View allAll Photos Tagged oncologist
11/9/22
today my dad died, and I no longer have my biggest fan
This is going to be a little deep.
I got into photography because of my dad, we would go on trips and he would pull out the 35mm(s)! I loved the photos!
Back in high school I always used those cameras downtown Chicago.. buildings, light trails, windows, doors, etc
For some reason I stopped....it was always in the back of my mind
Years later Photography came up because of something my Oncologist said to me: I needed a hobby
I had been sending my dad cell phone photos of storms and sunsets in Arizona. It all clicked I should buy a DSLR and the rest is history....39 national parks later 350,000K photos
30,000,000 views
I have my hobby thanks DAD.
RIP ....
Rod Stewart said it best:
"We got but one shot at life, let's take it while we're still not afraid
Because life is so brief and time is a thief when you're undecided
And like a fistful of sand, it can slip right through your hands"
I've got cancer again (4th time), so last couple of weeks been full of scans and biopsies and Oncologist visits. Starting chemo AGAIN (phew) next week.
Had this shot of Miss Ashlie still unposted, so missing you guys so uch, sharing it on Window Wednesdays!
God bless you all! I miss you. I'll try to participate as well as I can. I'm all alone, so missing you guys tremendously.
My father had been diagnosed with colon cancer about 13 months ago. He thought that he had a few months to live, but really wanted to take July off from chemotherapy and tried to fit in one too many chemo treatments. I was called by my mom to come home very early on Friday morning. The chemotherapy dropped my dad‘s white blood cell count very low and he had started to become infected with at least one bacterial infection. He was admitted to the ICU and I arrived early afternoon on Friday from Chicago to Rochester, New York. My mom and I spent three days in the ICU reading to him from Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy as well as playing his favorite songs and holding up old photos and describing them to him.He was not able to respond to us in any way, but every time we started talking to him, tears would roll down his eyes. As the last ditch effort. As the last stitch effort, we tried dialysis to keep him alive long enough for a white blood cell patch that he had used after the chemo treatment to get his white blood cell count up, which can take a while to work. However, this was not effective, and my dad would not have wanted to be put on full life support. My mom and I wrestled with what to do best to support his wishes and in the end, decided that it wasn’t going to be possible to keep him alive and for him to become conscious again or have a good quality of life. He died on Sunday night.
This experience has really made me very angry with our healthcare system. He never should’ve gotten that last chemo treatment, and although the doctor warned against it, the oncologist also did not explain to my dad how the risk of death was quite significant. My dad really really wanted to live even with all of the side effects he was going through. This is him with one of his cats, Frankenstein, a few years ago listening to music (taken by my mother, Valerie) Hopefully, they are now reunited in heaven.
If anybody does want to read the obituary for my dad, it can be found here;
harrisfuneralhome.com/tribute/details/5213/Crispin-Peters...
La Quinta, Californie
Plein cadre. Agrandir pour voir les détails.
Lors d'une de mes visites chez l'oncologue de mon beau-frère je demeurais à l'extérieur du bâtiment durant les traitements. Il n'y avait rien de construit en face de la clinique qu'un immense lot à l'état sauvage que je me suis mis à arpenter en espérant bien y découvrir quelques oiseaux. Mon souhait fut exaucé car je suis tombé face à face c'est le cas de le dire avec ce magnifique Grand Géocoucou, qui m'a convié à une partie de cache-cache. C'est qu'ils sont rapide ces oiseaux, j'ai vite réalisé qu'il avait une sortie de secours qu'il affectionnait, je l'ai donc embusqué... Le résultat fut une rencontre inoubliable avec ce magnifique oiseau.
La Quinta, California
Full frame. Enlarge to see the details.
During one of my visits to the oncologist of my brother-in-law, I staid outside the building during is treatments. There was nothing built in front of the clinic but that immense wild desert lot that I began to walk into hoping to find some birds. It was a cloudy and misty day. My wish was granted, because I came face to face it not to say the lest with this magnificent Greater Roadrunner, who invited me for a hide-and-seek game on is turf. They sure are fast these birds, but I realize very fast that he had a prefer escape route, so I embouch him ...
The result was a encounter I will always remember.
This was taken this morning while waiting for discharge from the Blacrock Clinic hospital.
Good news and some bad: my oncologist has cancelled my last chemo, but my haemoglobin and white blood cells are low. I've had one blood transfusion but will be returning to the hospital's day unit for a check-up next Wednesday.
I have just noticed that I inadvertently posted this photo twice and have now deleted one of them. Will catch up with you all later.
Look At The Detail On The Stamen Of This Pink Hibiscus, It's Beautiful
Latest Update: Oncologist Appointment This Morning, Wish Us Luck ?
***Addendum: Great News Everyone !!!...The Oncotype DX concurred all the findings to date. No Chemo will be necessary, she will take a daily medication, as of now it will be Femora 1x daily for the next 5 years with regular periodic checkups. It has a 5% chance of recurrence with the scheduled maintenance program.
