Will You Join Me and Wear Teal on September 2,2011

I invite all my readers to wear teal on Friday September 2,2001 to highlight National Ovarian Cancer Awareness month.

When people say" What a nice color" please tell them that you are wearing teal to raise awareness of Ovarian Cancer and to honor the thousands of women diagnosed with ovarian cancer in the United States each year and the roughly 800 women diagnosed in New Jersey.

Don't forget to tell those you speak to that there are subtle symptoms-

B- bloating

E-eating less

A- abdominal pain

T-trouble urinating

Thanks!

Dee

Every Day is a Blessing!

What would you have packed?

Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans back on August 23, 2005. A few weeks prior to Katrina, I underwent surgery, was diagnosed with ovarian cancer and started chemotherapy. So I was home and watching TV coverage of the disaster. I remember watching and thinking if I was ever in that situation what would I take with me when I evacuated. I really could not decide because there was so much I wanted to bring.

As many of you know Hurricane Irene made landfall in NJ last Saturday. We sheltered in our home but wanted to prepare for the worst in case we had to evacuate if the pond beyond our home rose high enough to threaten our home. So, six years later, I actually had to decide what I would take. Everything had to fit in our SUV.

Here is what I decided was essential:

Amber and Murphy ( the family dogs) and dog food/dog dishes/ plastic bags

Bottled water

My medical records including CDs of my CAT scans

Prescription medication/ eyeglasses

cell phones / chargers

Checkbook/ credit cards/ passports

laptop computer

5 special pieces of jewelry

Theresa's wedding photo portfolio

change of clothes for three days( which was based on the time we might have to be away) toiletries

flashlight/ lantern/ blanket

Everything was packed and in a place so that we could easily pick up and take it out the door with us. I'm so happy we didn't have to put our plan into action and have been under a boil water advisory and water restriction.

You know it really wasn't so hard making up the list. I just kept asking myself what could I not live without. It might be that I am getting older but I think the past 6 years as a cancer survivor have cleared my vision as to what really matters. As much as I love my home, the TV or furniture do not matter. Nick, my children , family, friends and our dogs do.

What would you take if you had to evacuate your home?

Dee

Every Day is a Blessing!

What a Week!

Along with all the people of NJ , I sure have had one heck of a week.

Last Tuesday , the east coast experienced an earthquake. I was outside at the time walking my dog so I did not feel it but many of my neighbors and friends did. Haven't had one of that magnitude (5.8) since 1944.

On Saturday, Hurricane Irene made landfall in NJ. The first hurricane to do so in 108 years. We sheltered in our own one-year old home in Hightstown, NJ . But my husband and I were ready to evacuate if the need arose and we did prepare for it but that will be the topic of another post.

Hightstown is the geographic center of NJ. I worried about the homes of my cousin on Long Beach Island and my brother-in-law in Ocean Beach and a friend's home in Long Branch. We filled the tubs with water, had batteries for our lanterns, had bottled water, dog food for our dogs, and non-perishable food. We were pretty well prepared. We spent most of the time glued to the TV watching the Weather channel & 6 ABC from Philly. I tried to sleep but when the power went out for the third time with a loud bang from a transformer blowing across the street , I realized there would be no sleep for me that night.

At 2:40 am the TV announcer said a tornado warning was in effect for my town from 2:45 to 3:15am. Since we don't have a basement,my husband and I along with our two dogs moved into our walk in closet in the center of the house for the next half-hour. The wind roared a few times as we listened to 101.5 on the battery powered radio. Thank goodness a tornado did not materialize. This half-hour sure helped me understand what my daughter and her husband experience every time their weather radio announces a tornado warning in their area of Kansas.

On Sunday morning we still had power, cable, phone and internet, but our combo oven/microwave was not working. We were and still are unable to use our water - for drinking, washing, bathing or even flushing our toilets but overall we were in good shape. The water issue was caused by our downtown area being under water and the water treatment plant being submerged . As you can see from the photo above, even the Weather Channel chose a photo of our town to use on its home page for a time yesterday. Many roads in our area were flooded and train service was cancelled.

Today there is not a cloud in the sky and the sun is shining brightly as the clean-up begins around the state. Hopefully the property of family and friends are ok.

Over the past few days ,I worried about the pond rising so much that our home would be flooded. I worried about loosing power and of having windows break due to high winds. But for the last few days what I did not worry about was cancer.

Dee

Every Day is a Blessing!

What will you do for Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month?

In one week's time we begin the month of September. September is National Ovarian Cancer Awareness month. Help spread the word about ovarian cancer by participating in some of these activities.

