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My husband has just been diagnosed with stomach cancer that has mets'd to his lymph glands and his liver.....and maybe elsewhere. We are so angry that it was not picked up during one of his many doc visits. He takes good care of himself, sees docs regularly, takes his prescribed meds as ordered He complained of stomach issues and was prescribed a myriad of different drugs, none of which worked.AND NO ONE TOOK NOTE! I finally went to the doc with him and demanded that some testing be done. Surprise, surprise, how devestated we are. Just needing to vent a bit I guess. We are all trying our best to stay positive, to not give up hope. Pain level is minimal at this point but he is chronically exhausted. Have an upcoming app't with an oncologist although neither of us has a lot of faith in chemo or radiation. I'm a geriatric nurse and over the years I've cried to my husband about my patients and what they put themselves through to prolong their lives a bit longer. I would be gratful to hear uplifting sucess stories. Thank you,donna65

Hi, I'm a new person to this. My father was diagnosed with lung cancer in August & has 1 blast of chemo. I just found out last night that his chemo treatment is only to help him cope rather then been given for cure reasons. I have not been bringing him to his appointments & I feel like I am not been given all the information. If its a case that it has spread to his bones, which I believe it has & it is in his lymph nodes, would he have been given a time span, prognosis or do they only give that info if you ask the doctors? Thanks in advance for any help, its all muddy water to me!

Would love to hear from someone else who has experience of this cancer. Am due to start radio active iodine treatment in the following two weeks.

I was diagnosed with cancer of the oropharanx in August 2005 and finished my treatment in December of that year. I am now cancer free. However in the process I lost the use of my swallow muscles and am totally dependant on peg feeds for my nutrition. I would like to get in touch with other people that are in the same position as myself or those who may just have difficulty swallowing. While researching on the internet I found a treatment called Vital-stim which according to the site has very good outcomes for those whode muscles aren't working due to having had throat cancer. If anyone out there has information on this treatment could they please get in touch. I would also be interested in getting in touch with others that are in the same position as me.

Im new to this site but my mam was diagnosed with cervical cancer about 10 yrs ago. She lived through the pain and suffering of cancer for about 4/5 years but unfortunately died on the 1st july 2002. I miss her so much 6 yrs later to me it never gets any easier.My mams last wish was to travel to Lourdes one last time as she knew she was dying but never told myself or my sisters. Thanks to the South Tipp Hospice and the CASA group my mams wish was granted and she travelled to lourdes.Unfortunately my mam died on the plane home from Lourdes so we never got to see her before she died. Cancer of any form is a terrrible disease and it can destroy families. Cancer runs in my mams side of the family two of her sisters have had breast cancer and survived her nephew at 18 got cancer and also survived but unfortunately her aunt and uncle passed on from this disease also. To this day myself and my 2 sisters since my mam died are waiting 4 genetics tests to see if we have this cancerous gene and ave still not received it. The cancer care in this country should be improved for both cancer suffers and thier families...

Hi there I was diagnosed with d c i s in march of this year and had a full mastectomy and immediate reconstruction done in april . When my results came back after the op I was told the the pre cancerous cells had not spread out side of the duct and the lymph was also clear. I did not need any chemo or hormone treatment I am still finding it hard to get my head around the fact that I had such a radical opertion done and thats it" go away and get on with your life" is what my surgeon told me. I still worry that maybe I should have had some chemo as an "insurance policy " especially as I have never heard of any one in simalar situation every one I meet ask me when I am stating my chemo and look shocked when I tell them I dont need it. Any body out there with a simalar experience ?

We have only recently found out that Dad has cancer 2.5 weeks ago. All the signs were there but we didn't want to see what was right in front of our eyes. Dad was in hospital for Two weeks he is home now but he seems so distant there is Mam ,myself 2 sisters and 1 brother we all feel so helpless as my Dad has always been a strong man and in a matter of weeks he has become a shadow of himself. I try to put it all to the back of my mind ( the mind is a marvelous thing) but then when the reality hits it makes it even harder to cope.My father has an Ulcer sitting on top of the liver and he is being given drugs to keep this under control. We had a little glimmer of hope a week or so back when the doc said that he may be a candidate for Chemo but that didn't last long as they then said that the type of tumour that it was the chemo would have no effect. The Docs reckon that he has had the tumour for several years going undetected as Dad has never been one for Doctors or hospitals the very first time he has ever been in hospital was when the cancer was discovered . I feel like I am in this horrible dream and can't wake up from it, I try to talk to my family and boyfriend about this but it is just too upsetting to have to face the fact that the Docs are not treating the cancer at all so I have to face my biggest fear that I may not have dad for much longer and that scares me so much. I feel like I am slowly going insane I don't know how to cope.