"Thank you everyone for ALL the prayers and support we have a (Miracle) in progress, again I thank you"
After visiting my favourite radiation oncologist this afternoon, I rewarded myself with an evening hike along my favourite local creek. What a shock to find that the city had done landscaping along the creek, completely removing my two favourite little waterfalls in the process. But for some reason, they left this one. By default, this is now my favourite local waterfall
Zebra Spider Wasp (family Pompilidae)
The same wasp that featured on Monday. This shot was a few minutes earlier as it laid its eggs in the spider.
We have really good news about Di. The oncologist requested an MRI and blood tests on Monday. As we were getting her things together yesterday (Wednesday) for her to go to hospital today the call came through that the scan showed that the cyst had gone and her blood count was normal, so no surgery! She will have further scans and blood tests in a month. It's a miracle!
Happy Beautiful Bug Butt Thursday!
Waiting for my Oncologist and blessed with alternating Bible verses for Thanksgiving on the computer screen! Blessed!
I'm not sure how many of you knew or not, but I had malignant melanoma in my lymph nodes....They removed 43 lymph nodes under my right arm, and 3 were positive for cancer!
I'm now cancer free for one 1/2 years!
I just had my P.E.T. Scan done Tuesday, and got the results from my oncologist today! YAY! I'm a happy lady! :) Thanks to those that knew, and your support!
I’ll be having a total gastrectomy tomorrow, due to the discovery of my having a CDH1 gene mutation and the presence of signet ring cells (small cancer cells) on the lining of my stomach. The results of my CT scan were good, since there was no evidence of metastatic disease. My surgeon feels I’m lucky that they caught it so early.
My dad passed away from stomach cancer at a pretty young age, so it’s still pretty frightening. I’m certainly thankful that my oncologist who treated me for ovarian cancer (which I was diagnosed with in 2011) recommended I have additional genetics testing. The results indicate that the ovarian cancer was probably not hereditary, but due to my family history they did many genetics test. Please keep me in your thoughts and prayers.
Looking out the window at my Oncologist's office. I love the high story window views. Happy Window Wednesday, ya'll. God bless you this day.
This picture is for the group Happy Caturday and this week the theme is "Song, Movie or Book".... one of my favorites!! I actually almost forgot that it was Caturday! :)
Part of the song goes: "Cause he was lean, mean, big and bad, Lord, pointin' that gun on me". I think Elijah looks like that character in this picture. He's bigger than Noah by about 4 pounds but he is the one who is laid back, mellow and doesn't want trouble. =^..^=
My update: Yesterday I finished my radiation! Thank God!! I am miserable and in excruciating pain right now. The main tumor was so close to my esophagus that the radiation has burned it so I'm having a very hard time eating and drinking despite pain meds, ant-acids, meds to coat the esophagus and lidocaine. I was told that the next 10-14 days may get worse.... I'm hoping not. In about 3 weeks I will go for another PET Scan to see if there is any cancer left. The Radiologist Oncologist said that on the scans he's done daily it does look like it's shrunk quite a bit. Last week I also finished chemo... and lost all my hair. My husband said I look like one of Charles Manson's "girls"! :)))) I think I look like a monkey. :) I'm pretty exhausted and just run down at this point. I keep trying to look on the upside... treatment is over and soon enough I'll be able to go for Chinese or Mexican food. 2-3 weeks just looks so far away!
Once again, Thank You all so much for your unending kindness and funny comments. I so enjoy reading them and really do appreciate them. I also appreciate your thoughts and prayers so much. This has to be the best group of people I have ever met... on Flickr or anywhere else.
I hope you all have a great weekend and a Happy Caturday! =^..^=
(Gimme Three Steps - Lynyrd Skynyrd)
Thank you so much my dear oncologist for ordering
four more treatments to cure the big C.
Will I ever be this person again?
I have my doubts..
tiger lillies - beat me
I thank all my friends for the sympathy, coming from my heart!
♥♥♥
This is from the outside of the new Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre. This on the walls outside and looked great with the night lights.
Update for those who I haven't yet told: I saw my oncologist on Friday and got excellent results from both my CT Scan and my blood work (CA-125). I have now been in remission for 4 years. :)
September is Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month. Hang in there teal sisters!
P.S. It seems the lower falls of Yellowstone usually gets all the glory. But the upper falls is also extremely beautiful!
Had my second surgery Wednesday. Went back for a follow-up with the oncologist today. All good news - I am finished with this place for a while!
This picture is for the group Happy Caturday and this week the theme is "Queens & Kings". With my sleep schedule completely off now I've been up since 3:30am and thought that I would go ahead and post my picture.
