I am long overdue for an update, but that will have to wait (just a little longer). I am posting today because I think this message needs to be heard. I tend to focus on my niche in lung cancer, but the truth is, its a big wide open field. For a very long time (think since the 80’s) the survival rate has remained pretty stagnant with few exceptions. So when one hears the word Mesothelioma, you can understand the fear it strikes on one’s heart. It was March 1998 when my family got the news my father was diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma and given months to live. To his credit, he survived 16 months. Since that time, and for a long time, treatments didn’t change and neither did the prognosis. Until now. 
On August 1st, it was Lung Cancer Awareness Day, I was supposed to post this then, but I held on to it deliberatly to make a point. Every day is Lung Cancer Awareness Day for me and my family, and for all those who have been touched by this terrible disease. So I post this today, because August 6th is Lung Cancer Awareness Day as is the 7th and 8th and so on.
The second reason I post this is because many people out there who have been diagnosed or have a family member who has been diagnosed may not realise that asbestos exposure at the work place is a work place hazard, and that often, there are class action 
suits or government programs (although they don’t advertise!) to help support both the patients and their families. In Canada where I live, asbestos and its products are not
manufactured or in use, however, oftentimes exposure can come from old materials such as drywall, pipe fittings, or coatings. So if you are planning on a renovation, or work in construction, it is wise to be aware of potential exposure. Asbestos is stable until it is disturbed, so it is advised that you contact an inspector or a remidiation company prior to any demolition or work. I will post some links to information and contacts at the end of the post. Now that I have gotten that off my chest, I welcome you to read the following article: Mesothelioma doesn’t have to be a death sentance, by guest author Gregory A. Cade of the Environmental Litigation Group, P.C.
I have worked as an attorney who specializes in mesothelioma, asbestos and environmental law for over twenty years, and in this time my firm, Environmental Litigation Group, has helped more than two hundred thousand clients. I have spoken to many people and I have learned about their lives, experiences, fears, I became close to my clients and I have learned what most people think when they hear that they have mesothelioma.
First of all, it is important to define what mesothelioma actually is, as some readers might not have heard about it until now. Mesothelioma is a rare, very aggressive type of cancer that develops after asbestos fibers enter into a person’s body. This disease is extremely volatile, in the sense that it can metastasize extremely fast and it can take either a few months to a few decades for the cancer to develop, after being exposed to asbestos. There are 3 main organs where mesothelioma can develop: the lungs (pleural), the abdomen, liver, spleen and intestines (peritoneal) and the heart (pericardial). There are rare cases in which mesothelioma develops in other parts of the body, such as the testicles.
Throughout my career as an attorney, I have met many people diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma, the most common and aggressive form of this type of cancer. It is always heartbreaking to speak to them because you always feel and see the fear and hopelessness in their eyes. Many people would see a cancer diagnosis as equal to a death sentence. On top of that, because of its aggressiveness, since they are diagnosed mesothelioma, patients are usually expected to live between 6 and 18 months. This is why, most clients come broken and defeated, having already given up on the fight with the disease.
I believe that this is an incredibly wrong and dangerous mentality! To every person sick with this illness that comes through my door, I tell them to keep fighting, to never surrender. I personally know people who have lived over 10 years with mesothelioma. They do sports, go outside, eat at restaurants and they look great! Nobody would even think that they have cancer. As cliché as it may sound, I believe that cancer can be beaten and that nobody should ever give up hope.
In the last years, more and more treatments are becoming available to help cure cancer patients, or at least extend their lives. Chemotherapy and radiation therapy, although they yield results, are not the only options anymore. There are precise surgeries which remove damaged tissue, medical trials that can help people, there are blood transfusions to strengthen the immune system, there are pills which help fight the disease and keep it from spreading. All of these methods are worth trying as they can be the difference between life and death.
Of course, because mesothelioma, and cancer in general, are such aggressive diseases, patients adopt a fatalistic approach towards life. I want to urge people who may find themselves in this unfortunate situation to keep pushing forward! There are so many wonderful things to explore and if you are given a chance to do them, why not take it? Indeed, there are odds that the cancer will still progress, but even so, remain hopeful! Some clients who combined exercising with healthy eating and regular treatment have survived for more than 5 years, some even more that 10! They have watched their children grow, have remained with their loved ones, have explored the country and they have grown as a person. So I must emphasize once more, keep on fighting, hoping and taking care of yourself because cancer doesn’t have to be a death sentence.
Asbestos Information:
In Canada:
- https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/air-quality/indoor-air-contaminants/health-risks-asbestos.html
- https://www.ccohs.ca/oshanswers/chemicals/asbestos/home.html
- https://www.asbestos.com/mesothelioma/canada/
- https://cupe.ca/fact-sheet-asbestos
- http://cmfonline.org
- http://cansav.ca/compensation
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2365488/
USA:
- https://www.epa.gov/asbestos
- https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/causes-prevention/risk/substances/asbestos/asbestos-fact-sheet
- https://www.cancer.org/cancer/cancer-causes/asbestos.html
- https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/asbestos/
- https://www.cancer.org/cancer/malignant-mesothelioma.html
- http://www.lung.org/lung-health-and-diseases/lung-disease-lookup/mesothelioma/
International:
- http://www.who.int/ipcs/assessment/public_health/asbestos/en/
- http://www.ohsrep.org.au/hazards/asbestos/asbestos-in-the-home/asbestos-useful-websites-and-documents
- https://www.aic.org.uk
- http://asbestosglobal.org
- https://www.mesotheliomagroup.com
Spanish
A very special thanks to Gregory A. Cade of the Environmental Litigation Group, P.C. 2160 Highland Avenue Birmingham, Alabama 35205 (760) 696-7959
Be well,
AM
Its Valentine’s Day (and Ash Wednesday – irony?!), I had planned to write about some of
whole weekend and agreed to see each other again. When I got off the train three days later, he met me with snacks, because he knew I had been on a train for 5 hours and I might be hungry (Swoon). He then said he had dinner awaiting me.
