Hi guys,

Remember back in March and we talked about NASCAR driver Bobby Hamilton having head and neck cancer? Well I just read that he passed away from the disease late today. There aren't many details out there yet. Just sad to hear of this disease taking yet another.


Pam

Hi Pam, I just read that too about Bobby Hamilton. Very sad news. I thought he was doing better and now this. Very sad. Carol

Here's the early AP report of his death.

Very sad indeed, my heart goes out for his family. Not what any of us like to hear, but it is what it is.

I just now read the article myself and what a shocker. I had just read about 3 months ago that he was progressing well with clean scans since out of treatment.

Does anyone know the exact type he had? All I have ever seen in print is "head and neck" cancer but there must be something more specific than just that. His first awareness reportedly was a swelling on the right side of his neck which is the same I had with BOT.

I personally have had 2 clean scans since out of treatment but was just reading the other day about how a scan can miss cells that are under a certain size. I was rather stunned to read that and it made me rethink my feeling so positive about my scans.

The media never gets this right. To them the head and the neck (let alone the mouth) are all one piece. He definately had oral cancer with cervical spread. The news section of the site, and here on the message boards via the search engine, you will find the original posts and news articles related to him and his disease.

Very Sad.

A Non Smoker. Complications from oral surgery

Jaw.

Here is a good site:

http://www.vicc.org/momentum/autumn06/rare_cancer.html

This tells it all.

My thought and prayers go out to his family.

My older brother called me and said that he had heard it at work in passing and thought is was me. Until someone told him it was the NASCAR driver 2-3 min later. He called me in tears. Kinda freaky.

I have never seen (or heard in this case) him cry. Not at either of my parents or grandparents funerals, nothing. Today he cries....

My prayers go out to he and his family.

Have a nice day.

Robert (Bobby until I was 30) Hamilton

Thanks Robert for the link. My prayers go out to the family as well. He was diagnosed not long after my father and there cancer was similiar. I had been following his story but like everyone else, thought he was doing better.

Brian, could you tell us what "cervical spread" is? I did a search, but just get info on female cervical cancer. thanks.

I am not completely positive but I think cervical spread in this case means it had spread to the lymph nodes in his neck. These nodes are referred to as cervical nodes. Also does anyone know if Bobby had SCC or a different cell type such as adenocarcinoma?