Cancer Treatment: September 2010

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Is there a way to get free money for cancer treatment.

Is there a way to get free money for cancer treatment.?
I'm really not to sure if I do have a form of cancer but there's some signs of it. I'm just to scared to go to the hospital to find because they cost money and I really don't have that kind of money. The surgurey cost almost 33,000 and kemo is like 45,000. So is there any one who can help me with this.
Cancer - 9 Answers

Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
Have you considered becoming a citizen of a country that has socialized medicine??? Then it wouldn't cost you a thing...
2 :
Yes, medicare medicate, .I know some who had a extremely rare type and the DR paid his bills
3 :
Insurance!!!
4 :
Move to the UK! everyone else does
5 :
well you can do a lemonad stand or a car wash
6 :
more cheap way to became citizen of country where cancer treatment costs covered by insurance programms i think.
7 :
Sorry to say that. Some times the best way & only way is to give up. You've been chosen for a higher destination Eternal life in a better place Cancer Cannot and Will not be treated. God works in Misterious Ways
8 :
Yes, cancer is an expensive disease. My mom had cancer (she's in remission now), as did my best friend's dad (he died last November). I believe some states require hospitals to offer free care to patients who cannot afford treatment, but need it nonetheless. Other states will allow you to pay off the debt over a very long period of time. Another way to get free/reduced care is to go through clinical trials for new cancer treatments. That's what my friend's dad did. Some are more effective than others, because they're still in the testing phase, but sometimes they really help. I would recommend talking to your doctor first. Also, there may be charities that can assist you. But not being able to afford treatment is no excuse not to go to the doctor! Money, or your life? It isn't worth putting it off. Go to your doctor, and if it is cancer, your doctor will be able to help you figure out ways to afford treatment. Good luck!
9 :
yes there is but 1st you have to find out that it is cancer there are cancer support groups all over the world they will pay for cancer treatment and surgery 1st do this find out for sure go to the dr and make sure if it is cancer then the groups will help you pay the bill you got to find out that is what i had to do when we found out my husband had cancer of the mouth

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Friday, September 24, 2010

Does anyone know of an on-line support group for people who have family going through cancer treatment

Does anyone know of an on-line support group for people who have family going through cancer treatment?
It would be best if the cancer support group was encouraging, making members feel better.
Cancer - 3 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
call your local hospital, American Cancer Society, or oncologist.
2 :
ACOR maintains over 100 different listservs for various cancers. Also included are lists for parents of children with cancer, people with siblings with cancer and various groups for caregivers and also end of life issues groups. Here is a link to the mailing list directory that has the general categories of the various lists. ACOR (Association of Online Cancer Resources) is the largest non-commercial listserv resource for people with cancer and their caregivers. http://www.acor.org/mailing.html
3 :
Cancer Care is another excellent on line resource with social workers moderating private message boards. They also offer counseling: Cancer Care http://www.cancercare.org/ You might also be able to find an active Yahoo Group that will offer support: http://health.dir.groups.yahoo.com/dir/Health___Wellness/Support/Diseases_and_Conditions/Cancers

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Monday, September 20, 2010

How long do I have to decide on treatment for kidney cancer

How long do I have to decide on treatment for kidney cancer?
If one has two small cancers, one on each kidney, how long can one realistically take to decide on what kind of treatment to begin? How fast on the average do such things grow? Is there not a scientifically based growth rate pattern average?. Would ones recovery likely be comprimised by a delay of one month or two before begining treatment?
Cancer - 6 Answers

Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
I'm sorry I don't know the answer but hope someone does. Have you asked your doctor? I would have thought that the sooner the treatment was started the better, as cancer only keeps growing if not treated. And of course it can also spread to other parts of the body. I hope things work out well for you.
2 :
why don't you talk this over with your DOCTOR! This is pretty serious to ask a bunch of unqualified strangers.
3 :
this is a question for your doctors, not for YA
4 :
i am so sorry, you have a lot on your plate from the sounds of things, i have no miracle answers for you, sorry, God Bless You and Good Luck!!!
5 :
Sounds like you have been diag. already so why are you asking anyone on a website that you do not have a clue about the answer to your question that could be life and death for you. What part of stupid are you?
6 :
Everyone's cancer is different. Some cancers are agressive (they grow very fast) and some grow very slowly. To give you an average would be equivalent to taking one person strolling along, and another person sprinting at top speed, and calculating the average speed between those two. It's not a good idea to delay treatment. The biggest risk with cancers is not how fast they grow, but the risk of cancer cells escaping into other parts of the body. The longer the cancer sits there, the more chance there is of that happening. If there is some form of basic treatment that you can have while working out your future options? That might be the best of both worlds. Do get a second opinion and also try some alternative therapies, like diet, meditation etc. They can't hurt!

