November 28, 2004

• Oh, Sidedish - no experience in that, but I'll pray for your mom. in my own way. Early dection is good!
• Yes, SideDish -- I'll send good vibes for your mom, too. (And my good vibes seem to work. My dad beat cancer earlier this year.)
• Amen for early blood tests. You and your mom are in my thoughts, Sidedish.
• SideDish, I'm very sorry to hear this. I hope the disease goes into early remission, and wish you and your family all the best in coping with the situation.
• We're no help, are we? But my thoughts are with you and yours.
• My wife's grandma (age 88), who lives with us went to the hospital a month ago to see if she'd broken her hip due to a fall. No. But, they found CLL. She had Stage 4 (the last stage). That's why she fell, from the anemia. I'm sure the circumstances are very different for you, since with any luck your mom is young/vital enough that she'll be able to treat it and live a normal life. Everything I've read says that if it is caught early and treated, it is a disease you can have for a long long time without it being terminal. In our case, hers has transmuted to PLL (Pervasive) and she's in the hospital under heavy medication right now, having gone there on Friday. This is end-of-the-line for her. Days probably. She didn't have any treatment, since she was unwilling to undergo bone-marrow biopsy, and we caught it very late. It is quite a synchronicity for you to bring this up right now. I hope our experience will encourage your family to be agressive about the disease and its progression.
• Sad news about your grandmother, invoke: may things go as easily as possible for all in your family.
• SideDish, invoke, I pray for you and your family. I'm so sorry I can't be of any help.
• How sad, invoke. I hope your wife's grandmother is at least comfortable and that you can get some quality time with her.
• My mother was diagnosed with this last year. (She's in her 50s.) She's had a zillion health problems, however. She's taken this one a bit harder than most, however. (She's a nurse, and handled most of her illnesses well, but this one has her spooked.) I've read up on it a bit, and while it's no cakewalk, it doesn't seem to be nearly as bad as my mother seems to think it is. But she knows how healthy she is better than I do.
• thanks so much, everyone, for the kind thoughts and good information. invoke, i'm so sorry about your grandma-in-law. i hope she can spend her final days pain-free and surrounded by family, friends and flowers. i'm so sorry it was discovered as late as it was. casuistry, there's a CLL listserv that may be helpful, as well as good info online from the american cancer society and mayo clinic. has she had symptoms yet? we're optimistic in mom's case as she's healthier than nearly anyone i know -- at 65 years young, she does step-aerobics and kick-boxing three or four times a week, yoga on the other days, eats incredibly healthy, is slim and strong. so we're hoping it's "smoldering CLL," which means it may lay dormant for many years. thanks again for all good thoughts; that means a lot to me.
• [Much love to sidey, casuistry and invoke]
• Thanks for the thoughts and prayers. I have a house full of relatives right now. At 36, this is the first time I've been through a group-deathwatch, which is lucky, I suppose.
• my thoughts are with you, invoke. i hope she has a good and painless and peaceful death. you're helping her to do that, no matter how hard that is.
• Sorry to hear about your mom, SideDish - my mom has Hairy Cell Leukemia, not as serious, but troublesome nonetheless. Strangely, it was sort of a relief to finally know why she's always tired.
• Hugs to invoke, too ... I hope she goes peacefully.
• invoke -- group-deathwatches (as you call it) are the least fun thing ever, but I have found that they make the person feel comforted, and they help you feel better. You realize how many people rally around you and your loved ones, and that's a good feeling. I send you my best wishes and love. I also send good vibes to casuistry. Have you considered counselling for your mom? Being sick can make you depressed ... which makes you feel sicker. It's natural, because it sucks to be sick. Maybe talking to someone would help? Please take my advice for what it is... best wishes and brainstorming!
• Sending good wishes to SideDish, Invoke, Casuistry and Koko.
• All the best to SideDish, Koko Invoke and Casuistry. We almost lost my mom about five months ago to a anurism. After getting a survival prediction from the surgeon of 20%, mom came through with flying colors. The surgeon even wants to write a paper on her and her recovery. I remember posting to mofi that night and all the good wishes and prayers you all gave. As an agnostic, I can't say it was the deciding factor on her survival, but it sure didn't hurt. God (if there is one) bless you guys and all the best.
• Casuitry and Koko, very sorry about your relatives. Hope they remain asymptomatic, and that all goes well.
• Every sympathy and encouragement to you and your families, SideDish, invoke, Casuistry and Koko. I hope you get all the possible joy from your time with your relatives, be that days or decades.
• Yes, you do have all our prayers and good wishes. It's so frightening in our world of simple cures to be confronted with something as alien as cancer, hidden as it is. My grandmother does say that marijuana helps with the chemo-nausea, if that is a problem, and if you are somewhere you can get it.
• Oh, yes - good vibes and hugs to all those who are dealing with the sickness of a loved one - and more than that to the loved ones, themselves.