Sobering BC Facts & Figures
 

Re: Sobering BC Facts & Figures
 

Re: Sobering BC Facts & Figures
 

Very interesting...

Re: Sobering BC Facts & Figures
 

Hmmmmm... Stats can make you sick.

If one person has survived what you have -- so can you! Focus all your time and energy on being in the tiny group of SURVIVORS. Live, KNOWING that you are drawing your desired goal to you. Live with joy and serenity.

See it, feel what it would feel like if what you wanted already existed. IT DOES! Call it to you.

And RB is right on. I of course include supplements as part of nutrition! Fighting off and neutralizing free radicals, detoxifying your body, protecting cells from damage, relieving joint and muscle pain, boosting energy, bone and heart health, assisting organ function, suppressing tumors, slow and preventing recurrence of cancer, anti-inflammatory benefits, boosting mental clarity and ability to focus, enhancing the immune system, maintaining sugar levels, protect brain and spinal nerves, slow aging, assists in shrinking tumors -- and more!!!

Especially those who have endured chemotherapy, nutritional and supplemental integration is essential to achieving wellness. When your body is under siege of disease and its present method of controlling abnormal cell growth -- we need help to fight on physically, psychologically and emotionally!

Andi

Re: Sobering BC Facts & Figures
 

Great post Denise and be NED, we like Ned!
the stats fit me, 1st time 50 yrs old, 2nd invasive 55. (no Herceptin 1st time around in the USA in 1999 for me despite the fact I brought it up to everyone)
However I believe that there are more treatments available now (certainly if I'd been given Herceptin the 1st time around, I may not have had a recurrence????) and more treatments on the way. I just hope that they are quickly available, affordable and that they are not just drugs that can make companies a lot of money. I am hopeful. I know I am alive today because of Herceptin and Dr. Slamon and my french oncologist and the French system of health care that didn't ask me to pay for something I couldn't afford, in fact when I was diagnosed in France, the first question they asked me was had the paperwork been done so that I would be covered a 100% instead of only 80%. I had no idea what they were talking about but they checked on it and said yes the paperwork was in and that I shouldn't worry about anything except getting well! what a difference with the first time which was in the USA and that call to the insurance company in the USA which left me, a business woman, in tears. Luckily I have a good husband who told me, that's the last call you make. just tell me which hospital and what doctor you want but what if I hadn't had him??? In France, no problem because there is no fight and you can choose your doctor and hospital and in fact I've changed both. I only wish that everywhere had this system. Being sick is hard enough.
I'm not sure a cure will ever be there but I do believe strongly in my heart that we can all stay alive and live a good life for a long time and I know I don't have to say to anyone on this site that every day is precious and to be enjoyed and to love our families and friends and forgive them quickly for any hurts they inflict unknowingly. I'm here almost 10 years more than I thought and boy do I enjoy it!!!! boring doesn't exist!
health and happiness
love sarah

Re: Sobering BC Facts & Figures
 

Thanks for that. Saddened that at the end they said there has been little change in the number of women dying from breast cancer each year. More money towards research, less money towards ad campaigns for mammos and self breast exams, please. :( Praying for a cure for all of us.

Re: Sobering BC Facts & Figures
 

I forwarded this to the bclist.org. I agree with KsGal: sobering conclusion: we find more cancer but as many women die from bc as before. All the money that goes to prevention, early detection and early treatment has not made one iota of difference. We need to focus all our energy on finding a cure. Or at least a way of preventing metastasis. I wish they'd put as much energy, resources and pinkness into that message as they spending on the pink fluff now.

Jacqueline

Re: Sobering BC Facts & Figures
 

More effective medicines as a part of the solution, sure.

But I think that making a significant dent in reducing the number of deaths would require cancer patients to personally make the effort to take responsibility for their health, and to think and act consistently to make genuine efforts with diet and exercise throughout their life cycle.

Re: Sobering BC Facts & Figures
 

Sure, living a healthier life could make a difference, but not on an individual level.

My father has always been very health conscious. He is thin, exercises etc. He developed prostate cancer anyway
My mother died from stomach cancer. In hindsight, she had a campylobacter infection. Her doctor sent her to a shrink, because he thought her ulcer was caused by stress. She exercised, ate healthy, hardly ever drank alcohol, didn't smoke.
I believe my cancer was probably caused because my growth was stopped with a large dose of hormones between ages 14 and 16. We knew nothing about a possible link between hormones during puberty and breastcancer
My uncle died at age 20 from Hodgkins' disease. This was in 1958. Our country was trying to bounce back from the second WW. People were thin, food was expensive and meat was a luxury.
My cousin died at age 37 from leukemia. Yes, she drank and smoked, but not excessively and she exercised and had a healthy weight.
None of us was overweight.


Just trying to point out that something that is a factor in a population (healthy eating habits, exercise, moderate or no alcohol, not smoking) offers no guarantee for the individual. I am thin, don't drink alcohol, don't smoke, breastfed my babies for 8 and 11 months, because of my allergies I eat a super healthy diet, the kind that is supposed to prevent cancer, but I developed breastcancer anyway.

There are many other factors, some that we don't even know about, some that we only find out about when it is too late, that contribute to the development of cancer.

Today we were at my 60 year old Brother in Law's funeral. He smoked and drank and ate whatever he felt like. He had a healthy weight, he played tennis, and he died of lungcancer. Was this his own fault? He probably contributed to it. But his father smoked all his life, had the same lifestyle, and was overweight. He died in his sleep of old age at 85. Go figure!

Jacqueline

Re: Sobering BC Facts & Figures
 

Lien,

Exactly. That is what makes the information about balancing fats and the particular importance of vitamin D so relevant for bc patients to consider. I had what I believed to be healthy habits and was at the top end of the normal weight range at time of diagnosis.

After diagnosis and treatment, I wrote to the government entity responsible for establishing vitamin D levels because it seemed to me that 400 IU was far too low for maintenance. There was no reply. Years later they increased the level somewhat, but it still is not enough. People can believe they had a lifelong healthy diet but still not understand how important balancing fats and including adequate vitamin D really are in avoiding cancer.

What would be really interesting would be to do studies with people who have not yet had cancer, measuring their "healthy diet" against those who are balancing their fats and using adequate vitamin D, to see the difference.

It is possible some of the more recent successes with trials may be due in part to a little more awareness of the need for understanding the dietary difference, even though that understanding isn't accounted for by the trials, and is a hidden factor. MANY more people are aware of the importance of vitamin D now, but not as aware of the importance of balancing fats. They still think in terms of "low-fat" instead, in believing they are eating a healthy diet.