For those of you who don't know I suffer from a condition known as lymph edema. It's because of the cancer surgeries. When I had cancer the second time the final tumor was removed by using a procedure known as lymph node dissection. They removed all the lymph nodes that they possibly could from my left under arm. I have a arm hole not an arm pit. Anyway then after that they did radiation therapy. 6 weeks of being zapped. My surgeon told me when I was having the surgery that I would likely develop this condition. Well it took 3 1/5 years after surgery but I finally did it. Wooohoo for me :( Not exactly a goal I'm proud of.
What happens is my arm does not drain properly because of the destruction from the surgery and radiation so that finally whatever route the fluids were taking to get out of my arm blocked up. Hence the fat arm.
See how much bigger my left arm is than my right. This is what it looks like. This is actually the first night I discovered it. So I sent an email to my Doctor and she sent me to a physical therapist. You might ask why she did not see me. Well it's because this condition is permanent. No drug or surgery will correct it. The only thing that will keep it under control is exercise/massage, a lovely compression sleeve and glove and care. Did I mention that this condition in permanent? Joy :( Fortunately this condition has relatively little pain associated with it (At least my lymph edema has none - can't speak for all). And I still have my arm (you have to look for the blessings).
I have specific limitations too. I'm not supposed to fly in a plane, go up into high altitudes, take a dip in a hot tub or do any heavy lifting. Some of these I can do but only my sleeve and glove in place - which takes the fun out of a lot of things.
So now I wear my fashion accessory daily, do my massage in the AM and do my exercises 2x a day. That's it :) Everyday for the rest of my life :) Simple :) but a pain :(
So you might wonder why I am sharing this today. Because yesterday I had my first appointment with the physical therapist in a long time and what do you know - my arm is actually shrinking - not back to normal but several sizes smaller. Wooohooo for me :) And I actually have permission to remove my glove and watch my hand to see if there is any swelling. If so then the gloves go back on. If not then I get to have my hand FREE. Love it!
I was pondering my title for this last blog and wished that everyone who had cancer had a chance to put in closing remarks on their cancer but that is just not the nature of this disease. I lost 2 friends just this last year to cancer (brain tumor and colon cancer) and had 2 other friends (both with lymphoma) beat it and are still with me. You just never know.
The statistics were against me (and still are) but so far it has been 5 years. Still alive. Still grateful to have a new morning to wake up to each and every day.
Thank you, God.
So for my final blog I thought I'd share a bit about the repercussions of my cancer:
1. It took months to recover from the chemo and the depression. I still get winded when working in the yard or hiking with my husband. For our 33 wedding anniversary we decided to hike Half Dome at Yosemite. 4,000 feet increase in altitude over 7 miles. We made it half way up the sub dome before I bombed out - altitude sickness - even after months and months of preparation. I realized on that hike how much damage the cancer had done to my lungs as I struggled up the mountain. You just never really get it all back. My kids say that I look much older than I am. Sad.
2. The cost. I had great insurance but there are still financial repercussions from having cancer. Whether it's co-pays, prescriptions, special food or just gasoline to treatments. It all adds up. We had to sell my Husband's fancy 1950's pickup truck to pay for all the extras :( Fortunately we had a fancy 1950's pickup truck to sell, some aren't so lucky.
3. The on going issues. First, is the medication that I have to take for the rest of my life. Arimidex, which is an anti tumor medication for women who are in menopause, is the drug of choice. At first it was $400 per month but now they have a generic version that my Oncologist says works just fine. Thank goodness. Second, is the possibility of never getting health insurance again if I leave my job (or if my job goes away). No one will take me. So if that ever happens I will live my life at the county hospitals until I reach Medicare age - if they still have it. This is a constant fear. Much as I hate President Obama's health care (since I would have been in the 'no' category for any treatments) I still think that everyone should be able to get health insurance - reasonably priced health insurance.
4. Finally, Lymphedema. This is the condition that my Surgeon was afraid that she was condemning me to because of my lack of lymph nodes there would be issues with drainage of my arm. I did pretty well for almost 3 1/2 years after surgery. My arm looked fine and then one day -
Yup, that's what it looks like. Stinks. I was having dinner with my family (including my Brother) when my Brother said 'Sis, why does one of your arms look bigger than the other'. And I just knew. Rats.
So I contacted my Oncologist who referred me to a Physical Therapist. At first it was just my arm and then after a month my hand abandoned me and decided to go over to the other side and now it's pretty much my whole left side. So I get to wear a custom sleeve with a big compression pad in it and this pretty glove. Actually this was my first glove, my later ones were my skin toned. Although I do like the dark one since it shows dirt less. Still looking for ways to bling it up a bit :)
I have to be candid with you as much as I do not enjoy having Lymphedema - I would hate having cancer more. This is so something that I can live with and hey, I still have my arm. Wooohooo for me :)
Truly - Wooohoo for anyone that has beaten cancer or is battling cancer or is a caregiver for someone who has cancer or well you get my drift.
Thanks for reading - if you have any questions of me or just need someone to talk to about cancer, I would love to hear from you.
So the last blog dealt with the cancer being gone from my lungs but me still having a large tumor under my left arm. The Oncologist didn't want to do surgery and was hoping that the continued treatments with Herceptin would kill that final tumor. No such luck. Finally in March we threw in the towel and opted to have surgery. First came a PET scan to make sure that everything was hunky dory awesome and that the tumor under my arm was really the last of my cancer.
I had never had a PET scan but it is more definitive than a CT Scan so off to the little trailer that they drag from facility to facility for the scan I went. I came and they pumped stuff into me - something radioactive I'm sure. I waited in a dark room for several minutes (don't remember exactly how long) and then into see the scanner. Freak out! Okay this isn't your average donut - this is a tube. A long tube. I am not a long tube person. I have trouble with just the donut. But I was here, stuff was in me and I was going to do this come heck or high water. So I closed my eyes and told the tech to tell me when my head was out of the other end and in I went. The whole scan probably takes about 20-30 minutes and I had my eyes closed for a good half of that. But in the end I made it (Rocky music here).
So it was time to wait . . . again. Have you noticed a pattern here. 90% of treatment seems to be waiting - waiting for an appointment, waiting for prescriptions, waiting for scan results. So we waited knowing that everything hung on this scan.
Clean. Clean, clear and normal. Lungs were great and the only other tumor was under my left arm. Time for it to go.