Even though Noah is about 4 pounds smaller than Elijah he is definitely the King of the house. When he wants a treat he will drive you nuts until you get him one. If he wants attention he will stay in your face until you pay attention to him. And he certainly can boss Elijah... or he chases him! :) He is also very loving and follows me around the house, curls up against me at night to sleep and since I became sick he rubs against my chest and headbutts me in acknowledgement.
Now for some great news (even though I'm sure you're tired of hearing about this). Yesterday after having radiation I saw the radiology oncologist at my weekly visit. He said that normally they can not see change on the x-rays that they do prior to treatment but he was able to see.... a "drastic decrease in the size of the main tumor on my lung"!! So the chemo and radiation is working very well. The bad news... I no longer have hair! :O I think I look kind of crazy. I see other people without hair and think that they don't look bad at all. Me, I look like a nut job! :) Oh well, It'll grow back at some point.... I hope! I did notice the boys looking at me a little nervously yesterday after having my head shaved. They are probably getting ready to hide with all of the "shaving them for a wig" talk. ;) No worries boys, I'll be using hats and scarves!
I ’ve finished this round of chemo and it looks like it might have done the trick in taking control of the MM. Because of that, I’m now being weened off of the meds. By the middle of March, if everything keeps progressing in the right direction, I will start visiting my oncologist’s clinic every four weeks instead of the current every two weeks. This is good news concerning the Multiple Myeloma! My original diagnosis was Multiple Myeloma with Stage Four Kidney Disease. The hope was that if we could get control of the MM, the body might heal itself of the Kidney Disease. Well, so far, I’m holding my own against the MM but the body hasn’t made progress against the Kidney Disease. So, the struggle continues. Thanks for your prayers and well wishes, keep them coming, they really help!
The Peter MacCallum Cancer Institute is a new cancer hospital and research centre in Melbourne. It's not far away from opening up and I wish they'd hurry up and do so because the interior looks even more impressive than the exterior.
This photo was taken on October 23rd, 2005, on the last day of my first trip to New York city. A huge leap of faith, one of the largest I had ever taken. It was indeed a trip that was to forever change my life. And with each subsequent trip there, more opportunities to travel - 2006 to Seattle, 2007 to Detroit, and many more trips to the city that never sleeps. And on each journey I met fellow photographers who would touch my soul and heart in such a profound way, life and self discovery expanded at exponential speed. I was no longer afraid of who I was, what my art had to say, what i wanted to be, where i wanted to go. That period was not without tears, pain, loving and letting go, but within that vulnerability I drew strength and courage. I felt alive. It all felt right.
It's odd, how our perceptions of the world around us, as well as the perceptions we have of ourselves change over time.
This image once symbolized unapologetic vulnerability and delicate fearlessness, but looking at it again, 4 years later, I see melancholy, reservation and fearful naiveté. It is me, has always been me, but what is different? When I look in the mirror, I don't see this same woman. Something in the eyes has shifted, been displaced, lost in the shuffle of daily struggles. Life in New York, Seattle, Detroit has moved on, but i feel as if I am frozen in time, my life, hyphenated, struggling to find balance again, to be inspired, to find my way back to my passion, purpose, simple things that once made me very happy.
My camera has now become a utilitarian machine, serving no other purpose than to document the world around me. I ask myself every day - will i ever find that inspiration again? That passion to create, the courage to be fearless?
Mom goes in for her next scan at the end of the month, and then a subsequent meeting with her oncologist on the 4th of December. There are two ways this could turn out - the cancer can come back, or she can be free of cancer. Two ways our Christmas could turn out - a white happy Christmas, or a grey sad one. We pray for the best, hope for recovery but prepare for the worst.
Perhaps that is what is happening now with my photography - I'm praying for inspiration, hoping for discovery but preparing for creative closure.
Perhaps these wounds I have collected over these past 4 years need time to heal, but it also makes me realize the necessity of finding a way back to a medium that once helped me process the world around me, and that this might be the only way to make sense of the world again. But there is fear. Fear of what i will see in the next self portrait; but is a leap of faith I must take one more time.
Look who’s allowed to roam freely about the house again! Exploring every nook & cranny, looking for mischief 😌. He had his first dose of chemotherapy this morning. He’ll have 1 dose/ month for 5 months. Even with the chemo, the Oncologist says she expects that he’ll live about 9 months, with a good quality of life if all goes well.
For Saturday Self-Challenge theme "stairs". Taken in Shaw's Department store, Waterford as I waited for my daughter. The colourful lights drew my eye & I took a good few Hipstamatic shots before I was happy with the symmetry. People must have thought I was mad stepping backwards & forwards taking pics 😄 I had been very busy with family visiting & actually didn't look to see what the SSC theme was this week, so I am delighted to be able to take part also HSfS & HSS!
