November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month- Page 2

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 11/17/04 at 4:12pm

Darlin', try raising funds and awareness for children's cancer. You want to talk about stigma? No one will even DISCUSS it.

[Karma76]

Posted: 11/17/04 at 4:29pm

ST Judes does wonderful things for children's cancer. I myself donate to the Jimmy Fund every morning at dunkin donuts and donate elsewhere to them. I have also volunteered since you spend a LOT of time in the cancer ward with lung cancer (you get pnemonia and infections a LOT once your doing your treatments) and have actually traveled to the childrens cancer ward to volunteer. They do have celebrity spokes people, they do have awareness and advocacy. They need it as well!!!!

I promise you lung cancer and i am talking specifically lung cancer...not smoking ads, not Phillips Morris, not the truth commercial LUNG CANCER when was the last commercial you saw about awareness??? telethon??? walk??? celebrity spokesperson??? Matter of fact you have NO idea how hard it is to get it acknowledged!! People have wrote and pleaded with media to do stories...people I know and got flat out NO's. One said as long as we can focus on how some of these people were smokers??? WHY that is EXACTLY what they want to get rid of. it is sad honestly how little people care about it. BUT the chances that everyone on this board will loose someone to lung cancer is VERY high so I am just doing my part to make sure those people are taken care of if they ever unfortunately DO have to deal with it.

[Karma76]

Posted: 11/18/04 at 10:22am

Just wanted to keep this at the top as well. please do your part if you can.

also today is the great american smokeout.

here is a link with some tips and info on the event!


Great American Smokeout

Posted: 11/18/04 at 11:41am

Karma, your icon makes me laugh.

I discussed this thread with my shrink last night. Her mother died from lung cancer after smoking for forty years.

She agrees with what a number of people have said here: That lung cancer carries a "well, they did it to themselves" stigma and similarly, if a person has a bad liver they are automatically labeled a drunk.


I want to say that I have no tolerance for smoking but I am a big advocate of fighting lung cancer. When I was in the Navy I was exposed to more asbestos than I care to imagine. Asbestosis will give you lung cancer as quick if not quicker than smoking.

[HeartinNYC]

Posted: 11/18/04 at 11:45am

And I detest the attitude people have that if you have lung cancer, well, it's your own damned fault for smoking or living in a large city or working in a toll both or whatever the hell else. There's evidence that digestive cancers are caused by poor nutrition as well, but no one ever tells people with stomach cancer that "they did it to themselves".

Whether or not you smoke, lung cancer has become a pervasive threat to all of us and is seriously underfunded.

Posted: 11/18/04 at 11:48am

I agree.

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 11/18/04 at 11:52am

Karma, you are absolutely right about St. Jude's. They are awesome. However, where is the corporate sponsorship, the walkathons, the ribbons (there are ribbons, but who wears them? Who knows what color they are (gold)? Do you know that September is Children's Cancer Awareness month? Probably not.) I just wanted to make a point, but I'll stop now because I know this thread is about lung cancer.

My dad smoked and drank his whole life and died of liver cancer at age 67. Less than two months from diagnosis till death.

[Karma76]

Posted: 11/18/04 at 12:02pm

Danka Rodney on my avatar. I used it on a old skool rap cd i made for a friends birthday.

I think that is awesome that you discussed this thread!! It is awful how people view it. That is why a LOT of stars will not speak out about it at all. Yul brenner did a lot for it before he passed away. It is odd that people will not help. The board I found after my dad got diagnosed was so great!!! a group of people who have lung cancer or a loved on or friend does. well this board of over 1500 people tries EVERY DAY to raise awareness, contacting media as on of those tactic, contacting celebrities. Really tough I tell you!!

Here is a good article written by a person with LC about the stigma and how you do not see it until you have to deal with it.

http://www.cancerlynx.com/lung.html Updated On: 11/18/04 at 12:02 PM

[Karma76]

Posted: 11/18/04 at 12:09pm

Rathnait62 I did actually you be surprised once someone has cancer how aware you become of a LOT of cancer....also since my dad had metastasis to his liver, bones, brain, pancreas and so on.