I scheduled surgery for my Daughter's birthday. On purpose. I knew she would be at Disneyland with friends - the plans had been made long before. Of all my family she had had the toughest time with my cancer. I wanted her out of the way and where better to distract her than the happiest place on earth. Score one for Mom :)
Final issue was that my Surgeon didn't want to do the surgery. She felt that I was Stage 4 Metastatic and she didn't want to take a chance on me having to live the rest of my short life with Lymphedema (more this happy condition later) but after several conversations with my Oncologist and understanding I really was cancer free except this last tumor she finally agreed to do it.
So on May 5th, 2008 I had a lymph node dissection. They went in and removed the tumor and scrapped away as many lymph nodes as possible. I came out with a arm hole (not an arm pit) and a drain. Have I said before how much I hate drains? Well, I hate drains. Not only that but 15 days later my lovely husband and I were scheduled to be at the Grand Canyon for our 30th wedding anniversary. Wooohooo for me :(
Well the drain came out on time and I was off for several days of travel and some beautiful vistas in southern Utah and northern Arizona. Saw the Grand Canyon - one more thing off my bucket list. And then home to heal. I should also mention here that there was a lot of pain and discomfort attached to this particular surgery and in the end the Surgeon prescribed compression sleeves to help with the healing. Loved them - they supported my arm and really helped with the pain.
When I visited my Oncologist in June I was surprised by the next item on my 'Jan must never gets cancer again' list. Radiation. I had not had this on my first go round with Cancer so I really never considered it for this one. Kaiser has a deal with an outside center to do the radiation so I had a pre appointment with scan and prep to start my treatment in August. I had to delay since I would be gone for a whole week in July to volunteer at my Church's Young Woman Camp - I had been doing it for years and wasn't about to give it up :)
So when I arrived in August first they made a form for me to rest my arms on (over my head) while I was going through the machine. They give you a very precise amount of radiation in a very specific area. The form helped me to be in the same position each and every time I went in. Then came the one thing I thought I would never do in my life. Tattoos. I have three. They are about the size of a pin dot but they have to do it since you will be doing treatments every day for a six week period and any other mark would disappear after just a few days. The mark gave them points for the machine to line up with on my body.
Then they started the treatments. Monday through Friday at 4 I would drive to the clinic, 30 minutes away, and they would shove me through the machine and then I would drive home. I would apply the salves they gave me to keep me from burning and I had to wear a soft sports bra. I did great. No burns. I was thrilled.
At the end of 6 weeks was done. Saw my Oncologist again and was put on a pattern of appointments (which I still have to this day) and have gone on with life. Sort of :)
Final blog on Cancer and Lymphedema and my Micheal Jackson Glove. Link here :) Final
I apologize for missing some time on my blog but we had a bit of sadness recently with the passing of our old dog, Dallas. Our home has just felt empty. As empty as our hearts. So it just wasn't in me to write the past couple of weeks but a week ago Friday we got a new addition to our home in the form of Pippa, an exuberant 3 month old lab mix puppy. As you can imagine our home has been turned upside down. But it's a good upside down. Life goes on.
When I left the last cancer blog I had passed through the experience of having depression. I have to admit to you at this point the the depression stayed with me for almost a year. Even after all the treatments were done. Some days I would cry and others I would just carry this incredible sad feeling with me - it just varied but it did get better over time.
The treatments just seemed to go on and on. I had started way back in June and now Thanksgiving was approaching. Six Long Months. My body was exhausted. I hated eating since the depression and the metal taste in my mouth had totally sunk my appetite. I also had extreme teeth sensitivity to temperature. If I ate anything even slightly cold I would get shooting pains in my teeth. My weight started slipping a few pound till at one point I was down about 20 pounds. I wasn't a large person to start with but I wasn't skinny either so I was handling it okay.
The final treatment came just the week before Thanksgiving with a CT scan planned the week after Thanksgiving. As I went to my last treatment I found that my body had developed what I thought was a rash. When I arrive at treatment, cheered in the thought that this was my last one, I showed my rash to the nurse. 'Oh, Honey, your done' she said. What, No this is my last treatment. 'You have shingles'. My poor body had given all it could and had developed shingles. The door had shut. I was done. I can't tell you how frustrated I was at that point. As much as I hated getting treatments - This was my LAST ONE. And I wanted it - I want to finish it all. But I was turned away.
My Oncologist sent a Rx for me to treat the shingles and sent me home. Oddly enough within 24 hours my shingles were already drying out and I was well on my way to recovery. For those of you who haven't had shingles I will let you in on a weird symptom of the condition - it only forms on 1/2 of your body - either the right or left. Mine was on the right. It looks like a really bad rash and is from the same family as chicken pox. Also once you have had them - your done, like chicken pox, never to have them again. Odd blessing.
So the next week was my CT Scan (with the banana crap). Once again I was shoved through the donut and came out to wait for the results. Then came the email and lots of crying in my office. Metastasis in my lungs was absolutely and totally gone - only thing left was the tumor under my left arm. Wooohoo, it worked!
The Oncologist decided to continue my Herceptin treatments hoping that that would kill that last tumor. So every three weeks I went back to the chemo lab for an infusion of Herceptin. After three more months there was no change.
Next time - surgery, radiation and my Michael Jackson Glove :) Next Link :) Part 10
Last blog ended with the note of October and the monster 'depression'. And I think that says it all. Well maybe to me anyway. The first Friday in October was Chemo day (as usual) and I went in for treatment. I had been having some really down days and the nurses said that there was a counselor on staff that helps with dealing with the stress and depression that sometimes accompanies cancer. Sometimes - there's no sometimes about it - cancer is stressful and how can you not get some form of depression, their pumping chemicals to kill you into your body every week. Pffft.
So I opted to talk to the counselor - big mistake. After talking to me for about an hour she told me my problem was that I wasn't accepting the fact that I was dying. What? Are you kidding me? Truly she wasn't what I needed. But of course that started me thinking that maybe that was my trouble. Had I not dealt with the whole death issue yet and was that depressing me? Who knows. Anyway between her 'counseling' and the new Prescription of Prozac that was given to me I was absolutely at the bottom of the barrel.
So Saturday morning I woke up in tears and it only got worse through out the day. There were period where my family could do nothing but hold me while I sobbed. And the shaking when I wasn't crying was totally terrifying me. I just didn't know what was happening to me and it was a nightmare. The crying and shaking was even worse on Sunday and I was terrified as to what would happen on Tuesday when I would have to return to work. I wasn't sure that I could do it.
