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Stage IV 10 years later
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Stage IV 10 years later

› Forums › General Melanoma Community › Stage IV 10 years later

  • Post
    • January 8, 2020 at 6:48 pm
    Frannie55
    Participant
      I haven’t visited this site in 8 years. I’ve been NED for 10 years. The only treatments I’ve had were surgery and high dose interferon when I was at stage II. In 2010 I thought that I would be gone in a couple of years. I chose to live my life on my terms and continued drinking beer and smoking cigarettes. The only change I made was adding mushroom complex, tumeric, cinnamon, and vitamin D3 to my diet. I need a spinal fusion desperately but in order to do that I had to quit smoking and drinking, no easy task since I am a full blown alcoholic. Well as luck would have it my family did an intervention with me a month and a half ago and sent me to rehab. I have been sober and tobacco free for 52 days. So I had what I had hoped would my last PET scan the other day. Of course it showed uptake in some lymph nodes. I had told my spine doctor that beer and cigarettes were keeping me safe from my melanoma. And it looks like I was right! Please understand that I am laughing as I write this. I’m not upset about it, however, I do hope I don’t go out and buy a case of beer and carton of cigarettes!
      10 years is a good run and there are so many good drugs out now that weren’t available when I was first diagnosed. It’s a good day to be sober.

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    • Replies
        • January 8, 2020 at 9:26 pm
        gopher38
        Participant
          Let’s hope those lymph nodes are not what you’re thinking. Interesting story you’ve got there. Time to get a healthier vice than beer and/or cigarettes. I’d suggest chocolate.
            • January 9, 2020 at 9:55 pm
            Frannie55
            Participant
              Funny you say that. I just bought 10 almond joys and a big bag of peanut m&m’s.
            • January 8, 2020 at 10:00 pm
            JudiAU
            Participant
              I’m sorry that you have need to return to these board and hope the uptake is meaningless. But I’m glad that are in good spirits. I’m personally of the opinion that dark humor has helped me enormously.
              • January 9, 2020 at 12:32 am
              jbronicki
              Participant
                Well we never like to see anyone back on the board for any reason around here, sorry to hear that there may be a recurrence but HUGE congratulations on the 52 days, that is an accomplishment all on its own. Giving up both at the same time isn’t easy, I always think of Greg Allman who gave everything up at once too. I hope it isn’t Melanoma, but you are 100% right that if it is, there are some really good new drugs out there that weren’t there 10 years ago.

                We can handle dark humor on this board. Personally, I’m guided in life by George Carlin, so totally see where you are coming from. For some reason your words about the irony of getting a possible diagnosis AFTER you give up the bad stuff made me think of his bit on the lethal injection “In prisons, before they give you a lethal injection, they swab your arm with alcohol! It’s true! It’s true. It’s true! Well, they don’t want you to get an infection! And you can see their point: wouldn’t want some guy to go to Hell and be sick!”. SERIOUSLY, why swab at that point.

                Many many hugs. Fingers crossed.

                  • January 9, 2020 at 9:58 pm
                  Frannie55
                  Participant
                    Love your reply and George Carlin! Dark humor will get me through all of this crap.
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