November 28, 2011 - Posted by tamilb - 1 Comment
- Bob Kiesendahl and some little athletes at one of his BK Hope Cures fundraisers.
Hope all of you had a great Thanksgiving! Mine was great. Actually we celebrated “Thanksmas,” both Thanksgiving and Christmas, with my husband’s family. It was a great time of togetherness, loads of presents and too much yummy food. I threw in the towel and gave into the turkey and stuffing and a couple of cookies, even though they are off my strict diet. I have much to be thankful for this season. Most of all that I’m alive and well to see my daughter grow up into a beautiful teen. I am also grateful for my online family and all of you who take the time to read and comment on this blog.
In the midst of watching the Ohio State/Michigan football game, my sister-in-law Julie shared a video about Brock Mealer, a friend of her daughter Alyssa and younger brother of Michigan football player Elliot Mealer. I’ll admit I’m not a big football fan, but after viewing this video, I’m a fan of both Brock and Elliot.
On Sept. 18, 2007, the the Mealer family was driving home from midnight mass when they were hit by a car that ran a stop sign. Elliot’s 17-year-old girlfriend and the brothers’ dad were tragically killed. Brock was partially paralyzed and told he only had a 1 percent chance of ever walking again. He did not give up; far from it. Thanks to some tough love and aggressive physical therapy from the team’s physical therapists, Brock took the challenge of walking the tunnel with the team on their 2010 opening game.
November 22, 2011 - Posted by tamilb - 2 Comments
The 2010 Pink Power Mom class: Hillary Sweet, Mary Ann Wasil Nilan, Wendy McCool, Lydia Dody, me and Linda Blair (not the actress!).
Wow! In a word that’s how I’d describe the past weekend’s Kids II Bright Starts Pink Power Mom 5th anniversary weekend in Atlanta. Each year Bright Starts celebrates eight mothers who have battled breast cancer and dedicated themselves to helping others in the struggle. They have honored and supported a total of 40 moms, all of whom are involved in life-changing charities. I felt extremely humbled to be included in this amazing group and thoroughly enjoyed connecting with so many amazing women and the people who support them.
In past posts I’ve criticized some companies for exploiting breast cancer for their own profit. Kids II, which produces baby toys and products, is certainly is NOT one of them. I had the privilege of sitting in on a roundtable discussion, which the company’s CEO and senior vice president of marketing attended. Pink Power Mom’s is the company’s #1 philanthropy, yet it’s still the best-kept secret. They wanted our feedback to spread the word, not about their products, but to attract more nominees. Rather than give money to huge organizations like Komen, their goal is to support women who are inspired by their cancer journey to help others. Since I don’t have my own charity, I donated this year’s gift to the National Breast Cancer Coalition. They accept the 2012 nominees this Spring, and I’ll let you know how to nominate a deserving person!
November 17, 2011 - Posted by tamilb - 10 Comments
Read on, there's a reason I included this image of an R-rated movie!
I had a very interesting interview on a Detroit radio station for a program called God 321. I met the host Danny Hutchins at The Pink Fund Crazy Sexy Luncheon of all places! I am grateful to my friend Molly MacDonald, who leads this wonderful organization, for introducing us. I was apprehensive on being on a Christian program. As some of you know, I was raised a non-practicing Jew. As an adult, our little nuclear family attends Unity, which embraces all religions and has taught me about a loving and kind God.
When I was writing From Incurable to Incredible, I was overwhelmed from hearing stories of the people gracing the pages and how faith helped them through life’s most serious challenges. It was certainly the case for me. I connected with God on a much deeper level. My faith was and is my lifeboat, which is always there to rescue me in my time of need.
Not everyone in my book were people of faith, but a comment from God 321′s host made me rethink that. Dan said that everyone has faith. After all, humanists have faith in themselves. That is certainly true of all the people I’ve interviewed. Some were very Christian, some were Jewish, and some just believed in the power of themselves and the people around them. Yet they all had faith.
November 12, 2011 - Posted by tamilb - 5 Comments
Putting cancer research and prevention under the microscope
This has been a tough year when it comes to loss. I just found out today that yet another wonderful friend, Cyndi Wenck, passed away from breast cancer. In September, I lost another dear friend Ashley. In July, Evan Mattingly (who was featured in my book) died. In December, it was my close friend Nevine. And that’s just the people I considered close to me. It is one of the occupational hazards of being involved in the cancer community. And it really, really sucks.
With all the pink hoopla that is October, all the millions of dollars supposedly going to the cause, why have we not found a cure? Why does it seem that more and more people are getting cancer? And why aren’t more people furious about it and demanding action? These are questions I’ve asked myself for years.
When the AIDS epidemic hit, the gay community organized and demanded that a cure be found. By 1988 frustration was growing over the length of time it had taken to approve AZT, the drug proven to slow the progression of AIDS, and the FDA’s slow progress in improving access to other experimental AIDS drugs. On October 11, 1988, more than a thousand ACT UP demonstrators descended on the FDA headquarters in Rockville, Maryland, demanding quicker and more efficient drug approval. Eight days later, the FDA announced regulations to cut the time it took for drugs to be approved. People took action and made things happen. Why do people seem so complacent about cancer?
November 9, 2011 - Posted by tamilb - 1 Comment
Bryan Sisk, here giving his little neice a guitar lesson, has used his guitar to reach out to pediatric patients.