Then Sunday evening a miracle occurred. The phone rang. And I knew it was for me. I had been talking to God a lot, as you can imagine, for two days and felt abandoned. So when the phone rang it was very clear in my head that I needed to talk to whomever was calling. But I didn't want to. My husband answered and said 'it's for you'. Duh, I already knew that. So I took the phone unwillingly.
On the line was someone who I truly respected, our old Stake President (again a Mormon title here). A man with wonderful patience, intelligence and walks with the Spirit. He said 'I was just going into do some Genealogy and you came into my thoughts and I felt I needed to see how you were'. And I told him, truly, usually I'm not that forward with anyone but close friends and family but I just told him. And after I had run on for several minutes he said 'Jan, do you think it could be a reaction to the Medicine'. Of course, the Prozac, I was having a terrible reaction to the Prozac. How stupid of me not to have seen it before. After thanking him profusely and then thanking my Heavenly Father for sending just the right person to listen to my woes. I called Kaiser for help.
Believe it or not they have a Psychiatrist that you can talk to on the phone. It was wonderful. And he confirmed that the Prozac was causing most of the trouble and said if I had just called earlier then he would have proscribed another medicine for me that would help me to sleep and calm me down. Now here is where the Lord had arranged everything so nicely. 'What medicine?' I asked. Ativan was the answer. I almost laughed into the phone. I had that in my chemical arsenal - it's an anti nausea drug but I hadn't used it since it made me so sleepy. Thank you, God.
So with Ativan in my system I slept. Unfortunately the Psychiatrist told me that it would take several days for the Prozac to get out of my system. So the shaking and crying continued. Unfortunately too this opened the flood gate and the depression that I had been fighting came in like a flood. I have never ever had as horrible of an experience with depression as I had with this during this time. There were many days that started with tears and shaking, followed by the inability to even raise my head up. It was more of a nightmare than the cancer was. The cancer I could fight on an emotional level and there by keep mentally kicking it in the butt but the depression totally removed this weapon from my ability to cope. It was bad, really bad.
The Psychiatrist put me in an anxiety and depression group and I met with them for the first time that following Thursday. Still shaking and struggling against the depression I went and found some relief. But more importantly for me I found an outlet for dealing with the cancer - helping others. I came home that first night still shaking but uplifted because I felt that I had made a difference. You can imagine when the other attendees came that first night an found me, hairless, shaking and trying to deal with dying that they felt that their troubles were sightly smaller than they had thought :)
One lady later told me that she had almost headed for the door that first night since the reason she was there was in part because she was dealing with the death, by cancer, of her sister. Having me there was tough but exactly what she needed. I was grateful for that reassurance from her that I was helping and not making things worse for her.
Next - more treatment, bumps and Thanksgiving. Next Link :) Part 9
I know this thing just keeps going on and on. Sorry but trying to tackle this in one LONG Blog would have made me crazy. So we are at the fun (sarcasm intended) part of the cancer treatment. Chemo. Because of my last experience with Chemo I was dreading this part and when the Oncologist said she wanted to do small treatments EVERY week for at least 4 months you can imagine my joy. Yeah, don't break out the party balloons here.
First we were given assignments by the nurse who walked me through my 'chemo' experience of all the things we need to do to prepare me for treatments. A big one included finishing the front bathroom shower since I wasn't allowed to 'share' bathrooms with anyone. If you want motivation to get a DIY project done in a hurry in your home try getting cancer (seriouly no but wow). We also had to scrub the house from stem to stern to protect me from germs. I also struggled with getting enough water to satisfy the chemo nurses (8 cups a day) so I came up with water bracelets - 8 elastic bracelets with pretty beads (that I made myself) that would start each day on my left arm and as I drank the water I would transfer the bracelets one at a time to the right arm. That way my family could tell at a glance where I was at with my water consumption. This really helped since I lived in a chemo fog and couldn't remember anything - one day sort of blended into the next.
So chemo started on the first Friday of June in 2007 and with it a surprise. New nausea meds that actually worked. Wooohooo. I can't tell you how much that made my day. Not a single barfing moment. Loved it. That's not to say that it was easy - it wasn't, and that I wasn't queasy sometimes - I was, but wow what a difference. I would make it through Saturday and about half way through Sunday before the world would crash down on me and exhaustion would take over but I made it none the less.
On Monday evening the 'fog' and exhaustion would start to lift and Tuesday Morning I was back at work. Yes, I did work through my entire cancer experience with some wonderful support from my amazing Boss and the addition of Annette in my office, I did it. Some of you may be saying why work - truthfully it kept me from going totally crazy. The cancer takes over your life and you just want something normal back. Work did that for me.
I just wanted to stop here and tell you about the amazing support that came from all around me. The Sisters in my Ward (again a reminder here that I am Mormon and am speaking Mormonese - we refer to each other as Brother and Sister since we all believe that we are children of God and 'Ward' means Congregation) took me to all my treatments - every week someone new would pick me up and drive me miles to the hospital where I would get my weekly dose and, even though I offered, not one of them would take payment for their gas. So I got around that by baking goodies every Friday morning for my wonderful Sisters :) I even took some to my fellow suffers and nurses in the chemo lab. I was the hit of the party. My Son (who stopped his life, his schooling and everything else just so he could be there for me) would pick me up after the 3 and 1/2 hour treatment. I had to have someone drive me because the first thing they give you is a 'bag' with Benedryl in it. Snooze city. Can you imagine me trying to drive home after that? Not a chance.
I can't tell you too how many times friends, Sisters from my Ward, family, etc. would show up on my door step with dinner or offers for anything they could help with. My In-Laws would drive over regularly from the Bay Area to take me to dinner and just to let Jeffery and I know that they cared. I have also saved all the emails from that period and am amazed in reviewing them how much love and support we received. I truly treasure the people in my life.
In August I had my first CT Scan - my Oncologist was hopeful about everything since the manual exams seemed to be pointing toward the tumor under my arm feeling smaller. So I drank the 'banana crap' and went in for my first CT Scan since diagnosis. Then came the waiting and waiting and well you get the idea. I don't wait well. Finally I went in to see her. And she came in with a bit of a dance, really - I told you she was cute. The tumors were shrinking and several small tumors on my lungs appeared to be gone - really truly gone. Wooohooo. Dancing with my Doctor :) Now for the bad news - I am doing SO well that we just going to keep doing this for another 2 months on top of the 4 months. Yep - 6 full months of chemo. You won't get a woohooo from me on that one.
One funny item here - my hair - everyone told me that it would fall out so I shaved it really short like last time. You can see this one coming can't you - Yup, it never fell all out. It just got really thin. Stupid.
