Time for a new treatment

Hi Amanda,

I am so sorry to hear about your news.  Hopefully the Xeloda will help.  i am back on that at the moment and being reviewed in about two weeks.    Just make sure you do in fact eat before you take it.  Yoghurt is good.

I agree that more needs to be done for those with Advanced disease.  There seems to be so many more people out there now living with Advanced and for a few years too.

When i was diagnosed just over six and a half years ago, I contacted support groups and different departments.  They all seemed to write me off then and there.  The support groups told me they couldn't help me and some of the medical professionals (not my oncologist) heard my prognosis and just went oh well you'd better get your affairs in order because this is going to get you soon.  The "mental anguish" that this places on a person with an already altered lifestyle and length of life is terrible.

We are still here and there are many treatments still available to us.  I know a cure would be wonderful and I pray for it every day, but I am also grateful that there are so many treatments out there that even though they cause us further illness and new and different problems, at least we are still here.

I want to be able to see my girls all leave school, my youngest in 3 more years and I would desperately love to see them married and with children.  A lot of people don't realise how these things in life are so important to someone fighting this disease and so many other chronic and life threatening illnesses.

Sorry I went off on a tangent there, but I have actually spent the day with a friend of the family who is fighting multiple myeloma and these were some of the discussions we were having today.  Funnily enough he has exactly the same thoughts that we all seem to have too.  Different cancer but the thoughts are all the same.

I wish you all the best Amanda.  Stay as strong as you can be.  We are all thinking of you.

Take care

Tracey xx