FWIW, I was treated for prostate cancer while I had atrial fibrillation. Am now cured of both.

I had a bott with melanoma and it was terrifying. Sending you positive thoughts.

Is at an early stage, thank God. There are so many new treatments.

keep us posted

blood thinners…. my 2 cents.

i will keep checking here

Your docs sound quite optimistic and are talking about a cure!
That is good news.

Probably, and I was lucky that mine was caught early, too so just do what they tell you get a second opinion if you need to. I had a good team, they recommended prophylactic chemo and I got it. Wasn’t fun but at least I knew I did all I could. Three years ago and my last scan last week was good. Keeping you in my thoughts.

news that it hasn't spread and that your docs are talking cure. Hold on to that. They are expecting a cure. You expect it too!

All the best wishes to you. Keep us posted.

Sometimes I will take a break from thinking about making it to the top, and just focus on the next step or the next 10 steps. Not ignoring the challenge, just breaking it down into smaller pieces temporarily.

This has worked for me, not preaching, just my two cents. All the best to you with your mountain.

send my best wishes too.

I hope you can stay positive because I think that leads to better outcomes.

and are telling you it was caught early. I am sending healing vibes and thoughts to you. Hugs.

and as we get older, stuff begins to happen, serious stuff.

In my case, earlier this year, the docs found an unruptured brain aneurysm. Fortunately, they were able to 'fix' it with a non-invasive procedure called endovascular coiling. But, even that procedure required general anesthesia and took 3.5 hours. Sometimes, the only fix for these brain aneurysms, other than monitoring, is a craniotomy which is seriously invasive and comes with various unpleasant long-term side effects, not to mention the stress it puts on the body as a whole.

That's when I was faced with the reality that at some point, I would likely need to decide to consent or decline to some sort of invasive surgery. I decided that I would refuse any surgeries after 75 years old. If they stop performing colonoscopies at 75 because the risks are too high, then I don't think invasive surgery is a good idea.

It's not an easy decision and each of us must decide for ourselves. I've accomplished most everything I ever wanted to in my life. Granted, the road was rocky and my success might not seem much to others, but I am satisfied. Given that, I'd rather take the route of less invasive treatment going forward.

God bless and keep us updated.

I understand your decision. And I have a feeling that success is an individual matter for all of us. I am no big mover and shaker politically, but I am proud of what I do. I am proud of my family and the nice home I have made for us.

Thank you for being here. I will be here for you if you need me.

I get a large plastic bag and just collect the stuff that fell off that day. You never know when you'll need to put it back on.

Sending healing thoughts your way.

mantra..we carry your burden..you are not alone..dear murielm99 ..

Short background - uterine cancer in 2013: hysterectomy, chemo, radiation. Return in 2017: different chemo. Return in 2019: Keytruda.

I finished three years of Keytruda and I'm cancer-free. Yes, there are side effects, but it beats the heck out of having cancer. I have occasional bouts of diarrhea - Immodium helps there. I'm sometimes tired, though that may be age - I'm 68. The worst side effect for me is rheumatoid arthritis of the hands. I can't make a fist anymore, though my hands are otherwise usable. I'm still typing, hand sewing, crocheting, even playing the saxophone.

I went off Keytruda about six weeks ago. I get a CT scan every six months, and my oncologist says that if the cancer comes back again, he'll just put me back on Keytruda.

Let me strongly suggest that you get a mediport. Yeah, it's surgery and they have to knock you out, but then it's so simple to have the Keytruda infusion. No more searching for a vein for an IV!

It sounds as if your doctors expect the cancer has not spread.... I'm holding on to that thought and I hope you can as well. It is so difficult to not believe the worst. I have to talk with myself often about that. Please keep us posted.

I have been on oxygen for the last 10-12 years of my life. While not the best thing, it is not a pain. second if it were me i would opt for the surgery. My thoughts are surgery is much more successful than chemo and/or radiation. Fear not, no one leaves on minute before their time to leave. I had AAA surgery 3-4 years ago. My dad died from the same surgery in 1995. My only request to surgeon was to keep me alive long enough to vote against the orange turd. He complied and now I feel like i am living on borrowed time and enjoying every minute of it. Still working on saving our Democracy as much as I can.
Carry on my friend, carry on!

Murielm99, I am sending you healing thoughts and love. You got this! Let us know anytime you need an energy boost from your DU family.

