelet count dropped significantly. They thought that it was due to a couple missed doses of one of his meds but now aren't so sure because while his platelet level is in a safe range, they are still significantly lower than they should be. He is scheduled for a spinal on July 3so while he is out, they are going to do a bone marrow aspiration to make sure the cancer is not back. Fortunately, my ds was still out of it from his spinal to hear the doctor say it could be back. We are not going to tell him anything until his final blood work results come back on the 30th. Why worry him if we don't have to right? We have not told our other children either. So if any of you could please put him and our family on your prayer list it would be greatly appreciated. If it is back, I pray that God gives us the strength to handle it.

On another sad note, I found out last night that a close cousin of my dh's has stage 4 melanoma with tumors in his liver. He finished his treatment and had a clean slate as of last Sept. but somehow he is now at stage 4. There are no words to describe the depth of sadness we feel. He is only 56 yrs old.
If you could also keep him and his family in your prayers it would be greatly appreciated. I will continue to keep you all in my prayers. Thanks for listening. Patty

[Mackey Mouse]

Absolutely Patty... you hang in there.. Hopefully DS will be able to get back into some sort of comfortable remission again... Hugs..

And you are right Cancer sucks.....I so agree.

[breezy1077]

:hug: Prayer said. :hug:

FYI, if you feel like posting, I've started a prayer and good thoughts thread on the CB. Sometimes there's strength in numbers. I'll continue to keep your son and your family in my thoughts and prayers.

Here's the link in case you're interested :goodvibes

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1860093

[frdeb1999]

Sending prayers your way. And hoping that everything comes back for the better. Your deffinately right.....cancer sucks! :hug:

[Mskanga]

Yes cancer sucks BIG TIME , my daughter was also diagnosed with bone cancer July 2007. Right now she is in remission and has no evidence of disease and god willing she will remain like that forever.
Good vibes and possitive thoughts going your way...."don't bleed till you are shot "

[Shugardrawers]

This is exactly why I do what I do with the experimental meds. Maybe someday someone will benefit from something they've learned from me. BTDT and I'm always here for a shoulder. And you're right

THIS STUFF SUCKS!!!

[Rustysmom]

:grouphug: Saying prayers for your family. Yes, cancer sucks. I just lost my mom from pancreatic cancer. I can't even imagine having a child with it.

[3happydancers]

:hug: :hug: :hug: and prayers go out to all of you who have had to endure!!! Yes, cancer sucks, I lost my SIL to brain cancer 2 years ago. By the time it was discovered she had barely 2 weeks of life left.

[kimis]

Yes cancer is HORRIBLE!!!! I lost a brother to non-hodgins lymphoma and my mom to small cell lung cancer. My dh dad died of esophigal cancer. I am grateful for the new treatments that they now have.
Hang in there and keep fighting. You are in my prayers.

[Torontogal]

You are right - lost my dad to pancreatic cancer only 5 months ago.
A relative of mine was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia at the age of 5 and is not in remission. I know it is a very hard battle.
Will keep you in my thoughts. Hang in there. I know it must be very hard but take it a day at a time. I am sure things will be fine.

[RMulieri]

Sending prayers ....Cancer does SUCK! I work as an oncology Rn and I see it all day everday.Love my patients,hate their disease.

[antmaril]

I agree - cancer totally sucks. My husband is dying from pancreatic cancer. He is currently a Hospice inpatient and has probably days to live.

My heart is breaking.

[hegs65]

Thanks for all the prayers, they are much appreciated. I will keep you all in my prayers as well. We are heading into Boston tomorrow to see what we are up against. Unfortunately, ds had his counts done this past Monday and his platelets are down further. The rest of his counts are okay so I just keep hoping it's his meds. We will know one way or another tomorrow as he is scheduled for a bone marrow aspiration as well as a spinal.

[Torontogal]

I agree - cancer totally sucks. My husband is dying from pancreatic cancer. He is currently a Hospice inpatient and has probably days to live.

My heart is breaking.

Sorry to hear about your husband. This disease is a beast. My dad just passed from it and passed only 1 month after diagnosis. I am still in shock.
Please let me know how your husband is doing...