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Thursday, September 16, 2010

How many months after treatment would breast cancer metastasize to other parts of the body

How many months after treatment would breast cancer metastasize to other parts of the body?
If you make a graph and number months after treatment which month number would get most of the hits lets say on a scatter gram? So if it is typically 18 months after treatment would that be typically when most cancers reoccur? I am trying to stay positive but I want to also make these times her best.
Cancer - 3 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
Dave, there is no answer for this. I saw many hundreds of women with breast cancers. There was no month in my experience that would show a concentration of "hits' on a scatter diagram. I've seen metastatic disease show up clinically one year, 2 years, 5 years, 10 years and even 20 years after the original primary cancer was treated. No two people were the same. Obviously - when it does recur - the metastatic disease had been there all of the time but had been dormant or too small to be clinically evident. A billion breast cancer cells makes a tumor mass only ~1cm in diameter. We cannot see a million residual cells on any scans or imaging studies. So when follow up scans are all negative - that is terrific - but there could still be millions of residual cells somewhere in the body that we just cannot see because they are too small to show up. The chances improve with each passing disease free year, but these women are never really out of the woods entirely. We often use the five year disease free interval as a bench mark, but that is not always safe with breast carcinomas. If metastatic breast carcinoma does eventually show up, it must have been there since the original diagnosis. You (you and your wife) went through adjuvant chemotherapy hoping to knock out any cells that remained. You didn't know for sure if they were there are not. You don't know whether the chemotherapy succeeded in eradicating every last cell if there actually were residual cells that had spread via the bloodstream. With adjuvant chemotherapy we are treating disease we cannot see on the chance that it may be there and might be reponsive to the chosen combination of chemotherapy drugs. We make a best "guess" based on many studies trying to find what gives people the best chance for a long disease free survival. When metastatic disease eventually does show up, it is just that it has grown large enough to finally be detected. We have to remember that malignancies always begin as microscopic disease. Added note - $375,000 and counting - WOW ! ! Costs have truly gotten way out of hand. It was much less in the 1980's and 1990's when I was in practice - perhaps one third of that amount for the treatment you describe. Too many people are taking excessive profits these days, and I don't mean just the doctors. Drug company profit taking is just too much. Health insurance company profit taking is also excessive. We must have health care reimbursement reform in the USA. Medicine should not be such a high profit business - it shouldn't be a business at all. These are people's lives we are dealing with. $375,000 is ridiculous.
2 :
Thank goodness for Spreedog. There's no need for any further answers to this question really. Dave, I know it's scary, I've been there. Well, I'm still there - as Spreedog says, metastasis can occur after many years of remission. All I can to is reassure you that the worry does get less as the statistical likelihood of metastasis or recurrence grows smaller. That, and send my love and best wishes to you and Becky.
3 :
The tone of your question suggests that anxiety is creeping into your family's life as the months go by. This is very natural and understandable. You need to be emotionally strong and face this uncertainty with determination. I realize that is easy for me to say and hard for you to do. The awful thing about cancer is the waiting and the fear. The patient and family wait for the next checkup with hope that everything will be OK, but fear that it won't. Every 3 months, 6 months, or whatever schedule the patient is on is feared and awaited. Furthermore, every bump on the skin, cough, and headache brings with it possibilities that you don't want to think about. Waiting and fear . . . I understand completely and sympathize immensely. It is my understanding that cancer recurrence may happen at any time, but tends to present itself within the first 3 to 5 years after diagnosis. Generally speaking, once the patient is out of that danger zone then their risk of recurrence is steadily declining. 'Spreedog' generally has the best clinical answers on the YA Cancer forum, so I would regard his comment as thorough and accurate. Best wishes for many sunny days ahead.

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Sunday, September 12, 2010

How long does it take for CIN III (pre cancerous cells on cervix) to turn into cancer without treatment

How long does it take for CIN III (pre cancerous cells on cervix) to turn into cancer without treatment?
without getting a leep or hysterectomy, etc. how long does it take before it gets to the next stage? nobody answered in the cancer section of yahoo.
Women's Health - 1 Answers

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1 :
It typically takes years to turn into cancer. This is why it is a good idea to have the cells removed before they turn into cancer..

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Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Has anyone heard of the AuroShell or AuroLase cancer treatment

Has anyone heard of the AuroShell or AuroLase cancer treatment?
Has anyone heard of the technology that a brilliant lady has invented? Her name is Naomi Halas. I hope so much that it goes through all trials and becomes publicly available in the next 12-24 months. Do you think that's feasible? It could save so many lives if it happens quickly. I was also thinking that trial treatments should be available to everyone that desires to go though it. Do you think that is reasonable to ask? Of course patient assumes all risk and no one is liable for anything. Do you think this law can be changed? Thanks
Cancer - 2 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
It isn't a good idea to join an undocumented trial, announced as a success before it starts. Beware of suggestions that patients assume all risk and the experimenter isn't liable.
2 :
First, it takes everything a lot more than 1-2 years in trials to get out to the public. And No, the law should NOT be changed. The reason they dont allow patients into trials just because they want to be, even with the patient signing consent and releasing liability, is that if something goes wrong they will still sue, they will still seek damages. What if the treatment could do nothing for the person who wanted to sign up? What if the treatment can make some situations worse? Are you really telling me you wouldnt try to sue. The majority of people would, and thus the reason why we have such tight policies on trials.

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Saturday, September 4, 2010

does the traditional cancer treatment of radiation therapy and chemo work

does the traditional cancer treatment of radiation therapy and chemo work?

