Living

I have had lung cancer for 4 years and 3 months. Overall, I have been healthy. That does not include the side effects from my different treatments but I am referring to...

Most people who hear of someone being diagnosed with lung cancer know, well, that's bad. And when they hear it is stage 4, that's even worse. That was my experience...

Trigger alert: cancer is a sensitive issue, but sometimes patients need to find humor in even the direst prognosis. I did not expect the reveal of my metastatic disease to...

I don't know about you, but when I was undergoing chemotherapy, I was so constipated that I was absolutely miserable. In fact, the constipation was one of the very worst...

I wrote an article recently about how I was guilty of falling into the trap of blaming an acquaintance's smoking habit for her possible lung cancer (it had not yet...

I have had four biopsies since I was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2013. Why so many biopsies? Well, each one was done at a particular time in my treatment...

It only takes one candle to light a dark room.  My mom would say that to me any time I would say that my contribution to something wouldn’t make a...

There has been a lot in the news in recent years about the importance of handwork for early childhood development, and how working with the hands enhances brain function, increases...

Once I got involved with patient advocacy, it quickly became apparent that my initial lack of information about lung cancer was definitely the norm, not the exception. The good thing...

Several days ago, I got a text message telling me that a former colleague and friend had passed away unexpectedly. I had seen her recently and she was her usual...

Nurses are such an important part of the cancer care team, and I hope we all show our gratitude to these professionals. For full disclosure, I am married to a...

Okay, this post is probably going to have a lot of people looking at me and thinking I have gone stark-raving crazy. But, here goes anyway! I participate in a...

Cancer treatment has so many side effects. Some pleasant, some unpleasant. An unexpected side effect is changes in your vision. I have been in cancer therapy of some kind for over four...

I have had more CT scans than I can count since I was diagnosed with lung cancer. I was always given iodinated contrast dye to make the scans easier to...

The body can change rapidly when undergoing cancer treatment. Some of the ways this happens are practically part of our popular culture: the hair loss, the sallow complexion, the frail...

I am on a forum with people who have all kinds of cancer. A lot of the members have had breast cancer so many posts there relate to issues concerning...

I grew up in a stoic family.  My parents did not express their sadness very often to us kids. We either saw happy or angry. Sadness was often hidden or done privately. In...

I've always tried to be a protector. I've been that guy who goes into the fray to break up fights. I've been the sponge that has absorbed the stresses and...

I recently I had the honor of participating in the American Association for Cancer Research’s Scientist-Survivor Program (SSP). It was the 20-year anniversary since its inception and there were 31...

Despite advances in early detection and treatments options, lung cancer remains the leading cancer killer of women and men in the U.S. Only 18 percent of those with lung cancer...