[antmaril]

Sorry to hear about your husband. This disease is a beast. My dad just passed from it and passed only 1 month after diagnosis. I am still in shock.
Please let me know how your husband is doing...

Thank you. Pancreatic cancer is a beast. My husband (age 55) was diagnosed in November, 2007. He had the Whipple Procedure in mid-December, but two weeks after the surgery, we were told the cancer had metastisized to his liver. He spent the whole month of January in the hospital. Started chemo in March and today we are in Hospice with only a short time left. Our 34th wedding anniversary is a week from Saturday. We're not going to make it.

We've been together since we were 15 years old and I can't even imagine what it's going to be like without him. I pray for strength, because I'm going to need it.

Thanks again for your kind words. I'm very sorry about your father.

[RMulieri]

Thank you. Pancreatic cancer is a beast. My husband (age 55) was diagnosed in November, 2007. He had the Whipple Procedure in mid-December, but two weeks after the surgery, we were told the cancer had metastisized to his liver. He spent the whole month of January in the hospital. Started chemo in March and today we are in Hospice with only a short time left. Our 34th wedding anniversary is a week from Saturday. We're not going to make it.

We've been together since we were 15 years old and I can't even imagine what it's going to be like without him. I pray for strength, because I'm going to need it.

Thanks again for your kind words. I'm very sorry about your father.

I am so sorry about your husband.sending prayers for you:grouphug:

[Mackey Mouse]

"Thank you. Pancreatic cancer is a beast. My husband (age 55) was diagnosed in November, 2007. He had the Whipple Procedure in mid-December, but two weeks after the surgery, we were told the cancer had metastisized to his liver. He spent the whole month of January in the hospital. Started chemo in March and today we are in Hospice with only a short time left. Our 34th wedding anniversary is a week from Saturday. We're not going to make it."

Oh God... this ripped my heart out when I read this. My husband has PC and had a whipple... it has been over 3 years for us and he is hanging in.. It is in his lungs now(two spots) and we are holding off treatment for now as he has made the choice to enjoy these two months of summer with his family before starting again. He feels ok, we know it is there, and right now we are not letting it control us. If he was not feeling well, he would be having treatment, but for now, he is ok. For some reason, his is slow growing, which is not usually the case with PC.

Can I say to the above poster, I am heading to the gym right now, but you are in my thoughts and prayers and I will keep you and your husband there all morning.. My heart hurts reading that he may not make it....please God no more suffering for this man... I beg that someone finds a cure for this horrible disease.

My husband and I, hopefully, or maybe just me and my daughters and my grandchild will be walking again in October for the Lustgarten Foundation in Boston...I know my DH will be in treatment and he may not be well enough to do the walk, but I know his children will to raise money for research for this dreaded cancer..

Hugs, hugs, and prayers to you Antmaril.

[antmaril]

"Thank you. Pancreatic cancer is a beast. My husband (age 55) was diagnosed in November, 2007. He had the Whipple Procedure in mid-December, but two weeks after the surgery, we were told the cancer had metastisized to his liver. He spent the whole month of January in the hospital. Started chemo in March and today we are in Hospice with only a short time left. Our 34th wedding anniversary is a week from Saturday. We're not going to make it."

Oh God... this ripped my heart out when I read this. My husband has PC and had a whipple... it has been over 3 years for us and he is hanging in.. It is in his lungs now(two spots) and we are holding off treatment for now as he has made the choice to enjoy these two months of summer with his family before starting again. He feels ok, we know it is there, and right now we are not letting it control us. If he was not feeling well, he would be having treatment, but for now, he is ok. For some reason, his is slow growing, which is not usually the case with PC.

Can I say to the above poster, I am heading to the gym right now, but you are in my thoughts and prayers and I will keep you and your husband there all morning.. My heart hurts reading that he may not make it....please God no more suffering for this man... I beg that someone finds a cure for this horrible disease.

My husband and I, hopefully, or maybe just me and my daughters and my grandchild will be walking again in October for the Lustgarten Foundation in Boston...I know my DH will be in treatment and he may not be well enough to do the walk, but I know his children will to raise money for research for this dreaded cancer..

