I hate cancer

[guest2013-1]

Hate is the mild version of what I feel against this disease...

In June my aunt (after being in remission for almost a year from breast cancer) had a lung cancer scare. Several tests later she was cleared, until early August where they confirmed an advanced form of lung cancer spreading from her "breast" (?) bone.

The chemo pills and pain was excrutiating and she has since then weakend so much that they stopped the chemo pills and she's purely on pain killers now. Bed ridden and weak.

I'm sitting here in Dubai going "WTF!!!!!!!" and this morning there was a quick highlight about anti-cancer lifestyles and whatever. I have no idea what to do or say. I'm flying down end of September for a week or so. Might be able to see her.... hope I can.... my cousin flew in from London last week to say goodbye to his mom and his brother was there the previous week from JHB to do the same. My grandmother is obviously in a spin about this whole ordeal, out of the 5 sons she's her only daughter...

If I could take her cancer away (even if the negative affect would be to take it into myself) I would...

I hate cancer...

 

[Alan]

Cancer is terrible. Can hit anyone anytime

I have a friend who's uncle is dying from pancreatic cancer. He's basically at the same stage as your aunt.

 

[Debbie]

I hate cancer too. Lost my mother to it a year after it killed her only sibling, my uncle. Then it got my father's twin brother. Anyone, anytime.

My sincerest sympathies for what you and your family are going through AcidRazor.

 

[Mephisto_Helix]

man ...... all the MyBB members having such bad luck lately ....... My sympathies to you, your Aunt and your family bru.

 

[Just_Ice]

Sorry hey
You're now alone, it seems there are a lot of us who have lost family to cancer and/or have family with cancer. I have had 2 aunts both who passed away from cancer and there have been other people in my family who have TG over come it.

 

[waynegohl]

my grandfather died of cancer. its not nice at all.

 

[DDV TECH]

I lost both my parents and my favorite uncle to the damn disease. Anyone who has ever had to care for a family member/ friend suffering from cancer has my sincerest sympathy and highest admiration. To watch someone you love and respect fading away is one of the hardest things you will ever have to do in your life.

 

[oober]

My neighbor died of cancer last week.

 

[BTTB]

Someone was saying to me that Cancer can only live in a body that is acidic.
This person reckoned that if you can keep your body on the right side of the pH scale, in other words Alkaline, the body should be clear of the disease.

There could be something to the pH theory, but from what I have heard Cancer is in our bodies but just needs something to trigger it off.
Things I reckon you could use to keep the pH balance could be things like Dr Auer's Base Powder or Vogel's Alkaline Powder. Heard that a diet of grapes can also do the trick.
As there is no medical cure for cancer the jury is still out on the cure.

 

[Oxphos]

Someone was saying to me that Cancer can only live in a body that is acidic.
This person reckoned that if you can keep your body on the right side of the pH scale, in other words Alkaline, the body should be clear of the disease.

There could be something to the pH theory, but from what I have heard Cancer is in our bodies but just needs something to trigger it off.
Things I reckon you could use to keep the pH balance could be things like Dr Auer's Base Powder or Vogel's Alkaline Powder. Heard that a diet of grapes can also do the trick.
As there is no medical cure for cancer the jury is still out on the cure.

Well, that someone is sort-off right. During the evolution of cancer, cells switch from aerobic respiration to anaerobic respiration.
That means that instead of using the mitochondrial pathway and oxygen for energy, cancer cells switch eto an energy pathway that does not use oxygen and produces a lot of lactic acid. Various things cause this, including hypoxic conditions (low oxygen) which activates genes that causes this metabolic shift. Mutations in mitochondrial DNA also contribute.

This is also why cancer kills. This pathway of energy production is very inefficient and produces a lot of lactic acid. This increase in energy usage (with low yields) together with the production of lactic acid causes a breakdown of surrounding tissue and causes the cells to spread all over, repeating the cycle of destruction.

Off course various other modifications also undergo during the evolution of cancer cells. The 2 most important factors probably being:
Loss in the ability of the cell to respond to growth inhibitory signaling
They can divide forever (meaning they somehow become immortalized)

Is there hope?

Yes. Various drugs currently in clinical trials were designed to target the specific weak points of cancer metabolism. Some of them shows promise.

In the meantime, exercise (increased oxygen delivery to hypoxic regions) and a healthy diet are the best things to fight off cancer. That is probably one of the reasons Lance Armstrong survived his cancer.

However, cancer is mainly a disease of age. Someone said that if all men lived long enough, they will eventually get prostate cancer.

 

[DJ...]

I am in remission at the moment. I don't hate cancer anymore. I have learned to respect it and actually having cancer changed me as a person for the better (yes, hard to believe but I was worse )

 

[Oxphos]

I am in remission at the moment. I don't hate cancer anymore. I have learned to respect it and actually having cancer changed me as a person for the better (yes, hard to believe but I was worse )

Good to hear.
May I ask what kind of cancer you had and what treatment you received? Interested, you don't have to answer .

 

[DJ...]

Good to hear.
May I ask what kind of cancer you had and what treatment you received? Interested, you don't have to answer .

Doctors thought it was an enchondroma at first. However the tests indicated that it was malignant and I was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma only after the surgery.

Because the surgery took place before the chemo, I was forced to go onto a very aggressive treatment regime as apparently Osteosarcoma is usually treated by chemo before the surgery. Zofran became my best friend at that stage.

The treatment involved massive amounts of drugs in my system during the chemo that made me too weak to even feed myself, and radiation therapy.

 

[Debbie]

Thanks for the informative post Oxphos, I appreciate you taking the time to share your knowledge.

 

[Oxphos]

Doctors thought it was an enchondroma at first. However the tests indicated that it was malignant and I was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma only after the surgery.

Because the surgery took place before the chemo, I was forced to go onto a very aggressive treatment regime as apparently Osteosarcoma is usually treated by chemo before the surgery. Zofran became my best friend at that stage.

The treatment involved massive amounts of drugs in my system during the chemo that made me too weak to even feed myself, and radiation therapy.

Unfortunate that you had to go on an aggressive treatment regimen. It is really amazing when looking at the mechanism of action of some drugs. Many drugs do not actually specifically target cancer cells but just fast-dividing cells (one of the non-exclusive properties of cells). Some of the drugs are literally just poison as they cause DNA breaks and block cell division (anti-mitotic) in all cells and hence the reason for hair loss and one of the reasons you felt so bad.
Luckily they do work for certain cancers and research is ongoing to find and design more potent and more specific drugs.
Long-term survival for Osteosarcoma is also promising after successful treatment (+-70%) and new therapeutic approaches for relapsed patients also provide promise

Thanks for the informative post Oxphos, I appreciate you taking the time to share your knowledge.

Pleasure . I have some spare time the next few weeks... holiday.

 

[Jewelbox]

Just about everybody knows someone who either has cancer or has passed away, due to cancer.

Very sad!

 

[PPC_SouthAfrica]

I know how you feel I lost my aunt, grandmother and uncle to cancer, its an awful thing.

 

[Lino]

Sorry to hear it mate. I know last year in December my one aunt was diagnosed with Cancer. After many months of treatment etc she is in remission. However now I pray and hope it never returns.

My thoughts are with you

 

[guest2013-1]

im actually scared to go visit when i fly down september. Dont think id be able to handle it

 

[guest2013-1]

im actually scared to go visit when i fly down september. Dont think id be able to handle it

I don't have to worry about that anymore. My aunt passed away this morning at about 6:05am. I don't think I want to phone home right now, my dad just smsed me...