Guest Article by Trevor Bradshaw

Remembering the Sacrifices of Breast Cancer Patients

We’re nearly two weeks into October, which is of course National Breast Cancer Month, and although I’ve seen plenty of pink (on everything from football players cleats to sunglasses) there’s hardly been any real dialogue about the serious health implications of breast cancer or information about the importance of breast exams and screening.  With the lack of any real discussion surrounding breast cancer this October it’s probably pretty safe to say that National Breast Cancer Month has become a referendum of pink ribbons, sentimental fund-raising, and saucy t-shirts, when it ought to be a remembrance of the struggle that an estimated 1 in 8 women will encounter throughout their lives.   

By trivializing National Breast Cancer Month, we run the risk not only of trivializing one of the deadliest, most dangerous forms of cancer- we run the risk of alienating the women who have survived it.  Our focus instead should be on honoring and remembering those women who have been diagnosed, and ensuring that they receive the best care and quality of life possible. 

In particular, there have been thousands of brave women who have volunteered for experimental clinical trials despite significant risks to further our understanding of cancer.  Clinical trials, which are studies of new treatments and medicines conducted on actual breast cancer patients before being released to the general public, are an indispensable resource to future medical gains because they allow doctors to assess the benefits and effects of different treatments in a real-world setting. As such, when breast cancer patients volunteer for clinical trials they are further assisting in medical research and helping the thousands of women who have yet to be diagnosed. Of course, clinical trials often have a multitude of risks, including the chance of serious or unpleasant side-effects.  Everyone has heard the talking points at the end of pharmaceutical commercials listing the side-effects, and it’s in clinical trials that those side effects are diagnosed.  Even worse, the treatment or medicine administered in the clinical trial may ultimately prove to be ineffective.  

Of course, breast cancer patients aren’t the only ones who volunteer for clinical trials- there are currently Hodgkin Lymphoma clinical trials, mesothelioma clinical trials, and many others- but for National Breast Cancer Month we ought to remember the sacrifices and struggles that millions of women have made rather than focusing on “feel-good fund-raising activities.”

Just a quick update... no PET scan results yet - LONG story. I have a report but it's the wrong report because it was compared to the wrong scan. Anyway, the results aren't  looking great but I don't know when I'll get the specifics - another long, frustrating story. Regardless,  Dr. Smiljanic wants to take me off the Parps because I'm having too many delays for it to work properly :( I agreed and we started on the old chemo from back in December that seemed to work so well. I started my Day 1 today, will skip my Day 8 because it would be right before Disneyland and hopefully I can get a transfusion on that day so that I will have some more energy. When we get back I will start Day 1 right away on Wed and have Day 8 on Wed as well, and then go back to Fridays. (We still haven't told the kids about DL)

I'm considering making this website a members only which would mean if you want to read you would have to sign up and then sign in or something like that - it's not that big of a deal I don't think... I just don't like the idea of this popping up when our last name is googled because Treydon is becoming a very good reader and could understand a lot of what I'm writing and also, I wouldn't want his friends having access to this information. I am assuming that any parents who are reading my blog would be very careful not to share the information with their children or talk about it when their kids are around as we are very careful with the information we share with our kids. I would be very upset if Treydon had to hear stuff about me from his friends who may have overheard their parents etc...

Oh and also, Treydon seems to be doing much better on his antibiotics and is running around being his usual self! (after missing 7 days of school!)

update

Ok. I had to remove the "count up" because I couldn't stand the millisecond counter; that was obnoxious!

Here's my update:

Last Thursday I had a PET scan. They gave me the disc when I left as I had a chemo appointment the next day so I could give it to my doctor. I brought my laptop with me so I could check it out as soon as I was done but my damn laptap wouldn't open it! Anyway, when I got home I was able to open it; it was very difficult to read. I could clearly see that there is still cancer in multiple spots but it was very difficult to compare it to the last one. I was hoping that since I would be at the clinic all day Friday getting my chemo that the written report would come in; of course it didn't (I won't get into the mix up with that right now... maybe tomorrow if I'm in that kind of mood) I have another appointment tomorrow so I should get the results then. I'm really hoping for at least stable so I can continue on this chemo. That might sound weird to those of you who don't have experience with chemo and aggressive cancer but basically, there are a limited number of chemos to try so I'm not super eager to go plowing through them. I will update again after I get my PET results and talk to the dr about what they mean in terms of treatment.

Last Friday I was suppose to start Day 1 of my 5th Cycle but it had to be delayed AGAIN. My hemoglobin and platelets were too low so I ended up having another blood transfusion. It's getting a little stressful because we have our Disneyland trip booked for the 23rd and I want to be well enough to do all the walking but I also don't want to have to miss too many treatments. If Day 1 starts this Friday (which it better!) then I will have to skip Day 8 as that would be two days before Disneyland. Then I will just start Day 1 of my 6th cycle right when we get back. The nurses at Lions Gate Chemotherapy booking office have been super accommodating in all my scheduling requests. We haven't told the kids about Disneyland yet. Firstly, I want to make sure that I can actually go before I tell them and then, we also want it to be close to the date so they don't have to count down too many sleeps (even though that's part of the fun!) ;)

Our Thanksgiving weekend wasn't that great. Darren took Treydon into Children's Hospital on Saturday morning because he had really bad stomach pains. He had been sick since Wed evening with flu like symptoms but these stomach pains were REALLY bad. The doctor there figured it was just the flu. While they were out I was tidying the house (lots of energy from the transfusion the day before) and I started having troubles focusing. I was sitting down at the computer and I couldn't read the screen because of weird squiggly lights coming in from my peripheral vision. I called the nurses line and of course they told me to go straight to the hospital and that I should see a dr within an hour. So Treydon had just come back and now Darren had to take me to the ER. He decided we should just go to Surrey because it was closest (BAD idea and I will NEVER go back there again) We sat in a waiting room full of sick people, wearing uncomfortable masks sitting uncomfortable chairs for over 6 hours before we saw a dr. And this was even after I explained my entire history and exaggerated my low white blood counts. Then I had a brain CT because they figured it was probably brain tumors. We waited over an hour for those results (which were fine, thank god) and by the time we got out of there it had been 8 hours! At least I was feeling better and the CT came back clear. They have referred me to a neurologist but I'm hoping I just over did it with the cleaning - so clearly I can't do anymore cleaning ;)  Then Sunday rolls around... Treydon is too sick to go for Thanksgiving dinner and is VERY upset he can't go so I stay home with him. At about 8pm he spikes a fever so i give him a big dose of Tylenol. Within 15min he's complaining of right side lower abdominal pain. Dr. Google tells me he has an appendicitis so I take him back to Children's. Of course, all his symptoms get better but now I'm not sure if it's the Tylenol I gave him or the stomach pain really is gone. Anyway, we wait there almost two hours and get an xray right away and the dr says it looks like he has pneumonia; it's not too bad but he prescribes antibiotics and we are on our way.

That's my update for now. I will update again in the next few days.