How Long Have You Been At It?

Hi Gina,

Nice to hear your voice,

it is only early but you have just shocked me, as you know I have read your profile and I have just had to read the beginning of it again, because I couldn’t believe all that you have gone through has only been going on for 12 months - what a year you have had.

You have set me off thinking and in a way shocked me. I can quite clearly remember every word from every doctors/oncologists meeting, yet cannot actually remember anything else from the last 6 months, I would like to ask the girl in the know what is classed as your diagnosis date - the day I sat in the doctors office to be told I had lung cancer (followed by 2 consultants visits) or the day I saw the oncologist with my treatment plan, although the difference between July & September is not a long time, one adds a little more time to my achievement and thankfully my treatment is doing what it should.

Guess I’m going to spend the rest of the day recalling the last 6 months because strangely I know I have enjoyed them, just can’t remember them 

congratulations on your 12 month anniversary, but I have said to you before - you are so in charge!

Enjoy your day, don’t work too hard

Mine is September 24th 2014.  My mum passed away on September 23rd 2013 so I do not function well in September at all.  

I was thinking, should I say congratulations on a cancer anniversary, which I will now call a canniversary. But bloody well done Gina. You have truly been on a journey these last 12 months, and we all admire the way you have handled it. Let’s hope there are many more canniversary’s to stick 2 fingers up to cancer. 

Xx 

Hi Julie

Its good to hear that your treatment is doing a good job. I think once you are on this path it does very strange things to time. I have to have a zoledex injection every 3 months, but it really does fly by and doesn’t seem right when it’s that time again. I still remember vividly the day my GP phoned me with the news. I really can’t believe that was 4 and a half years ago.  I have now stopped working, my choice, because I want to spend my time doing the things I want to do. Nothing really exciting, some days I just sit and watch my dogs playing, I see my family more, and I try to read, although my concentration is poor. But I try to think of at least one good thing in every day. Yesterday it was a robin perched next to me on my garden chair. Just doing exactly the same thing as me, enjoying the day. 

Sorry woffling on

have a nice day xx 

Hi Chelle

i went to doctor on 18th July 2018 cos couldn’t shift chest infection, sent me for xray got phone call @ 5 same day to go for CT scan - think I knew there & then. On 25th one week later got results from doctor - lung cancer. Went to consultant beginning of August to be told the same and be told of tests to be done. Went to consultant 2 weeks later to be told stage 4 nscl cancer. On 6 September saw oncologist, sat down and his first words to me were 3/6 months without treatment. Thankfully I got treatment and yes I know it is palliative, but how does that make sense - look well, feel well.

like yourself I gave up work, my choice, decided it was time for me now - I took my pensions. I only have myself to look after, no husband, no children I’m sure I would be in a different place if I did, oh I forgot this b..... dog (how could I).

like you I see family and friends and my time is mine to do as I want - I enjoy it, a simple life but it’s good

Well that’s certainly cheered us both up 

I don't post very often, just when I think I can offer some realistic advice, based on my own experiences, when I think it might help others.

I am one of the lucky ones so far in that I was able to have surgery. I've been at it nearly 5 years. My diagnosis date (after biopsy confirmed cancer cells) was 22nd May 2014 and surgery date 10th June 2014. I consider my anniversary date to be 10th June being the date the cancer was cut out and put in the bucket. I am keeping all things crossed to celebrate 5 years soon.

I've had a few of curved balls delivered since then but have dodged them so far.

Many songs can get me started depending on mood but there are three for special occasions:

"Three Little Birds" (Don't Worry About a Thing / Every Little Thing's Gonna be Right) by Bob Marley and the Wailers - this came on the radio when I was driving home on 20th March 2014 after my first chest x-ray. The lyrics cheered me up and continue do do so every time I hear the song.

"I Want to Break Free" by Queen - when I'm on a bit of a downer (fortunately not often these days)

"We Are The Champions" by Queen - when I have strong feelings of winning (fortunately more often these days)

I admire many people on this forum who have gone through worse than I have, especially those who have not been a fortunate as I have. I often feel guilt for being one of the lucky ones so far but never lose sight of what might be round the next corner. I take every opportunity I can to make the most of my good fortune while it stays with me.

Derek.

Your experiences, initially, are almost identical to mine. Just before last Christmas I tried to get a doctor's appointment as I thought I had a chest infection. Didn't get one with my GP but was seen by emergency GP at local cottage hospital. I told him about slight traces of blood in the sputum, so he gave me antibiotics and said if it continued I should get an appointment with my GP as it could be TB. About six weeks later it seemed like I had another chest infection started so tried, yet again, to see my GP. Yet again no appointment despite telling them there were traces of blood in the sputum. Got seen by a triage nurse who examined me and carried out a questionnaire. According to the findings there was a 16% chance of a pulmonary embolism so she arranged for me to attend ambulatory clinic the next day. To cut a long story short had bloods, ECG, and X-Ray after which they wanted to do a CT scan. Knew then something was up. After this seen by consultant who said they had detected a mass in my right lung. I said lung cancer, and they confirmed. Had a biopsy on the Monday followed by an appointment with the respiratory consultant who informed me it was terminal lung cancer (metastatic pulmonary adenocarcinoma) with a weeks to months, or maybe longer, diagnosis if untreated. Saw the oncologist the following Monday who was more positive - said it was a malignant NSCLC that generally responded well to treatment with a targeted therapy (TKI). Have since used my company's health insurance plan to get onto, what I and the oncologist believe, is a better treatment that is currently not funded by the NHS as a Stage 1 treatment

Like you it has meant that I have got in touch with people I had lost touch with, but I still have to work for the health insurance, although they will only cover the first 12 months

My last post was to Julie

Sorry Julie

I didn't mean to shock you

I was trying to be up lifting

I am unsure what they call the diagnosis date officially. I have said to someone before, it could be argued when we are trying to time our start of treatment within the 60 days of diagnosis. Could it be when they test it in the lab? When your oncologist is told? Or when the patient was told?

For me I go from being told that my biopsy was confirmed as cancer. Otherwise I could add a month and a day from when I knew. They found the mass on an MRI on 28 February and I knew by the size they told me of it then, and doing the magic and never to be done googling, that a mass of that size would be highly unlikely to be anything other than cancer. But I was given the results from all the tests 29th March so that to me is my confirmed date.

I think the first few months after diagnosis does whizz by in a bit of a blur, then it slows and we learn to enjoy the simple things in life so much more. I hope it has brought back some good memories from the last six months now.

Now I don’t want to make anyone jealous, but I actually have 2 canniversary’s. My lung cancer is metastatic and I was first diagnosed with womb cancer in 2009 so will be 10 years in June. Crikey, I hadn’t thought about that til now. 

Like the Queen chelle!