And so it continued. Next Scan was a MUGGA - for my heart - as long as I was on the Herceptin then the MUGGAs would continue every 3 months. My heart was holding up just fine. Just an FYI here - I continued the Herceptin for over 2 and 1/2 years (even after the main chemo was done) the Radiology tech and I got to be pretty good friends :) Another FYI here too - at one point several months into treatment the Oncologist pointedly asked me if I smoked. No Mormon's don't smoke - it's against our 'Word of Wisdom' revelation from the Lord to do so. 'That's why' she said. Why what? Well apparently smoking destroys whatever it is that the MUGGA is trying to measure. Wow. She had another lady, that was also fighting the same cancer as I was, who was not allowed the Herceptin - she smoked - and her heart would give out long before the cancer would killed her. How terrifying to know there is a drug that can help you but you are denied it because you smoke. Wow. What a testimony builder. You never know when you will see the benefit of following the Lord.
Next - October and the Black Death of Depression. Next link :) Part 8
So I'm going to share with you my first steps after telling my family. Both of them helped and both of them were very hard for me. First I went to visit a friend's husband who was dying of ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease) and had been hospitalized so long that I had never ever met him. My Son was going over regularly to help with physical therapy and said that I would really like him. So off to visit Michael I went.
My first impression. A Man that must have at some time been very large (which was confirmed later by family pictures) but now was just a mere skeleton. His legs and arms had atrophied and he had a Trachea tube in. But what an amazing person. What an amazing couple. Karen, his wife, buzzed around him sharing all the things that were going on and asking what he thought. His communication was mostly eye blinks and smiles. She had brought him Taco Bell food - he hated hospital food. I was wallowing in my personal depression having just that day been given my personal death sentence but being there with the two of them made my world straighten right up. Yes, this could be, in part, my personal future - a hospital bed and waiting for the end. But truly these two fought till the end and loved and supported each other. As Karen told me when we left 'somedays are good and somedays aren't - you just treasure the good one's'. A goal for the rest of my life.
The second thing that occurred was my Priesthood blessing. Again a reminder that I am Mormon, a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. And at this point again I have to bear my witness of God and his goodness. The Priesthood power here on this earth is evidence of that. Each blessing that I have received in my life has been life changing. Some have brought hope and some have taught me patience. All have spoken to my soul. This blessing far surpassed anything that I have ever had before.
The blessing was given by a good friend, Edward, and my Husband, Jeffery. Jeffery asked Edward to be the voice for the blessing since Jeffery was sure that he would never make it through. We have a joke in our home that all Priesthood blessings are accompanied by a shower. Yup, I married a crier - wouldn't have it any other way :)
The blessing was more than 15 minutes long and most of it was actually directed to my family. I hope you will forgive me but it was such a personal experience that I don't feel that I should share what was said that day with all of you. Just know that I was blessed with peace whatever may come and that I was not promised anything about surviving. My Son said later that I was promised that I would survive but I never heard it. I think that not hearing was an important part of my learning experience that needed to come from this challenge. If I had heard that I would survive then I wouldn't have worried. But as it was I learned to live with fear as my constant companion. I trusted the Lord but I also did not want to do this - hence the fear of what the cancer experience would bring. I hate pain - no, I think you would understand better if I said I feared pain. This was the basis of my fear.
So what to do next - well the month of May was full of tests. Another CT Scan with 'banana crap' for imaging, a bone scan to confirm that my bones were clear of the cancer and a MUGGA for my heart. One of the drugs I was to be given was Herceptin to fight the HER2 positive cancer. Unfortunately it is very destructive to your heart, hence the MUGGA. Lots of blood was taken too - I figure there is enough blood that has been taken from me over the few couple of years to make another one of me somewhere.
So now to deal with the tough stuff. The recurrence left me with a lot of questions and unlike the first time I didn't know what I was dealing with. I thought it must be a recurrence but I also thought lung cancer? Lymph node cancer? And a dozen other things. First step on my list. Divorce my old Oncologist. I figured that I had seen her in January (this was April) and I even emailed her when I was having problems with my arm. So if she didn't jump right on what might have been an issue then I needed someone new. I actually asked my old Doctor for suggestions - crazy right - but I was 'in the system' and needed someone that was 'in the system' for my new Oncologist. I told my old Doctor that she was too far away and she accepted that. Referral given - new Oncologist received. Challenge - the new Oncologist was from Burma and her accent was a bit thick but she was awesome on communication - especially email. You have no accent with email :)
So next step - a biopsy, which was scheduled by my Emergency Room Doctor. So the following Monday I went in and had them take a hunk out of the tumor under my arm. I won't scare you with how this biopsy went - lets just say if you ever need a biopsy make doubly sure that you get enough local anesthetic before they try taking out the piece. Those old breathing exercises from child birth came in very handy. After lots of apologies from the surgeon I was on my way home to wait for my first appointment with my new Oncologist.
I don't know if it was a mistake or not but I went alone to that first appointment. Since that time I have seen others go in to their first appointments with all the family they can drag with them. I guess everyone deals differently. I have a serious streak of independence. So I went alone. I also didn't want to bother anyone - this was me, Jan, having cancer, not the whole world. I think if my Mom was still alive then I would have taken her - maybe - but she passed in 2003. So it was just me against the cancer.
I was told that the biopsy had proved that I had Stage 4 Metastatic Breast Cancer. The cancer I had had in 1999 was angry and it was back. It had spread to my lymph node and then to my lungs. The Doctor was very polite but very pointed on everything. She said I had two treatment options. 'Wooohooo' I thought, 'I have options'. Just wait for it. . . option one was pain medicine. Period. No treatment. Nada. Just let the cancer run it's course. Wow, talk about a let down. Second option - to fight it with everything we have. Beat it back as far as possible and then hold it there for as long as possible. Remember that independent streak, yah, well, I'm a fighter too.
I remember pointedly asking her if anyone survives this - her response - 'at some point the cancer will win and you will lose'. Rats. Deep breath here. Okay. Lets do what we can.
I have to share a funny story here about the Stage 4 diagnosis. I know this is a stupid place to put this but I knew that there were 5 stages to cancer and for a very long time I thought that since I was stage 4 that obviously I had a chance. Not realizing that the first stage of cancer is a 0. Dumb I know. Even with the bad news from the Doctor. I just kept holding on to that for a long time. The Internet cleared that up several months later.
