Dear Bev, Geesh, haven't you had enough? Strongest thoughts going to you for a relief from pain, a quick and easy MRI, and news that the pain is caused by something simple that is NOT cancer related! I certainly hope that you are going to listen to your nurse and stay off your feet. It sounds like i...

Hi SkiFletch! All through my life my WBC's have been in the high end of normal when tested during annual physicals, and would go up when I've gone in to the doc for bronchitis or pneumonia. They were consistently up a few decades ago when I was diagnosed with an auto-immune disease called nodular va...

My white counts have been high for over a year - and have stayed that way through surgery and the first half of chemo. My onc and I were joking a couple of cycles ago that I finally hit my version of neutropenic - I hit the high end of normal (only for the one test though - then back to high)! I had...

Hi there! Just wanted to mention that if you do decide to get a port, please make sure that you tell whoever is installing it about your shooting. You might want to actually pre-mark your shoulder before you go in about an inch or two below where the shotgun butt sits. That's what I did before mine ...

It is disconcerting (to say the least!) to suddenly have the plan change on you, isn't it? I know that I was really thrown for a loop when I went in for my 3rd round and was told that Oxali was off the menu. I had an extremely strong reaction to the side-effects of Oxali (couldn't breathe room tempe...

Those mentioning that this should be followed up by the doc are absolutely right. Although placement can be the problem, I'd want to make sure that it's not a clot, a leak, or movement of the "tail" (the line that goes down the vein) that is causing the discomfort. I had followed the sugge...

Oh, do I know what you mean with the tugging! I'm a G-cup, so have a lot of the same problem. For me, I've taken to sleeping with a pillow tucked under the girls. I don't move much in my sleep, so that gives me enough support for the night. If you're a mover while sleeping, the best I could suggest ...

Oh, Tricia, I hear your frustration! Our oncs are pretty much bound to follow the provincial Clinical Guidelines (if you haven't seen it, let me know and I'll send you a copy) and the first recommendation on there is a Clinical Trial, so I can see why your onc is suggesting it. Has she told you whic...

Another 2B here, with vascular invasion. It's great to hear that your wife is doing well, as well as the other success stories. I'm just past the half-way point with Xeloda and am definitely looking forward to getting this done with. I'm unfortunately one of the lucky ones with the nasty side-effect...

Hi there! I really feel for you with the haemmorhoids - I had mine removed a year ago, prior to getting the cc diagnosis. Mine were partially internal with a half-fist sized external portion prior to the removal - the recovery from surgery wasn't nearly as painful as dealing with having them! Surger...

Hi Gracie!

I did have shortness of breath while on Xeloda, but it was due to pulmonary emboli (blood clots in the lungs). Have they done a chest CT with contrast to see if that might be an issue for you?

Hope they come up with a cause / treatment for you soon!

Best,
Laurie

Whether to go for the radical hysterectomy is a deeply personal decision. It is one where you really have to look at the pros and cons to see whether it is the right choice for you. I will be going for mine as soon as I'm finished with the adjuvent chemo (currently scheduled for this May). Although ...

Hi luckduck! You are in Toronto - are you being treated at Sunnybrook? Ask if you can be transferred either to their Palliative Care group, or to their Pain and Symptom Management group. Either one will still have you with an oncologist (but a different one than you have now), and these groups are f...

Just a note with regard to the PET scans - there are very few publicly funded scanners in Canada, and not very many techs certified on them (so they can't necessarily run the machines 24/7). The attached link is a couple of years old, but from what I've heard there haven't been many added since this...

Hi there! Another thing to keep in mind is that approvals vary from province to province, so not only does a treatment have to be approved by Health Canada, it also has to be approved for coverage by that particular province. As CRGuy mentioned, if you've got an aggressive onc, they can help you nav...