A quick update for my dear Flickr friends. Thankfully Martin has turned a corner after acquiring a chest infection earlier this month. A course of a second antibiotic did the trick. He was requiring supplementary oxygen but hasn't needed it so much the past couple of days. His most recent CT scans are going to be reviewed by his consultant oncologist & a lung specialist. They want to view the actual images rather than just read the typed report.
So we are still in limbo really as to what the tumours are doing. His oncologist said she'll call him into clinic early next month so we'll know more then. Thank you for keeping us in your thoughts & prayers.
the past few days have been a bit hectic! a friend who i have not seen for 18 years came home for a 2-day visit we had the whole weekend catching up! wow! it's amazing how time flies! he was a classmate in medical school and now works as an oncologist in san francisco. amazing how we have not changed and how much we have changed! aaah the paradox of time!
sorry for not visiting lately my friends! i hope to catch up soon! good day/night everyone!
thanks again for all your visits and comments!
I had my oncology appointment a few days ago, so I'll answer everyone's messages with this post.
My Oncologist has decided to stop my chemotherapy. At this point, it's doing more damage than good. I was having poor results with chemo (30 hours), so I have to say, I'm kind of relieved. Because I have shingles, I'm unable to have a cat scan for a couple of weeks. Following the cat scan, she will let me know if there is anything further (like hormone therapy) that she can offer me. I've never thought, "Why me" or felt sorry for myself, and this is no different. I will keep a positive attitude and hope for the best, because we all know that miracles do happen
She said it will be 4-6 weeks before some of my energy returns (and I guess that depends on how quickly I can heal from shingles), and months before I feel "normal" again.
Canon 1DXII, 500mm +1.4 extender, F8 @1/1250, ISO 500
Baskets containing yellow water lily plants at a local garden centre. I liked how the colour co-ordinated plastic ducklings were floating on the surface of the water. For this week's Saturday Self-Challenge theme "liquid". Also HWWHDT! That reminds me, Welly hasn't had an outing for a while, time I rectified that.
A quite update on Martin's health for my dear Flickr friends; not great news sadly. His oncologist confirmed this week that the tumour has grown slightly since January. He is also getting more in the way of symptoms the past couple of weeks. There are no more treatment options available to him at the moment, but he is hopefully being prescribed a drug that should halt the progression of the lung fibrosis - the main cause of his breathlessness. A repeat CT scan is booked for 2 month's time, we will know more then.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your get well wishes, prayers & kind messages of support, all very much appreciated by us both.
I am waiting for the veterinary oncologist to call me back to schedule an appointment. I’m afraid the new isn’t good.
Sorry Jon and Ron, it took me more than 15 minutes:-))))
To those of you who knows my Breast Cancer journey, today calls for a celebration! I went to the Chemo Unit at Princess Margaret Hospital here in Toronto and got my last shot of Hercepten (one of the drugs that was used to treat my breast cancer). All the prognosis are good! I call it a miracle, of the 16 months of treatment (lumpectormy, chemo and radiation therapy, I have live a normal life as everyone of you does. I have never lost my zest for life, and as I have said before, it was during those times that I develop my passion for Photography.
I thank all the Medical Team than handled my case, they are the BEST, from my Family Doctor, Dr, Felix Klajner, my Surgeon, Dr. Ted. Ross, my Oncologists, Dr. Pamela Catton and Dr. David Warr, to the Chemo Nurses and the Radiologist, I can go on and on........my deepest gratitude!
To all my friends who stood by me during those trying times, thank you for all the flowers, the driving back and forth from my home to the hospital during those chemo days, some of you even sit by my side while being infused for 6 hours....I can't thank you enough....my families who were scared more than me, your prayers have sustain me during those difficult times.
To all of you my friends here at Flickr, you have inspired and encourqged me more than you ever know, Thank you!
Life is beautiful! and year 2008 was one of the best years of my life. GOD is good!
Larry bought a bag of frozen shrimp up from the freezer in the basement.
By the time he reached the kitchen, Flyodd had miraculously appeared out of nowhere.
(last we'd seen him, he was sound asleep in his box in the livingroom)
Floydd is a BIG FAN of shrimp! Surprisingly the others are not that interested.
Floydd's treatment has gone well, however our last visit to the oncologist revealed that despite everything, his disease is slowly progressing. We've adjusted his medication and are staying hopeful we can keep the cancer at bay a bit longer.
For now, he is still going about his daily routine and enjoying life on the farm.
today v had her final chemo session... YAY!!! and whilst the drugs were dripping into v's beautiful veins... the oncologist who specializes in radiation therapy dropped by for about 15 minutes... and by the time he left, v was signed up for about 6 weeks of radiation therapy... the statistics are pretty compelling... the radiation reduces recurrence by about 30%... it will push out her reconstruction from may to august... but v (and i) think its worth it... its pretty easy stuff... v goes to the office on weekdays for about 6 weeks.... for about 10 mins of radiation each session... its no great hardship since the office is all of 10 mins from our house... there are few and generally harmless side effects... after the chemo, it seems pretty simple...
once the radiation therapy is completed... v must wait 3 months to complete the reconstruction surgery... so now the light at the end of the tunnel will be in august... almost a full year after the initial diagnosis...