As for children, I did the walk for cancer that is the old Boston marathon route we have here in Boston for the jimmy fund at the end of September!!!

I think you are missing the point though...this is not a competition. I am just trying to raise awareness in it lung cancer awareness month! Next year make sure you put up a post for children cancer!! Definitely!! I will keep it going

I am sorry about your dad : (
Updated On: 11/18/04 at 12:09 PM

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 11/18/04 at 12:15pm

Oh I'm not trying to compete at all. Lung cancer and children's cancer are very similar in my view, as far as awareness and stigma. That's the point I was trying to make.

Women's cancers, especially breast cancer, have benefited GREATLY from the awareness that's been raised by huge corporations and celebrities. And that is so incredibly wonderful - but it's sad that it doesn't carry over to other diseases.

And I didn't even think to put up a thread in September...the first thread like this that I saw was for October and breast cancer.

[Karma76]

Posted: 11/18/04 at 1:35pm

Awareness is KEY!! I actually have 2 girls friends who moms had lung cancer! They got diagnosed in stage 3 and were operable so they are doing great with 1 1/2 lungs!

Just like breast cancer early detection is huge and would cut the death rate, but insurance do not like to pay for that since it required scans which is sad!!

Also you know what I am shocked by and this goes for all cancer. They have this thing called chemo sensitive testing out there where when they do a biopsy they can test the cancer with the brands of chemo out there, mix and match whatever and see which cocktail is most effective in killing the cancer cell and THEN start the patient on that! BUT nope, again insurance. Sad isn't it. They make too much money off of it. My dad's chemo's (which I promise myself I will never take that option after going thru it) were switched 3 times in 6 months. and do you know how much a whack a chemo treatment is. between 11 & 16,000 I kid you not I saw the bills.....it is astounding. Updated On: 11/18/04 at 01:35 PM

[Karma76]

Posted: 11/19/04 at 9:25am

PLease Bumpity bump bump for the month of November Lovelies!!! :)

[NYadgal]

Posted: 11/19/04 at 9:27am

Hugs to all those who are battling cancer, and a special hug to a friend who lost his mother to lung cancer. xox

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 11/19/04 at 9:27am

Good morning, Karma.

[Karma76]

Posted: 11/19/04 at 9:37am

haha good morning Rathnait! I am not on over the weekend so if someone can help to keep this close to the top that would rock!! Matter of fact Sunday they are having a service for my dad. The funeral home (who were family friends) puts all people who have passed away in certain time periods in for a special mass to honor their memory. it is really nice!

[Karma76]

Posted: 11/22/04 at 9:05am

Bump

[Fair 2 Middlin]

Posted: 11/22/04 at 9:14am

I hope the event was beautiful.

I am in the middle of packing. I keep coming across different items that invoke so many memories of my mom. I can't believe it will be five years in January. Seems like yesterday.

[NYadgal]

Posted: 11/22/04 at 9:17am

*hugs* for Fair.

And all my friends touched by this disease.

[Karma76]

Posted: 11/22/04 at 10:15am

You moving? I know going thru old stuff does make it harder. The holidays too are not particularly that fun anymore either.

Posted: 11/22/04 at 10:34am

OK..

Many people have said "_____ died of lung cancer after smoking for (some number grater than 30) years"

Back in the day EVERYONE smoked (a good demonstration of this is the film, Mona Lisa Smile)

Back then there wa not any awareness of the dangers of smoking. So I feel bad for the people who got hooked back the 60s or whenever because everyone was ignorant of the dangers.

However, what I can't understand is why so many young people start smoking now that EVERYONE knows how bad it is for you.

[Karma76]

Posted: 11/22/04 at 10:56am

why do people do drugs? People experiment which then leads to the addiction. I agree it is horrible, but people fall into things all the time.

Here are some other causes of lung cancer

What Causes Lung Cancer?

A risk factor is anything that increases a person's chance of getting a disease such as cancer. Different cancers have different risk factors. Some risk factors, such as smoking, can be controlled. Others, like a person's age or family history, can't be changed. But having a risk factor, or even several, doesn’t mean that a person will get the disease.