Please be gentle with yourself and focus only on what's true right now, rather than borrowing trouble from a future which is not yet true.

When you feel terrified, please try to think of all those who love you and care about you - your friends, your family, your online community, and feel that love, and let that love carry you when you feel like you can't do it alone. You are not alone!

My best advice is to do exactly as the Drs tell you.

I'm with you, you're too young to die, and you, like many of us like minded DU ers who want our democrcy to survive and thrive, for ourselves and for the near by future and for our children and grand children, etc,. We need everyone who hasn't bought into fascism to do their part. Yes, we need you Muriel M. Positive thoughts, healing vibrations, be well and whole, as you are a guardian of our democracy. Peace

sends you all the good wishes and healing vibes I can muster. Sounds like you caught it early. Completely agree about no surgery. That's worked well for my friends, 4 now, that have been though something similar and are all healthy now.

you have to go off your blood thinner for a while - I have relatives with a-fib who had to do the same for various surgeries, but never developed a clot as a result. Your doctor will have you back on a blood thinner, possibly a different one, as soon as it's safe to start again.

for Healing from this living nightmare, Muriel!!

💙

Can’t talk about cancer. Wish you all the best.
A-fib 20 years living with it on blood thinners the entire time 4 different kinds at one time or another…anyway I’ve been on them then had to stop for various surgeries the back on never had a problem.

Stay positive. I do believe that state of mind plays a huge part for any kind of healing.

I had a colleague (she's still alive we just don't work together anymore) who had a moped accident and they found out she had stage 1 lung cancer when she was in the hospital for the accident. She had part of her lung removed and I believe she's cancer free now. She's kind of lucky in retrospect to have had that accident on her moped!

There was stuff all over the house. Bag, boxes, chairs, tables, you name it. Also, I live in a refurbished farm house. Some parts of it are old. There was dust and grit everywhere. I developed a terrible cough. I noticed that no one else had such a terrible cough. Then I started having blood in my sputum. My primary care doc knows my history of smoking. She gave me a CAT scan and a PET scan. They found the cancer in the lower lobe of my left lung.

I got lucky. Also, I know my own body and I knew that things just were not right.

I agree, as you age, you definitely are in tune with when your body just doesn't feel right.

And if one does smoke to either quit or stay on top of those screenings recommended by your doctor. I still need to quit. I'm probably due for another CT scan but I need to get my annual physical first and see what he recommends, besides just quitting of course!

when I realized what was going on. I did not have the diagnosis yet, but I just knew. I have quit many times, but this time it is for good.

Please quit. Don't put yourself through what I am experiencing. We need you.

I received six weeks of radiation therapy following surgery for throat cancer a little over 25 years ago.
All I can tell you is that, while it knocked me on my ass for the last couple of weeks and a couple more after its completion (I have NEVER been so tired), I'm alive, kicking, and considered "cured" all these years later.
I will pray that you have a similar result.

I am happy when I realize that a cure is possible.

A friend of mine IRL has been cured of colo-rectal cancer. It does happen.

Apparently I'm a freaking malignancy magnet; but about seven or so years after the melanoma, and four years following my prostatectomy, I'm still on the right side of the dirt and kicking cancer's ass.
And you can do the same damned thing!

Will keep you in my thoughts for a full recovery.

Please keep us informed so we can help you carry the load. Best moral support on the internet!

I nodded a lot to questions and well wishes; my brain detached.

Nothing anyone said or did could keep the terror at bay.

I smiled a lot. I probably looked like an idiot.

It's OK to be afraid. Even terrified.

It's a scary time.

You make the best decisions you can about your course of treatment, but the fear doesn't go away.

It won't really go away even after you get some good news.

The fear of "What if" is always there.

It eases some over time, but the thoughts can come rushing back with a quickness.

Still, you move forward and that's a good thing.

You are moving forward. From one step to the next - and it is a one step to the next process. Deliberately so. Your team of doctors want to get the treatment right. It matters.

Right now, nothing is moving faster than your mind, and that too is terrifying.

You need it to be the next phase, the next step - now.

That's perfectly normal.

But you need to also give yourself a break.

Try to.

It's hard, I know.

Cancer is the big distraction. So how do you distract yourself from that?

You come here. Talk it over with people who understand what you're going through.

