I was diagnosed in Jan 2006 with stage 4 metastatic breast cancer - it had moved to my bones. I had tumors in every vertabrae and my hips. Oh yeah, don't forget the original one in my breast!
Doctors didn't think I'd live long. Said the usual person w/ what I had usually lives about 2 years. Well, with radiation (twice) and chemo (once), lots of herbal treatments and MANY prayers, I'm doing well! I have Herceptin treatments once every 3 weeks and will for the rest of my life. But that's a small price to pay to stay alive!
During this time, my mom (my best friend) had been sick w/ End Stage Renal Disease for many years and then got pancreatic cancer! We actually had a couple of treatments right next to each other. What better way to go through something like that than w/ you best friend!! She passed away 6 months later. That was VERY difficult - she had been my rock and I no longer had someone to talk to about it.
When I got discouraged, I just tried to remember that there were ALOT of others out there that were worse off than me. I saw them every time I went in for a treatment. And I tried not to focus on the disease, but on beating it and getting better.
Good luck to those of you who are just starting your journey through this thing call cancer. And to those of you who are veterans (on this veteran's day). Someday we will have a cure.....
Akron, OH