 |
06-07-2007, 06:28 PM
|
#1
|
|
Guest
|
Speaking of positive thinking . . . .
I know this isn't a place for self-advertisement, but since I've shared lots of my pain, and my cynicism, I want to share my good news as well. My book, "The Last Enemy," Soho Press, has been out for a month now, has had excellent reviews, including one "mystery of the month" pick. It's a murder mystery, set in Italy, with a very handsome Italian detective.
Andrea--this should show I was kidding a bit in my reply to your post. It's a five part series and it was purchased a month before I found out I had cancer. I went from flying on air to an operating table. However, I made up my mind that whatever happens, I'll write that fifth book, which means I have to be around for another five years at least, so I suppose I do occasionally have a positive thought.
Anyway if you like a good mystery, you may find it in your public library or . . .
|
|
|
|
|
06-07-2007, 06:43 PM
|
#2
|
|
Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: South Florida
Posts: 477
|
Grace,
That is great news! Congratulations.
Carolyn
|
|
|
|
06-07-2007, 06:50 PM
|
#3
|
|
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: indianapolis, indiana
Posts: 1,544
|
I am on the waiting lists at two local libraries for your book. I don't usually buy books, but if I'm out soemtime I'll look for it.
__________________
dxd 9-04, lumpectomy,
st 1, gr 3, er,pr-, her2 +,
2 tac,33 rads,6 cmf
1 yr herceptin,
|
|
|
|
|
06-07-2007, 08:37 PM
|
#4
|
|
Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: san luis obispo, ca
Posts: 1,150
|
Yeah! Your book is out!
Hi Grace, How are you? I think of you often and now I will be going to Borders or Barnes and Noble to purchase that book. Congratulations! Much love, Vickie
__________________
Love and Hugs, Vickie
Life's not about waiting for the storm to pass,
It's about learning to dance in the rain.
Feb 04 IBC IIIC/IV er-/pr- her2+++
3/04 TCH X4
7/ 04 MRM 9/04 Taxol/herceptin wkly 1 yr 33X rads
11/04 skin mets 33x rads,10/05 Avast/Herc. 11 mos.
8/ 06 PET mets lymphs, neck
9/ 06 Navelbine/herceptin
11/ 06 PET NED
2/ 07 skin mets, 4/07 Xeloda, 5/07 add Tykerb
2/ 08 Tykerb failed. Doxil /Herceptin 6 months
8/08 PET skin mets, 8/08 Abraxane/Avastin
11/ 08 PET prog., skin mets
1/09 PET/CT progress, 1/09 Ixempra, 2/09 add Xeloda and low dose Naltrexone
2/09 off Ixempra/Xeloda
3/09 navelbine/herc/cytoxin 4/09 PET shows regress.7/09 start Topotecan. Failed.
8/09 extensive mets rgt brst, back and torso. starting Pazopanib clinical trial.
|
|
|
|
|
06-07-2007, 09:06 PM
|
#5
|
|
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Alexandria, VA
Posts: 1,055
|
Congrats! It's wonderful you could keep being productive. BB
|
|
|
|
|
06-08-2007, 07:54 AM
|
#6
|
|
Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2005
Posts: 161
|
How very exciting for you. I will look for your book.
__________________
Diag. Oct. 2004 age 54 left breast
Stage 1 grade 3; 6mm IDC; unknown amount of DCIS
with comedo necrosis; node neg.
Nottingham Grade 7/9
ER 91% PR 62%; Her2 3.6 by ICH; KI-67 35%
Nov 2004 Lumpectomy; SNB failed so had
full axillary clearance;
Dec 2004 2nd lumpy for clean DCIS margins.
Jan/Feb 2005 4 A/C dose dense;
33 rads finished 6/2005;
Began 5 years Arimidex in 6/2005
No Herceptin
9/2007 Quit Arimidex due to severe side effects.
NED
|
|
|
|
|
06-08-2007, 09:07 PM
|
#7
|
|
Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
Posts: 144
|
Congratulations Grace!
Wonderful to hear that your latest baby has been birthed! You must be very satisfied to have another book in print - and so exciting to have 4 more ahead of you! I will be definitely be looking for your book!!!
Belindaxx
__________________
Belinda
- Diagnosed 3 Jan 2007, Stage IIb, Mastectomy and axillary clearance 10 Jan 07, 6 of 19 nodes affected, multi-focal cancer, HER2 positive. Second mastectomy (prophylactic). Chemo - AC 3 months, Taxol 3 months - then radiation 5 weeks.
