Imaging Report November 2011.

CT scan Thorax Abdomen and pelvis

History : Mesothelioma. assess response.

Comparison is made with the scan of February 2011

The mass at the left apex, left internal mammary adenopathy, aoratopulminary adenopathy and glands at the left hilum are all stable in appearance. The disease at the left base also remains static.

Since previous scan the patient now appears to have had an Amplatz occluder device put across the tracheal oesophageal fistula. There is a large component present within the oesophagus measuring 12mm. This could be a potential source of disphagia.

The multiple bronchi centric nodules persist but are less frequent than previously in keeping with perhaps reduction in the degree of aspiration. However the nodule the right apex (series 4 image 48) has increased in size as has the lesion immediately inferior to this image 55 addition there are some new right sided pleural nodules, for example anteriorly image 74, anterolaterally image 106, postero laterally image 147 and on the right hemidiaphragm image 232. These are all relatively subtle but will need monitoring as they are likely to represent contralatoral disease.

The paracardiac node is unchanged in appearance. The small amount of pericardial thickening seen anteriorly is also static.

Still no evidence of the disease in the abdomen or pelvis.

Conclusion :

Stable disease in the left lung. Possible subtle early disease in the right lung. Amplatz occluder within the oesophagus.

READ MORE - Imaging Report November 2011.

Phew....all done for another 3 months!!

Christmas shopping with Kieran.
The rainbow I saw while out and about this morning, are the angel warriors smiling on me today?

I had a lovely morning with Kieran, he helped with the rubbish, he put the bins out, he emptied the dish washer and helped me take some toys to a charity shop. He has been really good, well... he wants lovefilm back as he kicked off a couple of nights ago. He has made up for it now. I met my friend, Mandy for a coffee and a chat at the local garden centre. Kieran came with me as he has no school due to the latest teachers strike.

We picked out our secret santa presents. The warriors had a really successful one last year so we are doing it again this year : )

We then said goodbye to Mandy and went home to get some lunch.

I picked Siobhan up from her business class after lunch, she is doing so well...I am so very proud of her and what she has achieved so far.

After we got back, within 20 minutes it was time to go again, off to the hospital this time to see Dr D. I am petrified of what he is going to say but as I am feeling so very well, what can he say but all is good.

He told me about the growth in the right lung and that the left lung was stable, that was really good news. We discussed the treatment in Germany, there hasn't been a lot of change and fund raising at the moment wouldn't be right if the treatment had slowed down, saying that, it has been stable since February, which is great. I got a bit overwhelmed with it all and had a few tears in his room. Dr D is always very honest and has said that maybe I should consider Alimta in the UK. He says it would be better as everything is here and no traveling involved. I have till February to decide what to do. He advised me to talk to my friends and decide which route to take as I have choices. I told him I would ask my warrior friends, he smiled and made it clear that he knew who the warriors were.

At least I have Christmas in peace with Siobhan and Kieran, Rich will be in Ireland and will be missed so much this year.

READ MORE - Phew....all done for another 3 months!!

Today is the day!!!

I will find out this afternoon if the Prof's treatment I had in June and August has worked. I am so nervous and frightened at the moment. I really don't like these days. After 3 months of being left alone, it all comes crashing down and makes me feel as if I could cry every minute of the day.

I have so many wonderful words of support and love from the warriors, they are a fantastic group.

Mavis, who has just found out the meso trial didn't work for her, still has the time to wish me well. This shows just how courageous she and many others are.

I hope Theo has found it in his heart not to give me bad news. I am hoping he is giving me an extra special Christmas gift, a happy time with my children.

I am feeling so well at the moment that I can't think anything other than something good has happened but that little man is still niggling at me and making me think that I cannot be 100%.

My appointment is at 2:40 this afternoon. Siobhan and my friend, Wendy, are coming with me. I feel like I am going to burst into tears. I will try not too.

Will be glad when 3pm comes !!!!

READ MORE - Today is the day!!!

Lovely surprise today.

I went out this morning, took Siobhan to her class, she is learning about business management.

I then went in town to meet my friend, Carolyn for coffee, in Thorntons of course.

On the way back from there the rain hammered down.

I went to my friend, Mary's to help her with her room. Left there to pick Siobhan up from her course and came home.

What a wonderful surprise when I walked in the door. A lovely bouquet of flowers from the nurses at the Glasgow talk.

Chrissy and I had had a lovely weekend, hotel and flights all paid for, that was more that thanks enough.