When I was at my book signing at Cleveland Clinic last month, I met Bryan Sisk, a young medical student who used to work with Dr. Tuohy (who is developing the first preventive breast cancer vaccine there). Bryan told me how he wrote a book, A Lasting Effect: Reflections on Music and Medicine, about his experiences playing guitar and singing songs to patients at the Clinic’s Children’s Hospital. He gave me a copy of the book and I just got around to reading it.
Once I started reading it, I couldn’t put it down. A Lasting Effect is less than 100 pages but it is full of stories and poems that put things in perspective about my cancer experience. I was amazed by Bryan’s depiction of the grace and resiliency of the children and their parents as they face life-threatening and life-altering diseases. Not all of the young patients have cancer; some have heart problems, epilepsy or other conditions.
Reading the book broke and warmed my heart at the same time. The stories show the power of music and simply being present for these kids. Bryan tells of one patient whom nurses warned him about being difficult. Knowing that Bryan was carrying a guitar, rather than a needle or other invasive device, changed the child’s whole disposition.
November 4, 2011 - Posted by tamilb - 7 Comments
Don't let the white coat intimidate you. You are the boss of your medical team.
I remember the professor discussing the Milgram Authority Experient in a college psychology class. My professor happened to be Milgram’s brother; he told us about how in the 1960s his sibling developed a study to try to gain an understanding how the Holocaust could have happened. The study’s investigator, a man in a white coat, told the unsuspecting participants that they would be in the role of a “teacher” and ask the person on the other side of the glass (“the student”) a series of questions. They were told that each time the person gave an incorrect answer, they would deliver a shock using a shock generator. The shock levels started at 30 volts and increasing in 15-volt increments all the way up to 450 volts. The many switches were labeled with terms including “slight shock,” “moderate shock” and “danger: severe shock.” The final two switches were labeled simply with an ominous “XXX.”
Participants believed they were delivering real shocks to the student; the student was actually part of the research team whom was simply pretending to be shocked.
November 1, 2011 - Posted by tamilb - 4 Comments
I am only sharing this for reference. This is not a message I would convey!
Ah Facebook, I just can’t seem to leave it alone! I’m a social person, and most of the time I’m sitting at home on my computer alone without coworkers to chat with or a boss to pile work on me. So I find myself trolling on Facebook to get a peek into people’s lives and thought processes.
One day I was wishing one of my Facebook friends a happy birthday when I came upon her profile picture (shown here). I also noticed other people sharing this graphic. A wave of anger came over me as it did that fateful day when an oncologist told me with certainty that I would die of breast cancer.
Being the outspoken person I am, I posted my reaction on Facebook: “Life is 100 percent fatal. Let’s focus on living!” I was amazed by the vast number of comments I received from fabulous metastatic survivors, like Heather Jose, who has been living (very well, thank you) with metastatic breast cancer for 13 years. “Stage IV. Terminal? Whatever,” she said.
October 26, 2011 - Posted by tamilb - 3 Comments
Dr. Vincent Tuohy took the time to give us a tour of his lab, where he is developing vaccines to prevent breast and ovarian cancer.
Last year I heard an amazing story on NPR. Dr. Vincent Tuohy, an immunologist at The Cleveland Clinic was developing a vaccine to prevent breast cancer. Last year, Dr. Tuohy released his findings: a first-of-its-kind vaccine to prevent breast cancer, which has shown extremely favorable results in animal models. The researchers found that a single vaccination prevents breast cancer tumors from forming in mice, while also inhibiting the growth of already existing tumors.
Dr. Tuohy and his research team targeted α-lactalbumin — a protein found in the majority of breast cancers, but is not found in healthy women, except during lactation. The vaccine can cause a woman’s immune system to target α-lactalbumin — thus stopping tumor formation — without damaging healthy breast tissue. In the study, genetically cancer-prone mice were vaccinated — half with a vaccine containing α-lactalbumin and half with a vaccine that did not contain the antigen. None of the mice vaccinated with α-lactalbumin developed breast cancer, while all of the other mice did.
I was so impressed, I decided to designate the $5,000 I received as a 2010
Pink Power Mom finalist to his research. I was very surprised when I received a phone call from Dr. Tuohy to personally thank me for the donation.
October 23, 2011 - Posted by tamilb - 2 Comments
Flo Singer is indeed a Miracle Survivor and a great cancer coach!
Flo Singer’s humor was fully intact when she learned in 2002, at age 55, she had stage IV rectal cancer.
She recalls, “The doctor said, ‘Sorry Flo, but you have rectal cancer.’ I responded, that at least they caught it early. But he said ‘no’ and recommended surgery that day. He saw the scan, so he knew it was advanced. I deal with everything with humor, so I said. “I got it from all the smoke my ex blew up my ass.”
October 18, 2011 - Posted by tamilb - 10 Comments
Caring for aging parents, kids and yourself can bite, but remember to put yourself first.
I remember a curmudgeonly man I used to know who would like to say, “Life is a s*&t sandwich.” I certainly don’t believe that, but for cancer survivors who have kids and aging parents, it’s like a triple-decker sandwich. Not only are you caring for your own family and parents, but you’re also trying to take care of yourself.
This is the situation I currently face. My mother has been failing for some years now and recently took a turn for the worse. A couple of months ago, I went over to take her to the doctor and found her collapsing in my arms. A neighbor called an ambulance and she was admitted for pneumonia. After a couple of weeks, she was sent to a nursing home for rehabilitation. We took her home this weekend. She looks like a walking skeleton, and unfortunately, my brother who lives with her has mental problems and is in terrible physical condition. I want to help and change their living conditions, yet they are determined to stay put. It’s very frustrating, to say the least.