- Aug 2011 - Diagnosed with Stage IV mets to lung, sternum and 12 or so thoracic nodes - Rads to Sternum, then weekly abraxane and herceptin for 12 weeks.
- May 2012- good scans - all nodes still about normal size, hole in sternum repairing, lung tumour 'obliterated'.
Ongoing herceptin every 3 weeks. Bloods still all good! Life good!
- March 2013 - recurrence - tumours in lungs and mediastinum (coughing up blood) - immediate radiation treatment to right lung and mediastinum, still on Herceptin, and 3 months of Vinoralbine - stable for a little while!
- Coughing and breathlessness started again September 2013, treated as radiation-induced fibrosis (which can be seen on scans - albeit stable). ie puffers, steroids
- January 2014 - cough becomes bloody again, scans show big mediastinal tumour wrapped around and choking the life out of my right main bronchus, radiation deemed off limits as my lungs are hypersensitive to radiation (measured by existing damage from 2013) .....................- ie I am in the 5% of people likely to suffer severe radiation damage to the lungs that they warn you about before starting treatment! (so special! :) )
- Started chemo Feb 2014 - continuing Herceptin (continuous since Aug 2011), with Carboplatin and Gemcitabine. Discontinued Gemcitabine because of se's. Starting cycle 5 Herc/Carbo 5 May 2014.
- Meantime.....coughing and breathlessness increased to SCARY levels with racing heartbeat that won't slow down, breath that won't come back, even just walking to the bathroom or up 3 or 4 steps.
- ICU from May 5 2014, collapsed right lung due to tumour, small pulmonary embolism (left), tumours growing in mediastinum left and right, dvt lower right leg
- Plan seems to be bronchoscope next week to see if tumour can be lasered and stent inserted in right bronchus to reopen air access to lower parts of right lung. If that is successful might be able to have brachytherapy to worst tumour, otherwise no more options for external radiotherapy.
|
|
|
|
|
06-09-2007, 07:41 AM
|
#8
|
|
Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: Houston, Texas
Posts: 624
|
Congratulations! I will be looking to pick up a copy next time I am at the bookstore.
|
|
|
|
|
06-09-2007, 11:17 AM
|
#9
|
|
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2006
Location: California
Posts: 668
|
Coming to Carlsbad
Vickie:
I think you were interested in comingo down to Carlsbad for the day.
Please read my yesterday's posting.
__________________
1994 - rt brst, .lump, underarm node dissection,chemo+rad 1.2 cms, Grade 3.
28 nodes neg
Er,Pr, Positive HER2 status unknown
2003- Recur to rt lung.July 16 ( B-Day!)
Her2+++ Er,Pr, Negative
2003 - Aug04--Navelbine + Herceptin
2004- 2007--NED - Herceptin, only
2007 Feb-April Xeloda added to hereceptin
2007-May Back on Navelbine+Herceptin
2008-Feb-Mar 15 Ses Rad to Rt. Lung
2008- Oc 17 Add Tykerb to Herceptin
2009- June-- Discont Tykerb
2009 July 7--Current Taxol + Herceptin
2009 Dec--Discontinued treatment due to progression. Looking into cyberknife.
2010-Aug Accepted to TDM1, no SE, except liver count went up.
2010-2011 September got kicked out of the trial, due to a small spot found on lung.
2011- 2012 September thru early 2013 on Herceptin
2013- March Bone density shows small spot on 5th rib.
2013 - April 4th appt with onc. will post after discussing course of treatment.
2013-March-April Cyber knife to brain and radiation to rib. Chest --base line before chemo-CT-Scan stable for lung issue. CA2729 Normal.
2013 April Herceptin- TDMI
2013 Sept Herceptin + Perjeta . CA2729 within normal range. Brain and Pet scans October 31st. will post results.
2013 October Brain MRI- mixed response. Will see Onc/rad on Halloween.
2013 October/November Brain-MRI nothing new. Repeat MRI next year in May.
2013 December Continue Herceptin and Perjeta. Stable at the moment.
2014 February Brain MRI -clear!
2014 January Added Taxotere to Perjeta+Herceptin.
2014 March Stopped chemo-chest ct-scan next.
2014- March Scans shows tumor's larger, CA2729 higher. Discontinue Herceptin.