Beautiful flowers, doesn't take much to make me smile : )

I have my CT results tomorrow, I am hoping for good ones. I have been feeling really well, better than I have in a long time, hoping to go back to work very soon, I hope the results emulate how I have been feeling. I am very nervous, less to go through than some of my warrior friends though.

READ MORE - Lovely surprise today.

Update on Mick and Keith today.

I have an appointment with the consultant who removed Mick and Keith (My gall stones) this morning.

I have been feeling and eating so much better since they have left the building.

The picture is of my niece's gall stones, she had hers out about a year before me. I did want to keep M and K in a jar but they managed to squish their way out.

2 of the scars are a little itchy and lumpy, it could be a stitch still in there or scar tissue. Will get it looked at today.

READ MORE - Update on Mick and Keith today.

Distinguishing Between Different Types Of Malignant Mesothelioma

by Asbestos Victim Advice

Diagnosis of asbestos-related disease, mesothelioma, is not so straightforward. Not only can first symptoms be confused with other types of medical conditions such as influenza or bronchitis, and seemingly similar types of cancers, but even the disease itself can be divided into categories, each requiring different or a combination of treatments.

Throughout the UK's peak period of asbestos use in manufacturing, engineering and construction, until the late 1970s and early 80s, the lack of asbestos awareness to the deadly dangers of breathing in the toxic asbestos fibre dust by company employees would often lead to a misunderstanding when mesothelioma or asbestosis symptoms emerged.

The long development of asbestos-related disease of up to 40 or 50 years would mean often attributing a prolonged cough, shortness of breath or weight loss, for example, to a history of cigarette smoking or catching a bout of flu or bronchitis. Unfortunately, there would also be instances where a doctor's diagnosis would also fail to recognise the onset of asbestosis based disease, which would have been vital in catching the aggressive cancer before the tumours could spread and improve the chances of effective asbestosis treatments, such as radiotherapy and biopsy.

The prognosis for malignant mesothelioma at Stage 3 or Stage 4 is little more than 12 - 18 months, possibly 2 years. Good nutrition and general palliative care can help make a better quality of life in the remaining time.

Malignant mesothelioma, which occurs in the mesothelium, a protective layer of tissue called an epithelium surrounding organs such as the lungs, is divided into three cell types or histological ( microscopic tissue) categories:
Epithelioid mesothelioma.
Sarcomatoid mesothelioma.
Biphasic mesothelioma.

Malignant mesothelioma types are also divided into further sub-types under each category as in many cases, malignant mesothelioma patients will possess more than one cell type.

Malignant Epithelioid mesothelioma accounts for around 50 - 70 per cent of all malignant mesothelioma cases and is the most common cell type. Epithelioid cells are an uniform cube shape and tubular pattern containing an unique cell nucleus and can be often confused with adenocarcinoma, a malignant tumour found in glandular tissue.

Malignant Sarcomatoid Mesothelioma is often confused with other types of cancer because of the irregular oval shape of the cell, but mostly mistaken for sarcomatoid carcinoma, which is rare in the lungs. Also erroneously attributed to sarcoma, pulmonary sarcomatoid carcinoma, and high-grade sarcoma, a form of cancer found in the body's supportive tissue including bone, cartilage, fat or muscle. The nucleus of a sarcomatoid cell is more difficult to detect under an electron microscope than the nuclei of epithelioid mesothelioma cells.

This form of malignant mesothelioma is still currently the most deadliest, accounting for around 10-15 or sometimes 20 per cent of all mesothelioma cancer cells, which is the least common malignant mesothelioma diagnosis. Death usually occurs within six months of diagnosis.

Malignant Biphasic Mesothelioma or "mixed biphasic mesothelioma" is rapidly establishing itself as a major type of malignant mesothelioma, and currently seen in more than half of all malignant mesothelioma cases. A combination of epithelioid and sarcomatoid mesothelioma cancer subtypes, biphasic mesothelioma does not have a distinct cellular structure, but rather two very different mesothelioma cell types. The tumour contains the two different subtypes in different parts of the structure, so diagnosis of biphasic mesothelioma, means a diagnosis of both epithelioid and sarcomatoid mesothelioma cancer.

Treatments for all three malignant mesothelioma types are similar, which may be used alone or in combination with one another.

About the Author

About Asbestos Victim Advice, we offer clear information, advice and FAQ's on mesothelioma and asbestos related illnesses. Visit www.asbestosvictimadvice.com for more information and advice.

