What cancer survival really means

I was really taken aback by this explanation of what cancer survival really means. I know that some of you are fighting cancer* or have someone in your lives who is. This may be useful.

xkcd: Lanes

(Click to make bigger)

Check out the rollover --the text which displays when your mouse hovers over the picture-- on the original post for how the picture reflects the stages of breast cancer.

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*Reflecting on this, I think I see a bit better why some say that 'fighting cancer' is the wrong language/metaphor. Though I'm not sure what to use instead. Help me out.

Does Morphine Stimulate Cancer Growth?

No.

GeriPal does yeoman's work in explaining why

Does Morphine Stimulate Cancer Growth? | GeriPal - A Geriatrics and Palliative Care Blog: ""

Mindfulness in cancer treatment

Go read Mindy Greenstein's WaPo piece:

Aided by a Proponent of Mindfulness, Cancer Patient Focuses on Joys of Today - washingtonpost.com

Why are you still here?

It's awesome. Trust me.

Okay fine. Don't believe me. Here's a small bit of its awesomeness to entice you:

Sanderson realized that this was what she was doing with her needle and, ultimately, with her illness: letting her experience of the present moment be overtaken by her fears for the future. Every hour she spent ruminating about the pain that was awaiting her was another hour she wasn't fully engaged with her life, another hour she couldn't enjoy. She couldn't pretend she didn't know her prognosis. So she chose a different route.

"I realized," she told us, "that the moments of pain -- even if the pain was excruciating -- were actually very short compared with the pain I put myself through by thinking about it ahead of time." If she could stay focused on the present moment no matter what she was doing -- washing dishes, talking to a colleague, even chatting with the doctor just before her treatment -- up until the moment the needle actually pierced her skin, she could cope. Even more, if she could keep that same focus from meandering to thoughts about what lay ahead in the future in general, she could continue to make the most of every moment that was not painful.

Some people think being positive means being certain of a cure. For others, it means enjoying the kindness of a friend or the mischief of a child or a rerun of "Battlestar Galactica" today, and leaving tomorrow's sorrows for tomorrow. For me, it meant.....

Oh you want to know how it ends don't you?

Now do you believe me?

Go read it. I'll still be here when you get back.

H/T: LB

More drugs, please: Italian edition

May I have your attention please?

Ahem.

STOP DENYING CANCER PATIENTS THE MEDICINE THEY NEED.

Thank you for your attention

Pattern and quality of care of cancer pain management. Results from the Cancer Pain Outcome Research Study Group.: "

Br J Cancer. 2009 Apr 28;
Apolone G, Corli O, Caraceni A, Negri E, Deandrea S, Montanari M, Greco MT

Most patients with advanced or metastatic cancer experience pain and despite several guidelines, undertreatment is well documented. A multicenter, open-label, prospective, non-randomised study was launched in Italy in 2006 to evaluate the epidemiology, patterns and quality of pain care of cancer patients. To assess the adequacy of analgesic care, we used a standardised measure, the pain management index (PMI), that compares the most potent analgesic prescribed for a patient with the reported level of the worst pain of that patient together with a selected list of clinical indicators. A total of 110 centres recruited 1801 valid cases. 61% of cases were received a WHO-level III opioid; 25.3% were classified as potentially undertreated, with wide variation (9.8-55.3%) according to the variables describing patients, centres and pattern of care. After adjustment with a multivariable logistic regression model, type of recruiting centre, receiving adjuvant therapy or not and type of patient recruited (new or already on follow-up) had a significant association with undertreatment. Non-compliance with the predefined set of clinical indicators was generally high, ranging from 41 to 76%. Despite intrinsic limitations of the PMI that may be considered as an indicator of the poor quality of cancer pain care, results suggest that the recourse to WHO third-level drugs still seems delayed in a substantial percentage of patients. This delay is probably related to several factors affecting practice in participating centres and suggests that the quality of cancer pain management in Italy deserves specific attention and interventions aimed at improving patients' outcomes.British Journal of Cancer advance online publication, 28 April 2009; doi:10.1038/sj.bjc.6605053 www.bjcancer.com."

(Via HubMed - pain.)