So now comes the bad part. Telling my family. Jeffery and I had everyone sit down and I explained what the Doctor said. Lots of tears were shed. Except by my Son, he absolutely looked at me and said 'I don't know what you are worried about your going to beat this'. And he never flinched from that perspective. Awesome young man. My Daughter on the other hand just bawled. My Husband just held my hand as tears ran down his face.
Two interesting things came after this; one, another Priesthood blessing and two, visiting a man who was battling ALS.
So last time I ended with the note - the space between. Rather cryptic I know. But after the chemo was completed and I started on the tamoxifen a number of things happened. First off the Tamoxifen caused my body temperature to rise so that I was warm ALL the time. I would sleep on the top of the bed with the ceiling fan going in the middle of winter. I assumed it was the 'change' since I was battling hot flashes (about 30 a day) and night sweats and thought that maybe that the 'change' had brought on this and that I would be this way forever. I never connected it to the Tamoxifen. Sadly I gave away all my cold weather clothes including all my heavy coats. Dumb. Funny but dumb. So after the five years and I was finished with the Tamoxifen I started to freeze again and realized what was causing all the excessive overheating and got to buy a whole new wardrobe :)
Second, I started dealing with the repercussions of the surgery. The emotional stuff was tough. I didn't cry but I didn't like the body that I was stuck with. I hid myself all the time and wore things that camouflaged my lost breast - even though I had a replacement. The biggest issue was that my bra would slide clear up to my neck if I wasn't careful since the new breast was more of a lump and had no real definition under it. They did more surgery later to try to correct some of that but it still didn't really help. There was nothing for the bra to hold on to. Finally after many unsuccessful attempts I started wearing sports bras - love them. I even found some that have clasps in the back. But it took several years before I would look at myself naked in the mirror without cringing.
Dealing with the repercussions of surgery was a bit easier for me than for others. This is where my personal belief comes into play. I have mentioned that I am a Mormon in past blogs - well we believe that in the next life that our bodies after being resurrected become perfect. Restored to perfection - so all this physical garbage that I am dealing with is just for this mortal life. Not for forever. This makes it personally easier for me to deal with.
So now to deal with the cryptic 'the space between' line. In case you haven't guessed yet - I got to battle cancer twice. Yup, it came back. In 2007 I noticed that I could no longer feel my left arm pit when I shaved in the shower and my left arm ached all the time. My regular Doctor and I could find nothing wrong - he even did a chest x-ray. Nada. So I emailed my Oncologist and she said it was nothing to worry about. I found out later in my readings that what I was experiencing was a typical first sign of possible metastasis of my cancer. Anyway I was sent home with some anti inflammatory drug and a pat on the head.
About 2 weeks later I was out in the back yard BBQing when I couldn't breath - each breath brought on new and horrible pain. My husband took me to the doctors office and they thought it might be my heart and I was given Nitroglycerin . . . twice. Did you know that stuff can give you a horrible headache? Well it does - it opens up everything in your body and wooosh your head splits. At least mind did anyway. Then I was shoved, politely, into an ambulance and taken to my most un-favorite emergency room. I had been there before I found their service to be seriously lacking. Anyway after 5 hours I was sent home and told to see my Doctor in the AM. Stupid.
Well I put off everything and 2 days later the pain was worse so I went to my most favorite emergency room. I got a super Doctor who said 'we aren't letting you go home till we figure out what is happening'. I got run through a CT scanner for the first time and they took a ton of blood. After the obligatory 5 hours (I think this is a rule in all emergency rooms that you must stay that long) the Doctor was back. He said he had good news and bad news. The good news was that I had pleurisy - that's an infection on the walls surrounding the lungs and is very treatable. And then he looked down at his clip board and I knew. You know how you get those sudden flashes of insight and you just know. I said to him 'the cancer's back isn't it?' and he confirmed it. I had a large tumor under my left arm and lesions all through out my lungs. He had already scheduled me for a biopsy the following week.
I remember leaving the emergency room and climbing in the car with my husband and turning to him and asking 'What did I not learn the first time that I have to do this again?' Well folks that would fill books.
Next time: What Stage 4 Metastatic Breast Cancer means and the battle for my life.
Link here :) Part 5
Sorry - zoo of a week last week - I left off with the post surgery last time - one breast down and one rather lumpy replacement. And a ton of healing to do - both in mind, body and in spirit. There is something rather depressing about loosing one's breast. I mean you spend your whole teen years trying desperately to have breasts and then with a single knife swish it's gone. Stinks. I was so tied up in the surgery and treatment that the depression about this didn't come on for quite a while after everything was done. But for right now I had a ton of support dealing with the hear and now - not only from family and friends but from a rather odd source - an online bulletin posting board.
The medical provider I had at that time was Kaiser and they were experimenting with online support in the form of posting board. So after the Doctor and several nurses suggested it, I joined one. There were only 3 other people on that board at that time and they saved my life. One was the Nurse (just to make sure we weren't giving each other bad information), one was a 15 year survivor and one was just ahead of me in treatments. They kept cheering me on from the side and were there when things didn't go exactly as planned. Their advice and help through everything made the journey much easier. I LOVED them!
My healing did not go exactly as planned. The drainage tubes were taken out too soon and so my wound weeped. It was a nasty mess and ended with part of the skin on my tummy where the breast was taken from turning black and having to be removed. All generally yucky. I did make the joke on the posting board about the new caterpillar that had taken up residence on my tummy (it was the stitches sticking out after they had remove the black skin). Finally by the first of May all healed and my name was put before the Tumor Board.
The Tumor Board is a group of Oncologist that meet to discuss your continued treatment. This is where the results of my biopsy that took so long came into play - apparently I had a HER2 positive cancer. This is a genetic mutation that make simple cancers way more aggressive (25% more increase in a recurrence) and the board was at a loss at to what to do with me. They should have been shaking my hand and wishing me a happy cancer free life but this little flaw in my cancer had gummed up the works. So it was off to UCSF.
I was sent with all my paperwork up to University of California at San Francisco and their world renowned cancer center. I met with a Dr. Tripathy, who was the best of the best on breast cancer, and he explained to me about the HER2 factor. The final decision was Chemo and then 5 years of Tamoxifen. Time to go shopping for hats :) Love shopping for hats. Sorry I digress.
Chemo started in mid May with the first of 4 treatments. My wonderful friends drove me to the treatments and kept me from driving by the hospital (the zoo was just a bit farther and was looking better and better all the time). Please don't think that my Husband wasn't there every step of the way but he worked commission so to keep eating he absolutely had to keep working. That's where my friends took over.