READ MORE - Distinguishing Between Different Types Of Malignant Mesothelioma

A day in the life of Stork and Amber.

Good morning blog readers. Todays tale is from Amber and myself, Mr Stork. Here I am woken from my slumber by the noise of that Amber cat yelling for her breakfast. My mummy and I were having a lovely cuddle, now she has to go get get her food. I stayed in bed and relaxed and washed. I will venture down soon.
And here she is, Amber, waiting for breakfast. I am not like her, I sit and wait. She is persistant, well, saves me doing it!!
Yummy breakfast...mmmmm !!
Breakfast was delicious, we were going to settle for a sleep but we heard some noises and went to investigate.
What can it be!!!

oh, it's mummy, wrapping Lacey-Mae's present. We said we would help, don't think mummy wanted Amber to though as she kept saying get off the paper...naughty Amber.

Time to play, I am so clever and handsome, not like some little scamps.
More food, yummy!!
It is such a hard life being a cat, time for a nap I think.
Goodnight all, we have had a great day........ meow-ve over Amber!!!

READ MORE - A day in the life of Stork and Amber.

Coming home after a great few days.

On the plane ready to come home.
Guess who is waiting for me to come home : )
Fish and chips in Tavistock.
We found another man in a kilt.
Chrissy and I with a chimney sweep.
A lovely lady on stilts.
Dickensian characters in Tavistock.
A human fruit machine, so much fun.
A Christmas tree festival was in the church, we checked a few out.





Candles lit in the church to remember loved ones.


Chrissy and I were up early to have breakfast and pack to get ready to leave Glasgow. We both said we would like to have stayed a bit longer.

We left the hotel after saying goodbye to Dawn and made our way to the airport. Chrissy was nervous again, she has done so well to cope with the flying the way she has. We went to check in were a woman decided she would jump the queue as we were taking off our coats and boots.

There wasn't an officer at the desk to put things through the scanner so she didn't get any further, we made sure she heard that we thought she was very rude. Her husband stayed were he was, think he was petrified of us. When we did put our things through, the man watching the screen pulled my chocolates back through and told us that for some reason there were some missing, so good to have a bit of fun with the security team, they are usually so serious. We got sorted out and ready to leave when we spotted the queue jumper who had a pair of scissors taken from her bag and was still waiting to go. We made sure she heard us say "ooohh look at us, all finished". Some people are so rude.

We then got on the plane and went back to Exeter, Chrissy's sweaty palms and all : )

We had lunch in Exeter and then drove back home to unpack and relax. We met up again later as there was a Dickensian style Christmas fayre in Tavistock, Devon. It was great to be back home again and see Siobhan and Kieran. Kieran was so good while I was away, he even triend making his own cheese sandwhich, even cutting the cheese. He had a McDonalds meal as a treat, I told him I was pleased to see he had done so well. Well done Bean x x

I spoke to Siobhan about the pony's I saw, she already had the one I bought her but will put it back as a collectors item.

READ MORE - Coming home after a great few days.

My talk in Glasgow.

This is the link to my talk in Glasgow. I have tried to upload it but blogger won't add it. Please copy and paste the link into the address bar.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X9Eqs2Jx3lM

READ MORE - My talk in Glasgow.

Thursday, Talk day...so exciting.

My blog on the big screen.
Lynn from HASAG.
Phyllis from Clydeside Action on Asbestos.
Me getting ready for my talk.

After the talk I met Irene, another warrior who has lost her wonderful husband.
My little pony in Hambleys, Siobhan's favourite toy.
Irene getting her nails done.


Practicing for Egypt?
The socks will have to go!!! I didn't get this dress although I do like it.
This one is a no-no...too young for me.
Not sure, didn't get this one either.
This one is a big fat yes, got this one...and it looks much better with shoes.
I got this one too.
I wasn't sure about this one...I didn't get it.
My bracelet from Irene.
Lovely Christmas lights.
My gorgeous new shoes.... there's no place like home!!!
Ready for the Ceilidh.
The stunning and gorgeous Chrissy!
We scrub up pretty good : )
Linda, a lung nurse who knows Pat and Tony.
Our effort for Mo-vember....hehehehe x

My wonderful BFF, I have so many.
Veggie Wellington...yum yum.
Dancing the Ceilidh.
Me with Liz Darlison.
Me with Dawn.
We found a man with a kilt.
My gorgeous new shoes.......
....... New tights too.