Hugs, hugs, and prayers to you Antmaril.


Marsha - Thank you. I have been following your journey with your husband and I know how difficult it is.

My husband could just not get a break. We had a little hope when he was a candidate for the Whipple, but our hopes were dashed only two weeks post-Whipple when we were told he had liver mets. He is a Hospice inpatient and I've been with him 24/7 for three weeks. Since he's only 55 and was completely healthy before all this started, the process is not easy. He is comfortable and I pray for a peaceful passing. Our family has accepted this as God's plan and there isn't anything we can do to stop it. He asked me yesterday (he doesn't communicate much, but he is not unconscious) if I could help him not die. I thought my heart would break.

Pancreatic cancer is a monster and it has changed my life forever.

I wish you all the best in your husband's battle with pc.

[honeymom]

OP - I am sorry to hear about what you are going through. My prayers are with you. I lost a cousin to leukemia when I was 14, but from what I understand there have been a great many strides with pediatric leukemias and the odds are now much more in favor of the patient.

To the posters re: pancreatic. I also lost a 40 year old cousin last year to pc. It was about 5 weeks from diagnosis until he was gone. It was on the tail of the pancreas - so whipple was not an option. It is a horrid disease and my prayers are with you.

[Mackey Mouse]

I pm'd Antmaril. I had to, her post broke my heart today... and for all of us here who have a loved one battling cancer or have lost a loved one to this horrible disease.. know that there is strength in numbers and we have to be heard.

In the case of PC.. there is not enough research being done. It needs more attention, just as Breast Cancer received and look how well they are doing with survival with that one. Thank God for that......we need to be made aware that PC is deadly and the more trials out there, the more money raised, the better the chances..

We will walk again in October for the Lustgarten Foundation......hopefully Tom will do the walk, he may not be well enough as he will be in chemo, but his family will walk for him with his little grandson, who is named after him.

I try to always live in the present truly the future is just too scary and I do not want to go there.. We are enjoying our summer and doing the best we can.

Hugs all around.. please take care of each other...

[Torontogal]

You are both in my thoughts. I never, ever thought my father would get cancer let alone Pancreatic which is the deadliest. I am still in shock and cannot believe he is gone. He was such a wonderful father. He passed away only 1 month after being diagnosed. His cancer spread to his lungs and finally his liver. When he was admitted - he was already at Stage 4. I feel so lost and empty without him. I feel like a changed person from losing him and so angry at cancer. My father was not a candidate for Whipple. He had 2treatments of chemo but it was very useless. The cancer was very agressive.
I pray they find a cure for this disease. It makes me so angry that so little money goes to Pancreatic Cancer yet it is the most deadly. My father's family doctor had no idea that it could be cancer. There needs to be more screening techniques.
Please let me know how you are both doing. Be strong and enjoy every moment. I am praying for both of you and your husbands.

[safetymom]

Patty, sending hugs and prayers for your family. I agree Cancer sucks.

[safetymom]

Antmaril, my heart breaks for the two of you. Watching someone in hospice go downhill has to be hard.

Just remember to take care of yourself. You have a tough road ahead of you. Keep posting here, it helps.

It's ok if you take life minute by minute sometimes. I know after my husband died I would wake up in the middle of the night and be so worried about something. I would post online and within minutes someone would post saying they understood.

We are here to listen and help you when we can. Sending more hugs and prayers for you.

[Disney Brat]

I just wanted to let you all know that you are in my thoughts and prayers. I lost my Aunt to lung cancer this past January. She had also been in hospice care and suffered terribly in the last weeks. I am happy that she is at peace now.

[antmaril]

Thanks everyone.

[annie1995]

I've been thinking of your DS this week. How did his tests turn out? I am praying they were all negative for leukemia.:hug:

[Mackey Mouse]

Hegs, please let us know how he is doing.. we are here for you....

[Torontogal]

Mackey Mouse -
How is your husband doing? Does he have adenocarcinoma?

[miztigg]

:grouphug: to all of you my bil has gilo and now just got diganosed with bone cancer finally after the expermential drugs stopped the glio now this ill keep everyone here in my prayers