About a year ago, I wrote about 
we keeping score? If we are, then we shouldn’t, because life owes us nothing.
It has been a little while since I have posted and much has happened since the last post. One of the most notable things is, I was selected and awarded the IASLC’s Patient Advocacy Travel Award. This award allows me to travel to Yokohama, Japan for their annual World Conference on Lung Cancer. JAPAN!!! I cannot tell you how excited I am. For one, I get to travel to a country that I have always wanted to visit. I get to soak up the latest information on lung cancer research and practice. I get to network with other patients, advocates and experts in the field of lung cancer research, and I get to go to Japan. Have I mentioned I’m going to Japan!?
It’s Mother’s Day today and I have to admit that it can be a bit of a challenging day for me. As progressive as I am and know that one is not defined solely on one aspect of their life, not being a mother is well a mother. After all it’s a day explicitly for celebrating our mother’s, but what is a mother?
For a while I thought that this sense of loss was more about feeling what it is like to be pregnant than actually being a mother, but I now know that it is the whole cycle of life that I am missing out on. 
It is amazing how things can come full circle. Having the option of being a mother taken away from me made me want it so much more, but having been through treatment and knowing I will live the rest of my life with cancer and the possibility of recurrence or progression at anytime I am steadfast in deciding not to have a child. I mean, how can I possibly put a child through losing their mother, or risk passing on my faulty genes or risk my own life just trying? Had I never encountered cancer, I wouldn’t have a problem trying to get pregnant at 39, but that is not the case. 
system, plus the time it would take to get pregnant and finally another nine months until delivery. I might be lucky enough have the cancer not grow or grow slowly enough to make it to delivery and restart treatment, but then there are no guarantees that I’d respond to treatment again. It would be playing Russian roulette. 
I am very lucky though, I am healthy and happy and have a wonderful little family (Me, my Patrick and all the fur babies, Lacey, Finn, Mischa and Borat), and have been blessed with a most incredible mother who raised and cared for me (still does) in good times and in bad and taught me how to be a strong woman. I have a wonderful mother-in-law who is kind and thoughtful and who so openly embraced me as a daughter and know through her son what an amazing mom she is. I have so many women in my life who inspire me to be great and to do great thing because of their example of sacrifice and grace. So I don’t have my own biological children and never will, but I have known the kind of 
love it takes to be a mother.
Today is May the 4th and for us Star Wars Fans out there it’s Star Wars Day and boy did I did feel at one with the Force. For a short time today I was truly happy because I was finally able to see my Oncologist and not one of her fellows (even though they are all lovely and very competent) because it’s just not the same. For months now, I have been struggling with being just good and not NED (No Evidence of Disease), it’s been quite an ordeal. This is in part because I have had access to the scan results and the fellows (bless them) have been saying “it looks good, no change,” the reports of course say that the nodules in slide x remain unchanged, so of course I see remain and think “well there’s cancer there!”
u are looking for impartial, you won’t find it here! Many and by many I mean millions of people will have to pay tens of thousands of dollars more to even get insurance or care based on their pool.If I lived there I would be in the two to tiers and would have to pay at least 150K a year and that doesn’t accept for the expensive pill I need to live. Even if I was at the top of my pay grade this is way more than I could afford, so without it I would die. Thats what my friends are facing. It sickens me! It also makes me so incredibly thankful that I was born in and live in Canada. Our system isn’t perfect, but you can bet your ass that if you’re in trouble you will be guaranteed care.
Kintsugi is the Japanese art of fixing broken pottery, and its philosophy is rather beautiful. It recognises the beauty and value in broken things (more specifically pottery) and speaks to the breakage and repair of objects becoming the history of something, rather than the disuse of it. Potters often repair objects with resins mixed with gold or silver, making no attempts to hide cracks, but to highlight them and make pieces more beautiful and interesting. Here we tend to throw them out. I prefer the Japanese way.
So often how we think and communicate can be a point of stress. By becoming aware over and over again how (in meditation) our thoughts can effect us, we can recognize them, let them go and return our focus to our breath. With time and practice we can gain some distance and perspective on our thoughts allowing us to see that there may be other ways to look at or think about situations, breaking us free from old patterns. Thoughts are only mental events, they are not facts. We certainly are nt our thoughts.
happens during a conversation, often communication breaks down because a person can feel threatened, resentful, and not heard. In MBSR we are learning to focus in on ourself and our behaviour rather than those of others. We tune into our thoughts, emotions and physical sensations so that we can read them. By being aware of these things, we gain a better sense of perspective and balance and can then focus on communicating our need rather than projecting them.
These Are My Scars 
You must be logged in to post a comment.