Just giving voice to your fears can lift the burden a little.

It did for me.

You're in my thoughts.

It sounds like you worked out something. Maybe it will work for me, too.

I appreciate your post.

It sounds like you have some excellent physicians to treat you. That they caught it at Stage 1 is indeed wonderful.

It's been a good number of years since lung cancer was basically a death sentence. At the early stage you're in, along with an excellent team of health providers, and the best wishes of everybody at DU, and your family and friends I have a feeling you'll be doing the things you want to at age 90.

All the best.

We are here for you on this journey, murielm99.

I know you have been through so much yourself. Thanks for being here.

I wish you the best in your upcoming oncology meeting. I know it is hard during this time with so many unknowns. I am sending all my heartfelt positive thoughts your way! Take good care.

We are all here for you anytime, muriel. You are in my thoughts and I am sending out healing vibes...and a huge hug.

Love you~

...and virtual hugs.

I had throat cancer last year. Two spots were biopsied. Chemo and radiation. Radiation does 90% and chemo finishes the job. I'm 72 now.

Now my wife has bone cancer but also chest congestion of unknown origin. Waiting for the pulmonologist to figure out what's going on with her lungs. Took samples during out-patient lung scope and something grew in the petri dish. Still unknown. Oncologist is waiting on the pulmonologist before starting treatment.

The waiting without not knowing what the doctors want to do is the most difficult part. If we start chemo and radiation, her lungs might get worse. Her oxygen drops with moderate walking. The pulmonologist has to give the OK first.

I'm not ready to bury my wife.

I will pray that your wife will recover. You will not have to bury her!

I hope you have a good support system of friends & family to help you & be there for you.

Sending you calm from the trees here and some steady breaths of late autumn air.
And love!

thinking about you.. keeping you in my prayers.. and I have been down the cancer road, and having people around you that you can lean on makes all the difference in the world.. sending huge huge hugs

I've only read some about it, but it sounds promising. More precise. Not sure about if insurance covers it or anything. Worth checking it out. Sending good vibes your way.

I think you've got this. You are going to turn this all around.good vibes your way((()))Glad you have quit smoking; sounds like you have a great team of pros working on a treatment plan. I will look for your updates.

and please let us now.

My advice? Laugh. Watch comedy. Get with a friend or friends that make you feel good. If they're funny so much the better. I didn't have cancer but I went through a very dark patch when my husband died. I made it through by watching old clips of Bill Hader as Stefon. I've even heard that laughter amps up your immune system and that couldn't hurt. Wishing you all the best.

Today marks my 1 yr anniversary of finishing chemo. My year anniversary for Rads won’t be until February. I would recommend asking your doc if you would do well to have an antidiarrheal med on hand as well as something that helps with constipation. I needed both at various times during the course of 28 treatments. On my skin, I used Aquaphor and had very little burn or peeling.

Sending prayers for the very best outcome for you!

It gives me hope. Thanks to all of you, survivors and supporters alike!

For what it’s worth I’ll pray for you and send good vibes. Try and stay positive. Try and 🧘 meditate. I heard it helps.🙏🏼

There have been advances since then.. a friend is getting radiation infusion for prostate cancer.

I know little about this new procedure, but I know that traditional radiation makes you really tired and can also cause superficial skin burns. But those things are temporary and I am still alive.

Hope either way is helpful to you. Rest when you can.

I set a reminder on my computer to make sure I don't forget. I pray that your treatment will cure you.

I'm in agreement with you not going off of your blood thinner.

My mom had a-fib. She went off her blood thinner for a short time, threw a clot and had a stroke.

She survived two more weeks. But the blood thinner she needed for the a fib and her heart was antithetical to the healing from the surgery for her stroke.

We made the decision to bring her home to hospice and we and her big extended family and friends loved on her before she passed away on their sun porch two days later.

The therapy itself is easy, just lay there and don’t move. The worst part is it left me fatigued in a big way. You can do this. Stay strong.

Peace to you murielm.

family is here for you. Lean as much as you need.

atrial fib about 20 years ago. I am 92 and have never it since.

You have my very best vibes for a healthy outcome!

Fear is hard to let go of once it gets its hooks into you. Know that we are here for you. Let this be your calm place, the place where peace can flow within and around you. Love and Blessings. Peace Be.

May God bless and keep you safe

your way.