....for now....
two weeks ago, Andrew had a cancerous lump removed from his breast... they said this type of cancer is very aggressive... my vet removed a lot of tissue that connected it and today he went for his stitches to be removed and x-rays to make sure it hasn't spread.....
thank the Good Lord he was all clear....
my vet is speaking to the oncologist to see if there is any medicine, that won't make him sick, to take proactively....
if not... we will just retake the x-rays again in 3 months.
Thank you all, my dear friends, for your prayers and positive thoughts...
I don't know what we would do without this little lover boy!!!
this morning we had an appointment with v's reconstruction doctor (ok we typically call him the boobie doctor)... since v's remaining drain had been leaking... and because he said no one should spend xmas with a drain in them if they don't have to... he removed v's remaining drain... YAY!! also since v still had some pain, he delayed the expansion of the implants until next week... since v is only aiming at a b cup, he thinks she'll only need a couple of expansions to get there... another YAY!! v's been cleared to start some moderate exercise and she can drive again... YAY!! he recommended raking the yard as a good moderate exercise... ha!!!
since a margarita went well with the first drain removal... v decided #2 deserved a margarita too... and this time she ordered her own ;-P
the first expansion will be on 12/30... the first oncologist appt will be on 1/2...
Tom
Passion keeps you moving forward my passion is photography. Five years ago today I sat opposite a doctor who looked me in the eye and without hesitation said, “it’s cancer.” That nightmare began when an emergency room radiologist read my x-ray for a dislocated shoulder and saw a “spot” on my lung which led to a countless doctor appointments, tests and procedures accompanied by uncertainties and fear.
I chose to keep this fight to survive private allowing few people into my circle of confidence, people treat you differently when the word cancer is involved and I needed a sense of normalcy. You may be wondering why I am sharing this publicly now. Five years is a huge milestone because my surgical oncologist said I had a 50% chance of still being alive in five years post surgery. A follow up scan and subsequent biopsy several months after surgery revealed the other lung also had cancer which reduced my longevity significantly. When I met with my radiation oncologist he said to me, “this is a marathon.” That scared the crap out of me because I’ve always thought of myself more of a sprinter I wasn’t sure I was up for the challenge.
Things that have helped me get to this five year mark are faith, family, friends and photography. Flickr became a daily anchor in my life during recovery from surgery. I would look at photos and dream of getting back to being out in nature to make my own photos and to be able to travel again. Flickr helped keep my focus on beauty and creativity and positive things especially during times of disparity and fear. My life has changed I’ve had to learn new ways to do the things I love but the point is I am still doing the things I love to do. I’m happy to still be around to learn new things and use photography to express myself.
The takeaway I hope you will have after reading this post is to do what you love and love what you do life is filled with hopes and dreams twists and turns and it’s not what happens it’s how you handle things, it’s how you choose to live each today.
I’m grateful for my husband who has supported my decisions on treatment and how I choose to be a survivor. I’m also grateful for having one of the best treatment centers and oncology teams in the country to see me through this journey.
The past year my travel plans were altered due to the COVID pandemic so I carved a new path I spent weeks camping while studying deer behaviors and habits which is why there are so many deer photos in my stream. Make lemonade from the lemons in front of you.
Oh and by the way if you've read this far the photo I chose to post today is a whooping crane. What better example of survivor could I have chosen these birds were on the brink of extinction and they are still here they are true survivors.
To wind this up firstly thank you for reading this post to the end. Thank you for your support in the Flickr community. Should our paths cross in the real world please treat me as you would any other fellow photographer and forget the disease I am living with.
Taken during happier times, beside the seal pool at Océanopolis, Brest, less than 18 months ago. We have visited this fantastic aquarium facility 3 times in the past 20 years; on family Eurocamp holidays with the kids & this latest time by ourselves (dare I say which I preferred? 😂) It's so easy to travel to France on the car ferry from Ireland. Happy Selfie Sunday!
Martin had sobering news from his oncologist regarding his latest CT scans. Whilst the main tumour in his lung is unchanged, the fibrosis/scarring is more advanced & irreversible, this is why he is so short of breath, even on mild exertion. Seemingly the radiotherapy & chemotherapy treatments that he's received to treat the cancer have inadvertently caused this lung damage. A bout of pneumonia back in October didn't help matters. There is no more cancer treatment available to him right now, so he's been referred back to the pulmonary specialists in Waterford hospital to see if there is any different medication for the fibrosis that might improve his quality of life going forward.
We love France & have high hopes of visiting again later this summer. You have to have hope. Watch this space.