Smoking is by far the leading risk factor for lung cancer. Tobacco smoke causes more than 8 out of 10 cases of lung cancer. The longer a person has been smoking and the more packs per day smoked, the greater the risk. If a person stops smoking before lung cancer develops, the lung tissue slowly returns to normal. Stopping smoking at any age lowers the risk of lung cancer. Cigar and pipe smoking are almost as likely to cause lung cancer as is cigarette smoking. There is no evidence that smoking low tar cigarettes reduces the risk of lung cancer.

People who don’t smoke but who breathe the smoke of others also have a higher risk of lung cancer. Non-smoking spouses of smokers, for example, have a 30% greater risk of developing lung cancer than do spouses of nonsmokers. Workers exposed to tobacco smoke in the workplace are also more likely to get lung cancer.

Asbestos is another risk factor for lung cancer. People who work with asbestos have a higher risk of getting lung cancer. If they smoke as well, the risk is greatly increased. Although asbestos was used for many years, the government has now nearly stopped its use in the workplace and in home products. While it is still present in many buildings, it is not thought to be harmful as long as it is not released into the air.

A type of cancer linked to asbestos (mesothelioma) can start in the pleura. The American Cancer Society has information about mesothelioma available through our toll-free number or on our Web site.

Radon is a radioactive gas made by the natural breakdown of uranium. Radon can’t be seen, tasted, or smelled. Radon can become concentrated indoors and create a possible risk for cancer. Smokers are especially sensitive to the effects of radon. State and local offices of the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) can provide information about how to test for radon in the home.

High radon levels in some mines can increase the lung cancer risk for miners.

Cancer-causing agents in the workplace include uranium, arsenic, vinyl chloride, nickel chromates, coal products, mustard gas, chloromethyl ethers, gasoline, and diesel exhaust. People who work with these substances should be very careful to avoid exposure as much as possible.

Marijuana cigarettes have more tar than regular cigarettes. Many of the cancer-causing substances in tobacco are also found in marijuana. Some medical reports suggest that marijuana could cause cancers of the mouth and throat. But because marijuana is an illegal substance it is not easy to gather information about its effects on the body.

Other diseases such as tuberculosis (TB) and some types of pneumonia often leave scars on the lung. This scarring can increase the risk of developing lung cancer.

Personal and family history: If you have had lung cancer, you have a higher risk of getting another lung cancer. Brothers, sisters, and children of people who have had lung cancer may have a slightly higher risk themselves.

Diet: Some reports suggest that a diet low in fruits and vegetables might increase the risk of lung cancer in people who are exposed to tobacco smoke. Evidence suggests that fruits and vegetables may offer protection against lung cancer.

Gender: Several studies have shown that the lung cells of women are more likely to develop cancer when exposed to tobacco smoke.

Air pollution: In some cities, air pollution may slightly increase the risk of lung cancer. But the risk is still far less than that caused by smoking.

During the past few years, scientists have made great progress in understanding how risk factors produce certain changes in the DNA of lung cells, causing the cells to become cancerous. DNA is the genetic material that carries the instructions for nearly everything our cells do.

Current research in this field is aimed at developing tests that can find lung cancers at an early stage by spotting DNA changes. Other researchers are working on ways to repair or replace these faulty genes in order to stop the growth and spread of cancer cells.

Revised 4-04

[Karma76]

Posted: 11/23/04 at 11:32am

My daily Bump!!

[grownupgroupie]

Posted: 11/23/04 at 1:14pm

So glad you bumped this!

My 55-year old aunt was diagnosed with small cell lung cancer--which usually has a 13% survival rate--last week.

It's been really helpful for me to see this thread, and thanks for all the information and comfort.

[Karma76]

Posted: 11/23/04 at 1:44pm

You are welcome. If you have any question feel free to ask too. I put a GREAT message board that helped me and my family with MANY issues, questions, qualms even just good people to talk to. So please tell your aunt about it too cause it is a wonderful resource for anyone.
Great Message board for support with lung cancer

[Karma76]

Posted: 11/24/04 at 12:10pm

BUMP!!!!!!! PLease keep this going during the holiday weekend if you can!!!