Chemo is an unknown for everyone - they have lots of wonderful drugs that usually help with the nausea so that all that you feel is tired. The key word here is usually. I made it home, had dinner, put the kids to bed and then starting throwing up. My poor husband, Jeffery, just held me between bouts. Usually when you throw up it is because your tummy is sick - with chemo what's making you sick is in your blood and no amount of throwing up will help. But your body doesn't understand that so hanging over the toilet or sink is how I spent my first few days after a treatment. Toward the last treatments they just heavily medicated me so that I would sleep through the first week after treatments.
One week after the treatment my head starting developing small pimple like spots. My hair was trying to fall out but also growing and I was getting small zit like lesions on my head. The Oncologist was called and the suggestion (strong suggestion) was to shave my head but not to the skin but just to a 1/4 inch all over so I could treat the spots. When you are on chemo you don't heal easily or fight off disease so they always freak out when something that might even suggest the possibility of infection occurs. So I disappeared into the bathroom with the razor that I used to cut my husband and son's hair and exited with a new doo. Unfortunately my hair started falling out in earnest about a week later and it was a mess. I don't know what women do who don't shave their head because even with my uber short hair it itched and was everywhere.
Next time - the space between :) Link Here :) Part 4
Whole Wheat is a Mormon mantra. We store it. We grind it. We cook with it. At least that's the hope or why else would our garages be full of it :) Wheat stores incredibly well in it's grain form. They actually had grains of wheat in the pyramids in Egypt that they planted and grew wheat from. Incredible grain. Unfortunately the modern world has processed it into a white, fine powder and has taken away most of its nutrition so it ends up being mostly starch. If you are looking for truly whole wheat bread you either have to make it yourself or it has to have the words 'whole' or 'sprouted' or 'malted' before the word wheat to let you know that the whole wheat has been used. It also needs to be the first ingredient.
I just wanted to throw in a video here from www.everydayfoodstorage.net. I think this will help your decision to use whole wheat more! Thank you Crystal!
Of course wheat isn't the only awesome grain out there so I'm going to change horses here just a bit (or at least add more passengers to it) and throw in the term 'Whole Grains' of which wheat is a big part but whole grains brings in a lot of other really good things for me. Whole grains included rice, barley, corn, quinoa, sorghum, spelt, rye and bunch of other things.
So what does it do for me? Well whole grains will digest slower than the processed stuff so it stays with you longer and it helps to regulate your blood sugar (no spiking with whole grains). Since it has bulk it helps with those that are 'intestinal challenged' or have diverticulitis like Crystal mentioned in the Video. It has been shown that is may help with DNA damage (that's the B vitamins in it) and in suppressing cancer cell growth (I just quoted this out of the 'Food for Thought' book put out by UCSD, Moore Cancer Center). Part of that is tied up in Ligans (same stuff that is in Flax). They think it may help suppress hormonally motivated cancers (like mine).
I've been pondering lately how can I make wheat a bigger, better part of my diet? And what can I do with what I am already eating to increase the 'Wow' factor in getting the good stuff out of it?
Haven't a clue that's why I write this silly blog :) Okay, Okay, I eat whole wheat in a cracked format in cracked wheat cereal. I tried cooking it in a crock pot and it turned into mush (and if mush is what you are looking for great but for me - not so much). So I got out on the Internet and looked at alternatives to cooking. You're gonna love this one. The night before I want it, I take 2 cups of water and boil it in the microwave. I pour it into the 'unplugged' crock pot add 1/4 tsp of salt and 1 cup of cracked wheat. Put on the lid. Then cover it with a kitchen towel and go to bed. The next morning, voila, cracked wheat cereal enough for 2 to 3 people. You can actually refrigerate the left overs to be used the next day. I usually have to drain any excess water off it and then microwave till hot but it's ready to go. You can put the same stuff on it that you add to oatmeal except don't add the ground flax. The flax turns into this gelatinous substance that make the cereal nasty. Not on my list.
Oh and the easiest way to get cracked wheat is to crack your own. I got this hand grinder that I can hook onto my kitchen counter. In just 5 minutes I can hand grind about 6 or 7 cups of cracked wheat. I put it in a sealed container and put it in the refrigerator so the oils in the wheat don't go rancid and the vitamins stay longer. I try not to do more than my family will eat in 2 weeks time.
And just a quick note - if your body is not used to cracked wheat is can be pretty rough on your insides. Maybe start with small amounts spaced over several days and work your way up. We have it about 3 times a week. Please note too the texture is different that probably anything you have ever eaten and may take some getting used to but I really like it.
What else do I eat that has whole wheat in it? Bread. I can make this but usually I buy it from some big box store. I actually don't by whole wheat bread, I usually buy whole grain bread. The one with all the lumps in it (that was a serious issue with my kids when they were small and texture is everything). I try too, if I am buying any other bread product (buns, English muffins, tortillas, dinner rolls, etc.), to pay more attention to the ingredients on the package. If whole wheat isn't listed as the first ingredient (whole, sprouted or malted) then I go back to see if there is anything better. Unfortunately this is usually a higher cost item so I have to weigh my options. Sometimes I pick the lesser quality just because the cost is so prohibitive.
So to continue on with Bread comes butter. I probably mentioned this before but I eat butter not margarine. There are several reasons. One is taste, butter just tastes better. Two is it's natural - it comes from a cow, nothing else added (except maybe salt) so my body has a better chance of processing it. And finally my cancer is estrogen positive and soy products are a question mark item for estrogen positive. Do they or do they not make my cancer grow? So the next time you are at the grocery store look at margarine's. What it the first ingredient? Soy Oils. Bad. So it's butter for me :)
You know another option on bread is cinnamon and a sugar substitute for flavor. I put a mix of cinnamon and splenda in a small glass shaker so I can have it on cereal and toast. Works great. And cinnamon is good for your blood sugar - 1/4 tsp a day is suggested. What better way is there to get that than on toast with butter.
Sorry, a lot of postings today on health issues - must be January. Diet season :)
So how many times do we hear about Omega 3 fatty acids and how important they are for us in our diets. Well Omega 3 fatty acids are an unsaturated fat (this is the good kind of fat) and is great for you. Our body doesn't produce it so we have to look at outside sources to get it. The discovery of it all started with the Greenland Inuit tribe who ate a diet high in fish and had a wonderfully low incident of heart disease (thank you Wikipedia).