Thank you to all my wonderful Flickr friends for your support, good wishes & prayers for Martin & myself. I am just back from attending my cousin's funeral in England & gradually catching up with everyone's photos.
poor v is still sleeping on my recliner... she really needs to be sitting up a bit to be comfortable... i miss my recliner... but i miss sleeping in the same bed with v more... v&i have seen the boobie doc and the breast surgeon over the past 2 days... we get new year's day off (yay!!)... then we see the oncologist tomorrow morning...
on tuesday, v had her tissue expanders expanded... we found out how they fit in her body and why they don't fit particularly well... i expected to see them get bigger as the doc added saline... but they didn't... v felt fine directly after the pump up... but the next day she felt plenty sore!! we also found out that the pain in her left arm along with the somehow newly formed and very painful tendon running from her arm pit to her elbow is known as axillary web syndrome (i'll put a full description of it at the bottom of this post)....
during our visit with the breast surgeon we picked up much more info on the syndrome and instructions on how to deal with it... many exercises for v... mainly sretching... and i get to rub the chord down a couple of times a day... its kind of creepy because it makes this crunchy sound as you rub it... and poor v squirms in pain... amazingly after just a day of exercise and the rubbing, v has considerable relief and can lift her arm with less limitation...
and the breast surgeon gave us the results of the oncotype DX genetic testing... it gives a recurrence score 0-100... low is good... v scored a 12!!! fortunately i understand statistics well (taught it in college... apply it at work daily)... and you have to understand it to wade through exactly what the score means... in the simplest terms, the score says that if v is postmenopausal (unclear since she was doing low level hormone replacement with bc pills before the cancer) that simply taking pills (tamoxifen) would give her a roughly 8% chance of recurrence.. and interestingly according to the stats... chemo makes the chance of recurrence jump to 10%... now these stats worry me since they are taken from a total population of 367... and that's not much... so its good news... but still leaves us in a very cloudy grey area in terms of chemo or no... nothing cut and dry... there are so many variables which haven't been studied... v's case is one lymph node with a micrometastases less than 1mm... the stats are taken from 1-3 affected lymph nodes that could have macromets much greater than 2mm... it will be very much a decision based on v's gut feel... with input from oncologists and her helpful husband :)
the world really needs a better medical database with all known cases entered to allow folks to look for commonalities... right now, i'm driving myself nutty reading tons of conflicting and incomplete studies on breast cancer recurrence... i even watched the technical presentation on the node positive results using the oncotype dx assay... i mean i even know what an assay is... i need a break!!!
so we meet with the first oncologist tomorrow at 11:30am...
Axillary Web Syndrome, also known as "cording". It is very common after mastectomy or lumpectomy with axillary node dissection (lymph node removal). It is characterized by pain in the armpit or elbow with tautness that increases when trying to straighten the elbow or lift the arm overhead. The pain and tautness may extend into the wrist or thumb. There is often a visible tightness or a "cord" that looks like a guitar string just beneath the skin that runs from the armpit to the elbow.
Axillary web syndrome occurs when there is an interruption of the axillary lymphatics during axillary or sentinel node dissection. Axillary web syndrome seems to be unrelated to the number of lymph nodes removed or the stage of the cancer diagnosis. The syndrome usually does not begin immediately after surgery. Rather, there is a delay of a few weeks before the initial symptoms occur.
Research suggests that thombosed (clotted) lymph vessels are responsible for the cording. The vessels are inflamed and become thicker and shorter. Axillary Web Syndrome usually responds well to physical therapy treatment within six to eight visits and does not have long-term effects.
Can't believe our Bougainvillea is blooming in January , it did nothing all summer!
Please forgive me if I am sporadic with comments/ replies on here at the moment. My mind is all over the place. Our youngest son has been in hospital since 7th, fighting a stubborn infection. The goalposts for discharge keep being moved. On Wednesday, I was summoned for a meeting with him & his oncologist. You know things aren't good when they call you in during a pandemic! Interestingly, when I went in, I had to be buzzed into the area outside the ward, then had a temperature check under the tongue, before being showed into an empty 4 bed ward with chairs spaced well apart. My husband was given permission to go in for the 1st time today for an hour to visit him, he walked straight into the ward, before being shown to a private room, no temperature check at all. Guess it's the difference when a skeleton weekend staff are on. I must say Lewis has been treated well in there, given an exercise bike & recently a comfortable reclining chair.
Thought I'd forgotten about this didn't you.
I took this photo last week when I was going back to work. It's been a little rough these past few weeks. I caught a bacterial infection in the hospital and was violently ill.
I am back at work but I'm exhausted by the end of the day. It's hard to to sit up all day and my muscles start to hurt. By the time I get home I go straight to my bed. I've also been running around to various Dr's appointments. Mostly post-op visits but I had to see a radiation oncologist this week.
