Reclaiming My Awe...Do you remember when you were first diagnosed or when you received word that your tumors were on the move again? It was a very scary time, without a doubt...reactionscomments
How Well Is Well When Talking About How We Feel?..."I'm doing fine." That is the response I usually give when asked how I am doing. People ask me how I feel and I usually tell them that "I feel...reactionscomments
What Are Specialty Pharmacies And Why Do We Use Them?...Let me start by saying that I realize I am lucky to have medical insurance provided through my husband’s employer. There are many people in the lung cancer community who...reactionscomments
Short Shelf Life...Lung cancer bloggers are not always around very long. Our community is ever-expanding, but the sad truth is that we can expect a loss of our voices with some regularity...reactionscomments
Taking a Little Break from Cancer with Other Cancer Survivors...Have you ever visited a Cancer Support Communities (CSC) clubhouse? Every time I go, I think I will be more active. I went yesterday and once more, I am vowing...reactionscomments
Receiving a Stage IV Lung Cancer Diagnosis as a Hospice Nurse...I have always been the "good" girl...always looking to do "the next right thing". Nursing was the most natural path for me to follow despite the fact that I had...reactions3comments
Remembering Our Fathers (and Mothers), and Ourselves...At some point, most of us will have lost one or both of our parents by the time we hit our own middle age. My father died a short time...reactionscomments
National Healthy Homes Month...June is National Healthy Homes Month. This year’s theme, "Unlocking the Potential of America’s Children: Check Your Home – Protect Your Family," serves as a great reminder to test our...reactionscomments
Navigating Disability & Social Security...SSDI stands for Social Security Disability Insurance and SSI stands for Supplemental Security Income. Did you know there is a very distinct difference between the two? When my cancer was...reactionscomments
Attending ASCO: Insights for Advocates - Part 2...Dusty continues her interview with ASCO’s Patient Advocacy Director, Jeannine Salamone. Click here to read Part 1.Dusty:“You mentioned what organization they represent and if that organization is a 501(c)(3). How...reactionscomments
High Grade Primary Pulmonary Mucoepidermoid Carcinoma...I am so blessed to have been diagnosed with stage one lung cancer in January 2017. I had VATS in February 2017 to remove my lower right lobe and a...reactionsreplies
I have been on Tagrisso for 19 months - should I have had an EKG?...I have been on Tagrisso for 19 months now. Initially I had an echocardiogram but nothing since like an EKG. Is that ok?...reactions2replies
Opioid Painkillers and Cancer Care...Cancer patients require a wide variety of options for their care, both curative and palliative. Sometimes that includes heavy-duty pain medications. There are times when those drugs fall under the...reactionscomments
Can I Retire? Should I?...Like with all of us, my cancer diagnosis threw a real wrench into my life. Suddenly, what was easy and taken-for-granted was no longer easy at all. For instance, working...reactionscomments
Cannabis Cans, Can'ts, and Quandaries: From Curious to Patient User...Read the beginning of Jeffrey's experience trying medical cannabis in Cannabis Cans, Can'ts, and Quandaries: Changing Perspectives. The gummy and mint products I procured had a combination of THC and...reactionscomments
What's Faith Got to Do with It?...I know, I know. It's a taboo subject these days. But, let's face it, faith plays a huge role in the way many patients and their loved ones deal with...reactionscomments
Cannabis Cans, Can'ts, and Quandaries: Changing Perspectives...I live in California where cannabis is legal (at the State level) for both medicinal and recreational use. Before it was legal for recreational use, there was a medical dispensary...reactionscomments
Attending ASCO: Insights for Advocates...During the 2018 annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, I interviewed Jeannine Salamone, ASCO’s Director of Patient Advocacy (pictured below), about the organization’s advocacy programs. Below is...reactionscomments
You Don't Smoke?...Are you a never smoker or someone who quit 30 years ago? Do you realize you can still get lung cancer? All you need to get lung cancer is lungs. Period. A young...reactionscomments
It's Time to Take Ownership over Our Care...Back in the day, when it was suspected that we had cancer, we were sent for a biopsy. The cells were studied to determine if we had cancer and what...reactionscomments