Chrissy and I were up at 8:30, got ready and went and had breakfast. The hotel is beautiful, the Marriott in Glasgow, four star luxury.

After breakfast we walked around a bit and then mad our way to the conference room where I was going to do my talk. I wasn't nervous at all, if anything I was hoping I could keep it all together as I had been feeling quite emotional the night before when I read my talk to Chrissy, it was from the heart.

I met so many lovely people, Lynn Squibb from HASAG (Hamshires Abestos support and awareness group) This group was set up by Lynn and her sister, Diane after losing their dad, they are wonderful girls. I also met Phyllis Craig who is with the Clydeside action on asbestos group. Such a shame we didn't stay longer, Phyllis invited us to her office and look at the work her and her colleagues do.

I went into the conference room and gave the tech guy my web address to put on the screen.

The coference started and we listened as a surgeon talked about many things, mostly about the EPP, extra pleural pneumonectomy, removing the damaged lung, part of the parcardium and diaphragm, chemo before or after treatment and much more, all very interesting.

We listened to Gerry Slade from Papworth, she was lovely and she knew David Phillips and his wife, David had passed away recently.

My turn came and up I went. I started my talk well, got a bit shakey when talking about Pat and Tony, my inspiration, without whom I wouldn't be here today.

Got to the end where I say I have got the best award ever, I am still here with my children and I lost it... I was filling up, as Bobby Ball would say : )

When I had finished I was so surprised to see that I got a standing ovation, this made me even worse..... how wonderful. Everyone in the room was on there feet and and clapping for little old me from Plymouth, I thanked every one again, and sat with Chrissy, she was in tears too : )

After the meeting, we went to meet Irene. I have been in touch with Irene for a while now, we email eachother quite a lot. She lost her husband Kaz to mesothelioma this year.

We had a bite to eat at the conference and it was decided that I needed an outfit for the evening as there was a CEILIDH, a Scottish dance. We had been invited by the conference organisors, Liz Darlison and Dawn MacKinley. These 2 ladies work so hard and it was so good to see them again, they also run the Mesothelioma UK offices and conferences.

I now had 2 personal shoppers with me, Chrissy and Irene. First we went to Hambleys to get some pony's for Siobhan, she collects them, then we went to a couple of shops to look for a dress for the evening.

We had such a great time looking at dresses, trying them on and deciding which was best. We also decided that it couldn't just be a dress, I needed shoes, bag and tights. I am liking this, 2 wardrobe mistresses ....fantastic : )

Chrissy and Irene went off to find some shoes to try with the dresses and came back with a lovely pair of midnight blue glittered ones. They were gorgeous, I really liked them although they did hurt my toe a little on one foot.

I settles on 2 dresses, a pair of the shoes, gorgeous shoes I might add!!! Got to the check out and no wonder the shoes was pinching my foot, I had 2 left footed shoes..... heheheheh.

I paid for said items and then we went off to Primarny...I mean Primark for a bag and pair of tights. Well it ended up being a bag, pair of tights, earrings and 2 head bands.

After all this shopping we deserved a cuppa. What a wonderful afternoon, I hope Chrissy and Irene enjoyed it as much as I did. We made our way back to the hotel, Irene gave me a gift, a lovely little bracelet. When she emailed me she had said at the end of it "X()X all will become apparent when I see you". The bracelet had a X and then a little stone and another X. Gorgeous, so pretty.

We said goodbye to Irene and went up to our room. We decided we would go for a swim, well we have the pool and sauna here so why not. I was very impressed with myself, I swam I felt really good, not very breathless at all. It feels so good. I did a few lengths and then walked along with Chrissy as she swam as I know I need to pace myself. We went in the steam room and the sauna, I have never done that before. All very nice : )

We went back up to the room again and got ourselves ready to go out, well, how fabulous were we.

My friend Chrissy is a classy lady, she always looks smart and very glamorous. I felt like I had been Chrissyfied, I felt like a million dollars when I put on my new outfit. Chrissy looked fabulous too.

We went down to meet the nurses for our meal, such a lovely meal, I had veggie wellington, it was lovely. We watched as the nurses did the Ceilidh, so energetic, we found a man in a kilt!!! that was a must on coming to Glasgow : )

We stayed until about 10:30 and then went off to bed, we had an early start the next day. We had the most wonderful day, well couple of days. We have been treated so well.

READ MORE - Thursday, Talk day...so exciting.