The surgery went real well. The tumor (as expected) was obliterated by the chemo and that was left was a specks. There was a tiny bit of disease left in one lymph node so it's on with 28 treatments of radiation.
This picture is for the group Happy Caturday and this week the theme is "Song, Movie or Book".... one of my favorites!! I actually almost forgot that it was Caturday! :)
So I know that normally a female is called a "fox" but since me and my husband think that Noah is such a pretty boy he gets the "fox" title today. :) Hope that's okay. Noah is the ruler of the house.... over ALL of us. He really isn't as interested in photo's or props like Elijah so I usually just have to grab pictures of him when I can. This was one of those occasions. =^..^=
My update: Yesterday I finished my radiation (6 weeks, every day)! Thank God!! I am miserable and in excruciating pain right now. The main tumor was so close to my esophagus that the radiation has burned it so I'm having a very hard time eating and drinking now despite pain meds, ant-acids, meds to coat the esophagus and lidocaine. I was told that the next 10-14 days may get worse.... I'm hoping not. In about 3 weeks I will go for another PET Scan to see if there is any cancer left. The Radiologist Oncologist said that on the scans he's done daily it does look like it's shrunk quite a bit. Last week I also finished chemo... and lost all my hair. My husband said I look like one of Charles Manson's "girls"! :)))) I think I look like a monkey. :) I'm pretty exhausted and just run down at this point. I keep trying to look on the upside... treatment is over and soon enough I'll be able to go for Chinese or Mexican food. 2-3 weeks just looks so far away!
Once again, Thank You all so much for your unending kindness and funny comments. I so enjoy reading them and really do appreciate them. I also appreciate your thoughts and prayers so much. This has to be the best group of people I have ever met... on Flickr or anywhere else.
I hope you all have a great weekend and a Happy Caturday! =^..^=
(Twentieth Century Fox - 38 Special)
... at least according to my t-shirt. Learning to eat again following my total gastrectomy has not been fun. I’m tired of the ‘full liquid diet’ I have to be on for several weeks. Blah! But I am grateful they found the CDH1 mutation and the presence of signet ring cell Adenocarcinoma in my stomach as early as they did. All thanks to my oncologist who wanted me to get additional genetics testing due to my history of ovarian cancer. She is awesome! P.S. We did find out today that my son also is positive for the mutation. :( Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers as well. My daughter was negative for this horrible mutation.
The entrance to the 401 Military Hospital, Athens, where today I completed the 30th, and last, Radiotherapy treatment (from May 13 -June 28, 2021).
Taken with my mobile phone on June 28, 2021.
I wish to express heartfelt thanks to Lt Colonel Dr IOANNIS GEORGAKOPOULOS, Radiotherapist-Oncologist, also to Michalis Tsimogiannis, Radiographer (Τεχνολόγος-Ακτινολόγος) and Rea, Afrodite, Marianna as well as the rest of the team.
I would also like to wish a full and speedy recovery to my fellow patients, and their wonderful families who I met and chatted with everyday.
I will continue Hormone therapy etc at the Gennimatas hospital, where I had surgery for Prostate Cancer on October 26th, 2020.
Thanassis Fournarakos - Θανάσης Φουρναράκος
Professional Photographer, Athens, Greece
(retired in 2011, born in 1946).
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
None of my images may be downloaded, copied, reproduced, manipulated or used on websites, blogs or other media without my explicit written permission. THANK YOU!
My cousin sent me a photo of his wife looking out from atop the Blue Ridge Parkway, looking at the beautiful tableau before them. Me, with my crazy brain, decided that there was more to the story, thus this photo of her touching God. Of course I put my cousin in as one of the cherubs to the right of God. Now, I think the photo makes more sense to me ;)
For my Flickr friends, an update on my health. You've noticed that I haven't posted anything for a while and here is why...
I visited the Mayo Clinic at the end of March. While there we did a PET scan which discovered that cancer had metastasized to my femur. So, we did "Limb Salvage Surgery," essentially a new knee but also the removal of more than half of my femur. Interesting to have the term "salvage" in the description of the surgery, but the reality is the other option would have been to amputate the leg completely. They also did a cryoablation of a large tumor behind my liver and below my diaphragm. We didn't know how large that tumor was but it was almost too big to address for a curative effect. When I returned to Alaska, my oncologist told us to start considering hospice. I think it's a bit early but I suspect I'll go to hospice at the end of this summer or fall. I'm recovering so slowly from my leg operation. I don't know when I'll be able to do any outdoor photography. I'm definitely planning on doing some indoor macro work, so my subject matter will be changing to what I can do.
Thanks for your spiritual support as I move forward in this final segment of my life!
I have more consults and tests scheduled. Since I last posted, my oncologist decided he wanted to repeat all of my lymphoma testing in May or June, just to be sure. At this point, no one suspects cancer at all. He's a super nice man originally from Ukraine. I got to practice the little bit of Russian that I picked up in New York on him. So I don't mind seeing him again and making sure I'm cancer free.