dad, i just hope you really are in a better place now as everyone keeps telling me. its not even a fortnight yet but i miss you so much im actually feeling physical pain. i would never want to bring you back to suffer again as i know your pain was horrific. i often wondered if i did the right thing in fighting the doctors to allow you to come home, but i think it was the right thing for you. i know you didnt want to die in hospital, but the doctor told us you would have a couple of days left if we kept you in hospital, instead you only got 10 mins at home before you left us and for that ive felt a lot of guilt. but if you hadnt got your last wish to die at home i think my guilt would be so much more. i have you in my heart and when i miss you i think of the good times before you got sick. i will look after mum as you wouldve wanted, ive been with her every day since you left us. she is devastated but we can help each other. im going to miss our wee walks together with you holding my arm and our drives in the car where you gave me the wrong directions and got us lost. in the end though you were just too ill to do any of that. anyway daddy, i just wanted to let you know that i will always love you and as the song says, youre in the arms of the angels. from your loving daughter patricia, sleep tight daddy.

What is leukaemia and how is it treated? Leukaemia is a cancer of white blood cells .This occurs in the bone marrow where all the blood cells are made. Sometimes young white blood cells grow rapidly but do not mature properly. Other times old white cells do not die off naturally. These young or old abnormal cells build up in the bone marrow and prevent normal blood cells from growing. All the various types of blood cells are made by the bone marrow .The bone marrow is the spongy material that fills the middle of some bones and produces cells called stem cells. These cells mature into white cells, red blood cells and platelets. red blood cells carry oxygen to all the cells in the body white blood cells are essential for fighting infection platelets help the blood to clot and so control bleeding. All these cells normally stay inside the bone marrow until they are fully developed (mature). They are then released into the blood to circulate around the body and perform their functions Leukaemia's are divided into two main groups acute and chronic and then further divided by the type of white blood cell which is affected. Acute leukaemia's come on suddenly, often within days or weeks, progressing quickly and need to be treated urgently. Chronic leukaemia's develop more slowly often over many months or years. Some of the signs of leukaemia may include tiredness and some people become anaemic and need blood transfusions. They may be more vulnerable to infection because their immune system fails or they may bleed and bruise more easily because the little bits of blood cell called platelets, which make blood clot, aren't produced. Some types of leukaemia can be managed very well for long periods of time and many others are potentially curable. There are four main types of leukaemia: chronic myeloid (CML) acute myeloid (AML) chronic lymphocytic (CLL) acute lymphoblastic (ALL) Another type of leukaemia is the less common hairy cell leukaemia Each disease has its own characteristics and treatment. Because there are different types of leukaemia each type behaves differently and responds to different types of treatment. The main treatment for most types of leukaemia is chemotherapy. Other treatments that may be used include: Bone marrow and stem cell transplants ( Treatment of high doses of chemotherapy to kill off the blood cells and leukaemic cells in your bone marrow donated from a suitable donor, so that you are able to produce new healthy blood cells) Radiotherapy (A treatment for cancer using high energy x- rays) Monoclonal antibodies (A treatment where you receive special protein drugs that attach to the surface of the abnormal white cells and cause the cells to die) Targeted therapies (drugs to stop the growth and spread of cancer) The aim of the treatment is to stop the bone marrow producing abnormal white blood cells. Often, it is necessary to start treatment as soon as possible but sometimes, for some types of leukaemia, it is better to put off treatment. For some people this can mean not needing to start treatment for months or years until symptoms appear.

What is Cancer of the Thyroid Gland and what Treatment is Given? The thyroid is a small gland in the front of the neck just below the voice box (larynx) The thyroid is sometimes known as the “activity” gland because it produces hormones, which help to control various functions. Thyroid cancer is rare and usually affects middle aged to older people. The causes of thyroid cancer are unknown but there are some risk factors involved which may include :- An enlarged thyroid (goitre), thyroid nodules (adenomas), Inflammation of the thyroid (thyroiditis) An inherited faulty gene A diet high in fat and low in iodine Thyroid cancer can develop many years after exposure; for example, following the nuclear explosion surrounding Chernobyl in the Ukraine Children who had radiation treatment as a child may be more at risk in later life of developing thyroid cancer Treatment Surgery, radiotherapy, radioactive iodine treatment and thyroid replacement therapy can be given alone or in combination Radioactive iodine is a substance taken as capsules or a drink or injected into the vein in your arm. The thyroid cancer cells absorb the iodine and receive a very high dose of radiation, which will help to destroy the cancer cells. Many types of thyroid cancer can usually be treated very successfully and many patients are cured.