1. Learn the symptoms:

B- bloating

E-eating less

A- abdominal pain

T-trouble urinating

2. Hang a ribbon

contact Turn the Towns Teal- http://www.turnthetownsteal.org/

3. Tie a teal shoelace

contact the Sandy Rollman Ovarian Cancer Foundation- http://www.sandyovarian.org/upcomingevents.html

4. Paint your toes teal

Check out the Teal Toes site for some great color suggestions

http://www.tealtoes.org/

5. Drink some Tea

Set 17, High Tea with the Teal Tea Foundation

http://www.tealtea.com/Teal_Teal_Foundation/Events.html

6. Walk or Run

Teal Wings of Hope's 2nd Annual Ovarian Cancer Feat for Hope

Sept 3 Hamilton http://tealwingsofhopefoundation.org/

Kaleidoscope of Hope Foundation Annual Walkathons www.kohnj.org

Sept 11 Morristown, Sept 18 Lyndhurst, Sept 24 Avon-by-the-Sea

7. Your idea goes here.

Dee

Every Day is a Blessing!

High Five plus 1

As many of you know, last year I participated in the High Speed Chase for the Cure to celebrate my 5th cancerversary. I wrote about it on this blog in July and September. I walked to honor my doctors whose excellent care has helped me fight Ovarian Cancer twice.The High Speed Chase raises funds for the Cancer Institute of New Jersey through the CINJ Foundation. It takes place on the Livingston Campus of Rutgers University.

Recently, I received an e-mail from the Foundation which said" Due to a major construction project on Livingston Campus, we are not able to host the event this year, but hope you will still wish to support the patient programs and research at CINJ that this event has funded for the past 8 years."

Instead this year the High Speed Chase for the Cure is going virtual. I've decided that once again, I want to honor the doctors & nurses who have been my "lifesavers" for six years. Funds raised are used for patient programs like the Gynecologic Cancer Support Group which attend and for cancer research.

I've formed a team called "High Five Plus 1"and will be raising funds virtually. But I also plan on walking through downtown Hightstown and around Peddie Lake on Sunday, September 18th . I'll be leaving my house around 9am. (Please note that I will postpone this walk if Baby G arrives early.) If you want to walk with me on the 18th sign up to be on my team by going to the High Five plus 1 team page.

If you can't join me on the 18th, please consider donating here to help me reach my fundraising goal. Thanks for helping me help further Ovarian Cancer research.

Dee

Every Day is a Blessing!

No Berry Smoothie Flavored Readi-CAT for Me

Yesterday I stopped by the radiology group where I get my CT scans done. I was there to pick up my drinks for next month's CT scan. These drinks are Barium sulfate suspensions . It coats the inside of your esophagus, stomach and intestines to allow those organs to be seen more clearly in a CT scan.

I take the ReadiCAT- 2 suspension product by EZEm products. The past two times I had a CT scan I was lucky to have the Berry Smoothie flavored product. The flavoring made the thick , not so delicious ( and that is being charitable) drink a bit more palatable. So yesterday I asked the technician if I could have the Berry Smoothie flavored. He said he was sorry but Medicare and the insurance companies are not reimbursing for the flavored version of the product any longer. They will only reimburse for the no-flavored version. Why ? The flavored version costs more. So in trying to hold costs down for the patient my radiology group is only ordering the non-flavored version. They suggested I add Crystal Light to the solution to make it taste better.

I tried researching the cost of the products online but did not see any costs listed. I wonder what the cost difference is?

I guess I will go out and get some Crystal light. I will miss my Berry Smoothie.

Dee

Every Day is a Blessing!

Hipec treatment

Hipec = Hyperthermic interperitoneal chemotherapy

On August 11th , the NY Times published an article discussing surgery and hyperthermic interperitoneal chemotherapy for appendix, colon and ovarian cancers. The article

Hot Chemotherapy Bath: Patients See Hope, Critics Hold Doubts includes photos of the invasive surgery.

After reading the entire article and looked at the photos I have some concerns. There has only been one clinical trial ( 10 years ago) using this process for appendix cancer. What dosages of chemotherapy are the doctors using? In the case of ovarian cancer, is the dosage the same as that used in interperitoneal therapy? Is the temperature they are heating the chemo to the optimum level? Is one chemo drug better than another? Will patients still need to have IV chemo after the treatment? Would heating IP chemotherapy drugs ( since there are numerous clinical trials with this process) have the same result as this flushing process?

There are many unanswered questions and I hope there are plans to design some trials to answer those questions.

Dee

Every Day is a Blessing!