2014 April Perjeta+ Halaven
2014 April CA2729 went down 60 points after one cycle. Cough does not want to go away.
2014 June Continue on Perjeta + Halaven-- no more cough. Stable
2014 June Back on Herceptin + abraxane
|
|
|
|
|
06-09-2007, 11:29 AM
|
#10
|
|
Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: LAND OF YES!
w/home in Boca Raton, Florida
Orig from L.I., N.Y.
Ever hovering IN THE NOW...
Posts: 1,904
|
Gotta Love Grace!
Congratulations, Grace! So glad I found your post while meandering around! You do make me laugh. Thanks for that. We all need bucketsfull of laughter ev day. You remind me of my friend, Maxine. Cynical, funny, declares she doesn't believe in anything, but as she awaits a kidney transplant for her husband she has come to save my emails to her, and carry one esp in her pocketbk. She gave it to a bc friend I do not know for comfort and inspira. Maxine told me her friend said WHERE DID YOU GET THIS???!!! This is unbelievable. Thank you. Ev time I see Maxine she repeats that story. I love that I can touch people's hearts.
To those I cause moments of irate indignation -- I plead for you to take a deep breath and get past that, to open to the grand revelation that YOU ARE INCREDIBLY EMPOWERED. Einstein said that our ability to imagine is far greater than knowledge. We all know knowledge is power. Imagination was embraced by Einstein, Edison, the Wright Bros, the great explorers and voyagers like Columbus and the entire NASA team. Flying machines?! Insane. Landing on the moon. Impossible. The implausible can be achieved. Miracles happen every day.
AND IOWA ANDI -- WE ARE ALL SENDING HUGE AMOUNTS OF LOVING, HEALING ENERGY TO YOU, TO BECOME A MIRACLE.
My friend Sue stopped treatment, was ready to go, went into hospice, and CAME HOME. My most beloved friend in the entire world kept asking me, WHY AM I STILL HERE? I don't understand. She moved from Boca to Conn, where her heart and true home was. A yr or so later her unmarried dghtr who lived in Conn was struck w/devastating Crohn's disease. Sue and her marvelous husband Al nursed her back to health. Weak herself, Sue would sit at her dghtr's bedside day after day and they would talk and talk. She was so glad to be there for Jen. To market for her, pay her bills, etc. w/Al's help of course. Sue and her dghtr bonded more than ever. It was so joyful midst all the sickness. Jen is finally over her worst attack ever, w/surgeries and docs up to her neck. Sue was needed. God had other plans for her.
ANDI, perhaps God has other plans for you. My prayers are w/you and all your family. I think of you all day. My thoughts and prayers are full of loving, healing energy to be sent to you and yours... BIG hugs, ANDI (BB)
__________________
Andi BB
'95 post-meno dx Invasive LOBULAR w/9cm tumor! YIKES + 2/21 nodes. Clear mammo 10 mnths earlier. Mastec/tram flap reconst/PORT/8 mnths chemo (4Adria/8CMF). Borderline ER/PR. Tamoxifen 2 yrs. Felt BLESSED. I could walk and talk, feed and bathe myself! I KNEW I would survive...
'98 -- multiple mets to liver. HER2+ 80%. ER/PR- Raging, highly aggressive tumors spreading fast. New PORT. 9 mnths Taxotere Fought fire w/fire! Pronounced in cautious remission 5/99. Taxotere weekly for 6 wks, 2 wks off -- for 9 mnths. TALK ABOUT GRUELING! (I believe they've altered that protocol since those days -- sure hope so!!)
+ good old Vit H wkly for 1st 3 yrs, then triple dosage ev 3 wks for 7 yrs more... The "easy" chemo, right?! Not a walk in the park, but not a freight train coming at 'ya either...
Added Herceptin Nov '98 (6 wks after FDA fast-tracked it for met bc). Stayed w/Vit H till July '08! Now I AM FREE! Humbly and eternally grateful for this life-saving drug! NED since '99 and planning on keeping it that way. To hell w/poor prognosis and nasty stats! STOPPED VIT H JULY '08...! REMAIN STABLE... Eternally grateful...Yes is a world & in this world of yes live (skillfully curled) all worlds ... (e e cummings) EVERY DAY I BEAT MY PREVIOUS RECORD FOR # OF CONSECUTIVE DAYS I'VE STAYED ALIVE. Smile KNOWING you too can be a miracle. Up to me and God now...
|
|
|
|
| Thread Tools |
|
|
| Display Modes |
 Linear Mode
|
Posting Rules
|
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts
HTML code is Off
|
|
|
All times are GMT -7. The time now is 09:30 AM.
|