I'm following up with my liver specialist right around the same time. The symptoms of my condition are just miserable. I itch ... a lot. My eyes are dry. I get pain in my upper abdomen. My MELD score is too low to consider a liver transplant at this time. So, we are treating the symptoms until we can't anymore. One of my adult children has offered up part of her liver once the time arrives. I am fortunate enough to have a really common blood type and blessed that a lot of people in my real life are kind enough to be willing to donate to me if it will save my life.
To be clear, without a transplant, my life expectancy is 4-15 years. The wide range is because some people respond better to the medication than others.
How did I get this? Well, auto-immune illnesses run in my family. My mom has lupus, for example. If they run in your family, there's a strong chance you'll pick one up. This is mine.
For those who are curious, my condition is called Primary Biliary Cholangitis. I'd never heard of it, and I'm an RN in real life. It's not common.
Finally, my left anterior descending artery in my heart needs to be looked at. I'm doing that next week. It's always something. 😆
I've learned an important lesson from this. People in a virtual world will say they care about you. Some will. Others will cease caring once you become less fun than you used to be. As I engage more in what is real, I've been learning more and more that the people who really know and care for me are OUT HERE.
(There are exceptions. You know who you are)
2024 is going to be a challenge. My youngest graduates in 2025, and then he's off to college. My kids are my life, and I've been doing my best to be present for them.
I'm determined to get through all of this to the other side. For those who have reached out and been so kind, thank you. You mean more to me than you'll ever know.
To those who should have and didn't?
You can fuck right off.
❤️
Photo credit: J. Herbert
© Lydia Marcus 2009 / www.lydiamarcus.com
Previously I wrote about Lucy's experimental drug therapy with Pamindronate. Well it turns out that was the 1st and last Pamindronate treatment she will ever receive.
Here's what happened since the treatment:
The vet wanted Lucy to take Pamindronate instead of the steroid shots and Prednisone pills we had been giving her. About 4 days after the Pamindronate, when all the last bit of steroids had left Lucy's system, she got VERY sick again. Stopped eating and drinking and just pretty much didn't want to move from Friday night until Monday when we got her back to the Vet. Spoke with our Vet over the weekend, and she said to put Lucy back on the Prednisone. She said that although her blood count was getting better as far as the Calcium numbers, clearly she was not faring well without the steroids in her system.
Saturday night, my Dad discovered a lump on the side of her neck. So Monday we returned to the Vet and did a biopsy. After six months of not knowing exactly what was wrong with her, we finally get the diagnosis - Lucy has Lymphoma. All the visible signs of illness go back to January when she first started vomiting and not eating for days on end, but I have a feeling the Lymphoma was lurking way before those symptoms arrived.
After a day back on the prednisone (and a steroid shot at the Vet), the lump in the side of her neck has become smaller right away. The steroids kind of suppress the lymphoma but doesn't completely take it or it's symptoms away.
We have an appointment with an Oncologist next week. The Pamindronate didn't really work out BUT had we not tried it and taken her off the steroids, the Lymphoma would not have shown itself - so ultimately this is a good thing to finally know what has been wrong with her since January 09. I don't know what the long term prognosis is - we may start chemo - but just taking it a day at a time. At least with the steroids in her system, Lucy's personality comes back, and she enjoys eating and playing with her Kong toys. She doesn't have as much energy as when she was healthy - our walks are pretty brief - but at least she isn't lying around looking like she's at death's door. I will continue to update Lucy's story as I know more.
As seen on my blog: fotonomous.blogspot.com/2009/06/diagnosis.html
They don’t have Bible versus on their screen savers at UCF, but I have 3 new and good doctors here. And I am thankful to have found them. My Cardiologist is so happy with me as I have improved my cholesterol levels so much. With his finally getting my HBP normal, I am feeling much better. This part helps my Vascular Dementia tremendously also, so blessed. OBTW my Oncologist yesterday was also pretty happy with me and the results of all my labs and PET Scan. Now if I only had a brain … I will persevere, thank You, Jesus!
Had to go to a funeral for a friend earlier this summer. He was a sweet man, an oncologist who died of a glioblastoma ... brain cancer. It is incurable, although you can hold it off for a while, sometimes. Being intimately educated about all types of cancer and the treatments, he chose to go peacefully to whatever comes next.
Anyway, the church next to the Funeral Home was gorgeous. I didn't take a photo of the front... after all, it was a funeral. But I took one of the back of the church which was equally beautiful.
Sure was a beautiful day to say goodbye.
We got some very bad news this week. During our last vet visit, they discovered a lump on Boomer's chest, so the vet took a sample and sent it for cytology. Turns out it is cancer. The vet is going to consult the oncologist and call me tomorrow to discuss our treatment options. Please keep my big sweetheart in your prayers.