With the Holidays fast approaching, I would like us all to take the time and remember the loved ones who we have lost.  Remember the gentle touch, the sweet smiles, the hugs that brought warmth and comfort, the kind words and the love that cannot be replaced.  Look to those around you and embrace all they have to offer. Forget about the anger and the hurt others may have caused you. Keep those who are very dear to you close.  I know at times this may be hard, but life is short and we never know what tomorrow holds. Learn to accept love when it is offered try to never turn it away. You never know if the one who is offering the love will be here tomorrow.  As we all walk the path of life we will deal with issues, whether it is pain, sorrow or happiness.  We tend to embrace the ones we love when things are good and push them away when things are not. By doing this we tend to lose precious time, time that we will never get back. There are no do-overs in life, we cannot go back and change the past for the past is over. All we can do is learn from the past and live for the present. We tend to look for the future but yet we cannot live for the future since we do not know what tomorrow brings.

My point is live and love for today,
Keep love in your heart.

Happy Holidays,

Allison

I know it’s been a while since I have up dated the information on my father. With all of the side effects on the first round of Gleevec, the doctor decided to take him off of it for two weeks to make sure what he was feeling was indeed caused by the Gleevec. Within a week, the side effects went away. They started him back on 200 milligrams, taken in 100mg increments, this he did for two weeks when he went back they tested his blood and it had all balanced out per say. Based off of that, the VA doctor bumped him back up to the 400mg and told him he would see him in February. I find this odd that someone with CML would be told that he did not need to be seen for 3 months except for blood work every few weeks. Is this normal? That is the question I keep asking myself. In reading the information available on the internet and getting information from others with CML, the feeling I am getting is this is not the norm. What concerns me the most, is the fact when I went to find information it came to my attention how many insurance company’s deny Gleevec as a treatment. I wonder when they were given the right to play God with people’s lives. The treatment my father is getting is through the VA. Although he has medical insurance, the amount that he would have to pay out of pocket it far more then he can afford. Why is it that we as taxpayers are put in the position to not be able to afford to save our own lives? And why is it with all of the cancer research, there is not that much available on CML? I sit here as a daughter whose father has CML and my only resource is the internet, and what little information his doctor will give me. Do doctors not understand that as a family member it is important that we get the questions we ask answered? We are the ones sitting here watching our loved ones suffer.  As Christmas is almost here I sit and wonder how many more I will have with my father. This time, Christmas is extremely hard. Not only am I dealing with the unknown on my father, I am dealing with the first Christmas without my best friend. It is the time of the year that you are thankful for all of your loved ones that can share it with you and yet you are sad by all the loved ones lost. It makes you understand that the people that are special to you, you need to hold close to your heart and never let go. 

The United States Preventative Services Task Force (USPSTF) recently published updated guidelines for women regarding breast cancer screening, mammograms and the teaching of breast self-exams. Could this be a step towards a government regulated health care system that denies certain procedures because some group or individual has an opinion? What happened to research, facts and historical evidence? The USPSTF has stated that they do not recommend that women be taught to perform breast self examinations to detect abnormalities in breast tissue. What? Really? Not only do they not recommend teaching it, they have listed it as a Class D recommendation, which states: "The USPSTF recommends against the service. There is moderate or high certainty that the service has no net benefit or that the harms outweigh the benefits." In addition to this, what they recommend to the provider of this service to "discourage the use of this service." Does it not make perfect sense, that a woman should know her own breasts? Who better to find something of question than the woman herself?

The good news here is that the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins has released their opinion of these guidelines to several media outlets.

Tell us what you think.

In 1984, I had the opportunity to meet an amazing woman. Kathy quickly became an inspiration to many. Sadly, she has lost her battle with cancer. Today, we will share the the thoughts of some of the people that she has touched, including my own. Thank you Kathy, for all that you have done and for all that you have inspired. We have been truly blessed by having had you in our lives. Read Kathy's dedication...

If you have left a comment on this post and do not see it, it may be awaiting approval or may have been moved to Kathy's dedication page. Thank you everyone for your kind words.

The FDA has approved a second vaccine designed to prevent infections caused by the human papilloma virus (HPV). The new vaccine, Cervarix, manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline targets "high risk" HPV types 16 and 18. These two strains of HPV are responsible for 70% of all cervical cancers. Approximately 4000 women this year will die from the disease. Cervarix joins Gardasil (Merck) as a second option for prevention of cervical cancers.

Doctors encourage young women to get vaccinated (depending on their age group), wait until they are older to have sex and if they are sexually active, to practice safe sex. Condoms may provide some, but not total protection against infections.

Read the article published by the American Cancer Society.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration this week approved ofatumumab (Arzerra, GlaxoSmithKline) for the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) in patients that did not respond to fludarabine (Fludara) or alemtuzumab (Campath). The FDA granted fast-track approval for the drug after a study of 59 patients whose CLL returned or did not respond to other treatments. Further testing needs to be done to prove clinical effectiveness. Of the 59 patients, all received the same treatment with 42% resulting in positive response with an average response time of 6.5 months. The drugs safety was also evaluated in 181 patients. This is surely positive news for those patients who do not respond well to other treatments.

Read the FDA Press Release.

We have a new friend in our community. His name is Ryan Romero from Granada Hills, California. Ryan was diagnosed with CML as well and has been on Gleevec. Our thoughts and prayers are with him and we will continue to follow his story. Thanks Ryan for sharing. Access his blog here.

In special news videos, Dr. Kristy Weber, Associate Professor of Orthopedic Surgery and Oncology and the Co-Director of the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center's Sarcoma Program answers a few questions that patients might ask an Orthopedic Surgeon in the treatment of bone and soft tissue cancers.

Why would I need a biopsy?

More...

Another night on the phone with Jasmine and the tears are coming. She’s dealing with the pain, the chemo and the sadness. She tells me about the past and what her home life is about, feeling no support. She reaches out in hopes her mother will meet her half way, but the hopes fade as again her mother’s hand is not there. This week has been hard because it’s Homecoming next week and her date decided to flake on her. So here we have her senior year, the last Homecoming, something she has been looking forward to and now not being able to go. When will she get a break?  As I sit on the phone trying to give advice I find it hard, not knowing her mom, I can’t help but feel that she is reacting out of fear. Yet as a mother how do you not go to your daughter’s doctor appointments? Is it the fact that the fear has taken over, or not wanting to admit that her baby has cancer?  More...