Omega 3 fatty acids come in 3 varieties. I refuse to give you the long scientific names but they are known as ALA, EPA and DHA. ALA is from primarily plant sources (like flax). EPA and DHA are primarily from fatty fish like salmon, albacore tuna, sardines, etc. There are tons of lists on the Internet if you are interested in finding out all the foods that have Omega 3 fatty acids in them. The biggest difference between them all is that the body processes the EPA and DHA version better than the ALA version so you get the biggest benefits from them.
So why is it good for you? Well according to all the different research sites that I looked at it lowers triglycerides. My doctor has me taking supplements (via fish oil) to help with this since my cancer drug raises my triglycerides. If you have a bad reaction to fish oil (like it constantly coming back to haunt you) my Doctor suggested that you freeze the pill. Weird. The recommended dosage is 500 mg per day (make sure you include whatever you eat in that 500mg).
Omega 3 fatty acids also increase your HDL (this is the good cholesterol - I always remember this by the fact that the LDL needs to be low and the HDL needs to be high). It's great for your heart and some researchers say that it helps lower high blood pressure. It also shows promise in helping fight off Alzheimer's disease and cancer.
If eat a lot of fish or have flax in your oatmeal every day :) then you shouldn't need to take any supplements. If you take supplements make sure you run it by your Doctor first (especially if you are a heart patient). Better safe than sorry.
I have been reading a lot recently about inflammation and it's effect on our health. Apparently chronic inflammation actually leads to other serious health issues. An example would be arthritis (chronic inflammation) can bring on early Alzheimer's or heart disease. How many times have you had an ache or pain somewhere that is relentless and you end up feeling tired or in pain all over? Doctors think that by reducing inflammation in your body you actually can delay or remove the threat of having some of the more serious health issues (heart disease, diabetes, etc.).
There are several anti-inflammatory diets on the market but basically this is how you eat (This is specifically from Web Md but I have seen this on several web sites):
1. Eat plenty of fruits and vegetables. Some of the sites specifically mention Green, Orange and Yellow Veggies. 2. Minimize saturated and trans fats. There is talk on the Internet specifically about Omega-6 fatty acids and the need to decrease them. I think I need a blog on that. 3. Eat a good source of omega-3 fatty acids, such as fish or fish oil supplements and walnuts. Try having Tuna (albacore) for lunch and remember to talk to your Doctor before starting any supplements. 4. Watch your intake of refined carbohydrates such as pasta and white rice. Again avoid the starches that have no good nutritional value in them. 5. Eat plenty of whole grains such as brown rice and Bulgar wheat. Thereis so much good in whole grains you just have to look. I think I need a blog on whole wheat and whole grains. 6. Eat lean protein sources such as chicken; cut back on red meat and full-fat dairy foods. This means no hot dogs, processed meats or salami. And watch your red meats. I recently read to get the lean meats you need to look for the words 'loin' or 'round' in the title of the meat. Actually these are usually the cheaper cuts of beef and pork. 7. Avoid refined foods and processed foods. Back to my donuts . . . 8. Spice it up. Ginger, curry, and other spices can have an anti-inflammatory effect. Cinnamon is also on this list.
You know the more that I look at this diet the more it reminds me of the 'how to eat if you want to avoid cancer' diet I talked about last month in a blog. Seems to me if you watch what you eat. Eat more whole foods rather than processed stuff. Watch your fats and salt then you will have it made.
Just one more bit of information that I found - believe it or not flossing your teeth can help to curb inflammation. When you have stuff trapped between your teeth it can actually cause an inflammatory reaction in your body. So get in there and floss. Enjoy!
I left off on my blog last week with my core biopsy. For those of you who have never had the joy (sarcasm intended) of having one of these - they actually aren't too bad. They drug up the area with a local put a small cut in your skin and 'shoot' this gun like thing that has small tubes in it for collecting tissue samples in it into the cut. Then they butterfly you, give you an ice pack and some ibuprofen and send you home. . . To wait. . . And Wait. . . And WAIT. . . for the results. The core biopsy took place on Monday and Thursday afternoon I got the official call. Cancer. Stage as yet unknown (further biopsies were scheduled) but it was DCIS, Ductal Carcinoma In Situ. The 'kindergarten' of all the breast cancers according to everything I had read and the most treatable. Wooohooo!
I will share with you at this point that all the books are right. When they call you about the cancer have a pencil and paper handy because you will hear nothing after the word 'Cancer'. Trust me on this one. Even though I knew what was coming my brain took a vacation. Fortunately my Doctor called me back just minutes after we spoke the first time - after I had gathered my thoughts - and this time I wrote everything down. 'The Book' (Dr. Susan Love's Breast Book) had warned me that most people do this but did I listen - nope.
Then came the hard part. Telling my extended family and my Mom. I have to tell you that I didn't cry at all when the doctor told me but telling my Mom was a whole different story. At that time my Mom was in her late 60's and very poor health. I didn't know what to say. I just started crying and upset her even more. Graceful was obviously never my middle name. Fortunately my Brother (who at that time lived with my Mom and took care of her) called me back and got the unblubbering straight story and calmed my Mom down. My In-laws were wonderful and hugely supportive. All Jeffery's siblings were too. I felt immensely loved.
My Sister-in-law, Debora, who had just lost her daughter, helped me through the next of my tests. God bless her for reaching out in her time of need and helping me. She kept saying I was helping her but truly she helped me enormously that day. (Love you Debora) She drove me to the Biopsy where they took a chunk (and I do mean a chunk) of the area where the cancer was for extensive testing. Again home with an ice pack and this time prescription pain pills (which I seriously needed for about 24 hours).
This time something odd happened - instead of days, it was weeks before the final results came in on the biopsy and I truly didn't find out why till months later. I will share more on that later but to continue on with the diagnosis change to Stage 1 Invasive Ductal Carsinoma, still good . . . next was surgery and a ton of decisions to make. Lumpectomy or Mastectomy. Reconstruction or inserts. Way too much on my plate :)
When I had seen the mammogram, back in January, I noted that there were white dots all over my left breast with a concentration where the cancer was at. I had asked the nurse what these were, thinking that these were the Doctor's markings, only to find out these were microcalcification which were sometimes (and I do mean sometimes) a warning that something bad is happening. I noted that even though most of the dots were right around the cancer that there were several that were spread through out my breast as well. So when they said you can have a lumpectomy I said nope - take it all - I don't want one of those little white dots to come back and haunt me later. So I opted for a Modified Radical Mastectomy. One of my Priesthood blessings (see my first blog on cancer for more on this) had stated that I could be confident in the council from the Doctors and Surgeons. So when I asked the surgeon (a female) what she would do if it were her she said 'I'd to the mastectomy and then have reconstruction'. Sounded good to me and it put a positive stamp on my decision.
