Hey Everyone,

I saw a news report on our local news (channel 11 FOX) a couple weeks ago and it was about breast cancer and the doctor (don't have her name) was saying that with breast cancer they strongly suggest that early detection the better the odds but she disagreed with that. She said that some people develop cancer and it takes a long time to spread (the cancer cells can lay dormant in the body)and some develop the cancer very quickly and it spreads quickly, regardless of the stage. Some are more agressive in some people than others and that some people even being diagnosed at very early stages will not be able to beat the cancer because it depends on the person and not the stage. I was very puzzled by this and had it been earlier in the day I would have written down names etc so I could research whatever study it was that was done and gotten more info but it was right before I was going to bed and I just kind of let it go. But it is something that has been on my mind.

Has anybody else heard anything about this?

Danielle

Actually I don't think it's anything new. It's all pretty much true. Some cancers are caused environmentally and others are genetic. Some are very agressive and others can be "outlived" with no treatment necessary. Differences in immune systems factor into it. On the site we have stage IV survivors and have stage I patients with recurrences gone terminal. I don't agree that early detection isn't valid however, the earlier the stage cancer is caught the better the survival odds - as a general rule. There are always exceptions.

The doctor making those comments is really doing a diservice. Or maybe its Fox trying to get another eye-catching storyline that allows too much room for misinterpretation. People hate getting tested as it is and it can only serve to drive them away. There is solid statistical evidence that early detection has made significant advances in the 5 year survival rate for breast and prostate cancer (which are now the most survivable forms of cancer). Did they mention that?

If we REALLY understood cancer we would have come up with a better method than "slash, burn and poison" to cure it.

At the end of the day, when new visitors come in they are mainly looking for 2 things in my opinion. First, they come looking for information. This site has probalby the best information regarding oral cancer that I've seen, hat's off to Brian. That doesn't even take in to account the wealth of experience people are privvy to when they check the boards.

Second, I think when they start checking the boards and participating, they are also looking for hope. Hope that maybe they can get through this ok, that they will survive the ordeal. They want to know they are not alone, others are going through this and are surviving just fine. Unfortunately, life being what it is, some participants don't fare so well in their battle. I once participated in a support group for caregivers who's partners had cancer, and the mortality rate for the caregivers in our group was higher than the corresponding group of cancer patients.

Of course, during the natureal progression of discussions, if we see that someone is getting pretty substandard care, then it probably is our "duty" as freinds if nothing else to pipe up and say something.

Anyway, that's my 2 cents worth.
Bob

Hi, This is a good line of thought. I have always wondered why they do not look more at the ones who make it instead of the ones who do not.Some people never get a chance to fight it, it is moving to fast. Not just oral cancer.Wonder why?There are a lot of health factors figured in, but some people make it against the odds and others do not.Our body make up? Of course some people never live a healty lifestyle and live to old age never seeing Cancer. Maybe they should drag all these people in and do a study on them! I recently went to my family Doctor with a cold, he looked over my record and sent me up to X-ray. I grumbled about just needing antibiotics and cold medicine and then it hit me. I will never have a normal Doctor appointment again, Cancer alert every time. This is good but a big reminder we are never safe. The X-ray was clear, which is good.I do feel strange knowing this is the first thing they will look for every time I get a cold or anything else.Reality is sometimes not a pretty thing.

Gnelson makes a very good point. I am sure for many here that the diagnosis, resulting shock, fear and numbness prevents many from either researching or making key decisions until it is too late to do so. It is all too easy to be swept up and overwhelmed by the medical system. I had like three days to decide whether or not to have all my teeth pulled, 14hr. radical neck disection/pectoral flap surgery & radiation vs. radiation alone (with or without chemo), accept standard XRT vs. IMRT, etc. I had to go into practically 24 hr a day research to figure out all of the treatment possibilites and risk/benefit of each. It was a daunting task. I already had information links due to my longtime association with the radiological medical devices industry and I have friends who are oncologists. I had to put all of my feelings on the back burner which I paid a price for later on. If I hadn't had my wife transcribing notes at all of the doctors visits I am sure I would have missed half of the information they were giving me. And then there was the task of finding the most qualified doctors and treatment facilities. To further complicate matters, I had no medical insurance when I was first Dx'd. I am also self employed so had no disability insurance either, so in addition to all of the medical decisions, I had to put together an emergency financial plan as well. I needed to get these things out of the way because I knew that my focus would have to be on treatment, surviving the treatment and eventual healing.

I know what you mean about never feeling safe. Last night I had a "death dream" - my first ever. I dreamt that the cancer had spread to the point where I needed euthanasia and I then had to decide whether or not to die in my wifes arms. It was one of those "reality" dreams, in high definition and Dolby Digital sound track. It was very creepy. I had drinking dreams when I first became sober so I would imagine that this is just a spin on that. I'm not going to let it ruin my day.

I do pretty well with the followups now, I don't think about them too much. It's "in and out". I remain pretty much neutral about it - no fear but no gloating afterwards either. I certainly don't have the attitude that I "beat cancer". I think that we're all walking around on eggshells here and that is part of the "new normal" as well as the physiological changes. I would give anything to go back to the precancer state-of-mind, but as has been said "acceptance is the answer to all my problems today". Easily said - difficult to execute.