Cancer - 7 Answers

Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
It depends on what kind of cancer. My brother has had 5 surgeries plus 5 treatments of chemo and radiation and he is fine right now. He had testicular cancer. I hear lung cancer is one of the hardest to treat successfully. Good luck to you if you're going through that.
2 :
In my opinion, no it does not. My mother had cancer. She had radiation treatments and chemotherapy, which I believe is what killed her. She died when she was 49 years young. That was 21 years ago.
3 :
i think it depends on the person. my mom underwent chemo, and at the end of her treatment, no cancer was found. she lost all her body hair and was sick now and then, but for her, this was the way to go. however, a friend of mine was diagnosed with lung cancer a few years back, and could not in any way handle chemo. he was so sick, his ex-wife had to care for him. he lost his battle to cancer to to not following the program, and by not benifitting from the treatment. so it has alot to do with how the person can handle the treatment, if they can, and stick to the program, then yes everything can go great.
4 :
Treatment depends on the type of cancer, the location, what stage it is in and how up to date your doctor is, among other things. New treatments are becoming available all the time. Ask your doctor what your options are and the success rate for your cancer type. There are cancer web sites that have a world of information and will email you newsletters with the latest medical updates. Let me know what your cancer is and I can give you more info.
5 :
Radiation therapy and chemical therapy are different. If there is a tumor growing, the first option is a surgical removal of all unhealthy tissue and some of the surrounding healthy tissue. Sometimes doctors will use radiation therapy to shrink a tumor, which will then be surgically removed. If cancer develops to the later stages, it may reach the blood. If this is the case, cancerous leukoctyes (white blood cells) can circulate through the body, making any surgical removal impossible. Doctors will inject chemicals into the bloodstream that can keep the cancer in check, but most of the time this will only delay the growth. During this period of time, especially in older people, it is common for various pathogens to infect different parts of the body. In some cases, chemotherapy has helped a patient go into remission, and eventually reach cured status. Cancer is much more treatable than it was years ago. There are many different kinds of chemotherapy that are used in hospitals. In many instances, these treatments absolutely do work.
6 :
Of course everyone is different, but my mother was treated with surgery, chemo and radiation for breast cancer and she beat it!! My father recently had prostate cancer and he is doing great now, after being treated with radiation and a certain hormone reducing drug. Different cancers respond to different things, but chemo and radiation are often used together.
7 :
It depends what you mean by 'work'. They are not perfect, far from it, but we know, because they have been tried and tested in double-blind, peer-reviewed clinical trials, that they save some lives and prolong many, many more. If by do they work you mean do they cure all cancers, then no. There is no guaranteed cure for any cancer. Of course many people die from cancer despite all available treatments having been tried. Sometimes families of those who die, distraught and understandably seeking an explanation, conclude that it was the gruelling treatments that killed the person rather than the cancer. In fact deaths caused by treatment are extremely rare; there is a tiny and remote risk that chemotherapy may cause another cancer to develop, and everybody who undergoes chemo is made aware of this. Some of the few people who develop that cancer die from it. I don't know if chemotherapy and radiotherapy have saved my life. I do know that as a result of treatment - I had surgery, chemo and rads - I'm fit and well almost five years after being diagnosed with an aggressive, advanced cancer. I'm glad I threw every available treatment at it. If I die this year, next year, in five years, will it mean my cancer treatments didn't work? Well, it would mean they didn't save me, but nothing would persuade me that they hadn't prolonged my life. One day, I'm sure, chemo and radiotherapy will be looked back on with horror, much as we look back on blood-letting today. There is much dedicated hard work going on to find improved and effective treatments, and eventually (we hope) cures, but for now they are the best we have and as I've said they save some lives and prolong many more.

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Wednesday, September 1, 2010

What is radiation treatment to a cancer patient after giving up the fight

What is radiation treatment to a cancer patient after giving up the fight?
My mom has suffered with several types of cancer over the past 3 years and now it's severely deteriorating all of her bones. She broke a bone in her back 2 days ago just by picking up her coffee pot. Her oncologist says there's nothing more that can be done. Keeping her out of pain and comfortable is now top priority. He's having her get radiation treatments daily for the next 2 weeks. He says it's for pain relief. Is that true?
Cancer - 6 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
i cannot answer this question but i would like to say that i am praying for you,your mum and your family
2 :
Yes, it is true. The benefits for her defiantly outweigh the risk for her, she should do it.
3 :
Yes it is indeed true. radiation treatment is used to shrink tumours and as the tumour shrinks, the pain lessens.
4 :
Radiation treatments can be very helpful in alleviating cancer pain ((( in some circumstances )))...Also radiation therapy can help reduce bone pain !........But Opoids can do the same thing,what it boils down to is, what does your mum want ?
5 :
Yes, radiation treatment is used for pain relief. Are you receiving hospice services? They can help your family through this experience, and they would have explained the purpose of radiation at this stage. Good wishes
6 :
As you can see, her physician is not misleading her. In the source, there is a link to a health site which can answer many questions you might have, along with a few videos about cancer as well. Hope she gets better.

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