Now for the reconstruction - there are a lot of ways to get your breast back. Some opt not to have the reconstruction done at all but since I was loosing one (which would make me lopsided) I opted for a Tram Flap reconstruction. Basically they take your tummy (which I had plenty of at that time) and use it to build the breast and you get a tummy tuck in the process. There is, of course, more involved that but that is just a simple explanation of what they do.
So in mid March, after a ton of prep, which included watching videos on breast reconstruction (don't have lunch first) and giving up my blood so they would have it if necessary. I went under the knife for 8 hours and came out with a new breast (way bigger than the other), my tummy strapped so tight that I could hardly breath and a smile. I had made it :) Wooohooo!
Next blog - healing, posting boards, UCSF and the tumor board. Link here :) Part 3 Enjoy!
How do I start something like this? What can I tell you that might give you hope or might teach you something? What can my words do to help you understand what it is like to battle cancer? I am a SURVIVOR! Why? I have absolutely no idea. Truly. I just thank God for another day each and everyday that I wake up on this side of the veil that separates this life from the next. And yes, I truly do believe that there is a next life - a better life. Without pain and fear and cancer. Where I can live in joy with my family and friends and my Savior. And that is the only thing that has kept me together over the years.
I guess I will start back in 1999 when I was the ripe old age of 42 with an odd shaped breast lump in my left breast. Whenever they taught us in school about breast cancer the lumps were always hard and round. Well I'm here to tell you that that is a lie. My cancer was about two inches long and less than a 1/2 inch wide and I could put my fingers around it and pull it up easily away from my chest wall. As a matter of fact I dismissed it from my head totally since I was sure that it could in no way be breast cancer. I was wrong. Fortunately I had a mammogram scheduled for the first week of January so they immediately caught it. I had my regular Mammogram on Tuesday and on Thursday they called and invited me back. On Friday I was back for the worst mammogram I had ever had - bruises lasted for weeks. My OB/Gyn who had asked for the mammogram tried to reassure me that 90% of all breast lumps are nothing and not to freak out. Well I am the Queen of freak out :)
I was no sooner in my car on the way home when I burst into tears and cried pretty much all the 45 minutes home. I had one child in middle school and one in college and was just sure that I was going to die and leave them. I talked a lot to God on the way home. Bargaining for a bit more time. Asking for a personal strength that I was seriously lacking.
I made two decisions on that trip home. One, that I would tell no one but my immediate family what was going on. Down playing anything bad. My niece was deathly ill (she passed on Saturday AM) and I felt that was enough for the family to carry for awhile. And two, have a Priesthood blessing. Now if you are not a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints (Mormon) then this will mean nothing to you but to me it was everything. We believe that through the power of the Priesthood we can find out what God's plan is for us, we can get counsel and comfort and even be healed. Of course all of that is predicated on our faith and the will of God.
So I had the 'talk' with my family, which actually went pretty well and then that evening I had a Priesthood blessing (one of many I would have over the next few months). My Husband, Jeffery and a dear friend, Tom, came and I was told a ton of things that night. First off I was told that I had cancer. Period. But that I would survive (woohoo). And then I was given the blessing of peace. That part of the blessing kicked in immediately and NEVER left during all that followed that year. Not once did I worry about the cancer for the rest of the year as I traveled through surgeries and chemo.
You're probably wondering why in the world I would be told that I had cancer before the Doctors would tell me that same thing 2 weeks later. Well my Heavenly Father knows me really well and knew that I would deal with everything better if I was informed. I just function better with a bit of knowledge and understanding. So the next day I was off to the book store and bought Dr. Susan Love's Breast Book - the bible for women with Breast Cancer. I can't tell you how it helped in the weeks and months that followed.
So what was my next step - we'll it was a core biopsy. And with that I will work on part two next.
Since I am unable to do internal links in my blog (or at least I don't know how to) just click on Labels on the side for Cancer to find the next blog - there are 11 in all :) Enjoy!
I was visiting my Oncologist the other day and noticed in her file of reports a new report out from the American Institute for Cancer Research and thought today I would give you the low down from their most up to date information. If you want to prevent cancer these items will give you the best case scenario for doing that. Not that they are a guarantee but research has found that people without cancer are most likely to do all of the following:
1. Be as lean as possible with becoming underweight. I guess it's best to first find out what your healthy weight is for your age and sex and then go from there. It means about 15 more pounds of me has to go.
2. Be physically active for at least 30 minutes every day. My dog drags me around the block every day for 20 minutes (actually she drags me the first half of the walk and then I drag her the second half - she old too). Being physically active holds a lot of options - not just normal exercise. Another point for me to ponder how can I up my activity each day.
3. Avoid sugary drinks. Limit consumption of energy-dense foods (particularly processed foods high in added sugar, or low in fiber, or high in fat). Yah, pretty much eliminates all the fun stuff from my diet, no soda, no ice cream, no goodies . . oh! No Donuts :(
4. Eat more of a variety of vegetables, fruits, whole grains and legumes, such as beans. Makes sense to me but I do struggle with cooking beans. The rest of the items are regulars in my diet but cooking beans, especially from scratch, I just have trouble with and canned beans usually have so much salt. I guess I've just added a new skill to learn to my list :)
5. Limit consumption of red meats (such as beef, pork and lamb) and avoid processed meats. This means no more hot dogs, salami, and bologna (I guess my bologna doesn't have a first name unless it's 'No'). Oddly enough I don't included Pork on my usual red meat list. Does anyone else?
6. If alcohol is consumed at all, limit alcoholic drinks to 2 for men and 1 for women daily. Being LDS (Mormon) pretty much puts the ca bosh on any drinking for me so this isn't an issue but since I don't know who might be reading this I thought I should included it anyway.
7. Limit consumption of salty foods and foods processed with salt (sodium). My Son has issues with salt so we are pretty low salt focused in our diet. Although I do eat canned soups and chili sometimes and the labels on those items scare me. Oh, and always remember to check the serving size sometimes you think it's one and it's really two - makes for twice the salt that you may not have anticipated.
8. Don't use supplements to protect against cancer. I learned this first thing - supplements, magic juice, heavy doses of anything that is way over your recommended daily dose is bad for you and if you have cancer it may play havoc with your treatments. Eat healthy and get your vitamins as naturally as possible and never take supplements without letting your doctor know you are doing it.
Oddly enough smoking wasn't on the list. It would have been tops on mine. I'm pretty sure that's a 'Duh' item, a no brainer.
