November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month. Here’s why mesothelioma patients should know about it. Mesothelioma is an aggressive cancer that develops, as a result of asbestos exposure, in the mesothelium, the protective lining that covers many of the internal organs of the body. Mesothelioma can affect cells that line the heart or the abdomen. But 70% to 90% of all mesothelioma causes malignancy in the pleural lining of the lungs. So mesothelioma is for most patients a type of lung cancer. Each year there about 2,000 to 3,000 new cases of mesothelioma are diagnosed. Raising Awareness of Lung … [Read more...]
Inspiration
Coping with Cancer – Tips From Oncology Nurses
Coping with cancer like mesothelioma is not something you can plan for. That’s why health magazine Spry Living reached out to oncology nurses to tap their insider secrets for navigating cancer treatment. We obtained special permission to share their tips for coping with cancer with you at Mesothelioma Circle. Coping With Cancer Sweeten the deal. If chemo makes your food taste flat and metallic, sprinkle a little sugar substitute on it, says a cancer nurse at Mercy Fitzgerald Hospital in Darby, Pennsylvania. Plastic utensils also cut down on the metallic taste. Reduce waiting room … [Read more...]
Honoring Mesothelioma Awareness Day
Mesothelioma Awareness Day approaches once again. It’s on September 26 and comes as always with opportunities for mesothelioma-related activities and advocacy. But what if you’re not feeling up to running in a race or attending a conference? Or you prefer privacy to calling the media or your congressional representatives? No worries. You are coping with mesothelioma. Taking care of yourself right now is your top priority. Do only what you can and what feels right for you. There are many things you can do to acknowledge Mesothelioma Awareness Day in a personal way if you want to do so. 10 … [Read more...]
Living with Mesothelioma: A Not-To-Do List
When you are living with mesothelioma, there’s a lot on your to-do list. Much of it is necessary but not necessarily fun – things like doctor appointments, lab tests, chemo and radiation treatments. You have to do these things to take care of yourself. But maybe another way of taking care of yourself is not doing things. Every moment of every day is precious. So maybe part of living with mesothelioma is knowing that it is okay – important, even – to not do some things. When illness forced former University of California professor Toni Bernhard to give up her college teaching career, she … [Read more...]
Creating a Legacy Video For a Mesothelioma Patient
As a mesothelioma patient, do you still have a lot you want to say to your loved ones? Are there experiences and memories you want to share to help keep your memory and relationships alive? Maybe you could consider making a legacy video as one way that as a mesothelioma patient, you can preserve your thoughts and wishes for your family now and in the future. A video will let your children and grandchildren hear your voice, see your smile and your gestures. It will help them get a sense of your presence in a way that a still photograph can’t express. Such videos convey "a very personal … [Read more...]
20 Great Ways to Help Mesothelioma Patients
If asked, everyone would say they want to help mesothelioma patients. We all want to think of ourselves as a good person. But when it comes down to really doing something to help mesothelioma patients, many people may shy away. Mesothelioma is a malignant cancer caused by asbestos exposure. Many people may be unsure of how to offer comfort and support for those coping with this illness. Lung cancer patient Lori Hope understood this. Following her own treatment for cancer, she developed a survey for cancer patients addressing issues they wanted their families, friends, and caregivers to … [Read more...]
20 Things Mesothelioma Patients Want You to Know
You may think that there isn’t much anyone can do to help mesothelioma patients. You may need to think again. There actually are many things you can do to help mesothelioma patients. They may seem like little things but they matter. Because people often feel overwhelmed by the idea of terminal illness and do not know what to say, they may stay away from someone suffering from mesothelioma. This isolation can just compound the suffering. People basically want to be kind and supportive to mesothelioma patients. They just don’t know how. Lung cancer patient Lori Hope – she began using her … [Read more...]
15 Upbeat Comedy Films for Mesothelioma Patients and Others to Enjoy
For mesothelioma patients and their families, laughter sometimes can really be the best medicine. Laughter won’t cure mesothelioma. But it can elevate the spirit. And that in itself is a gift. Comedy can give us a shortcut to laughter. Movies always provide us with an escape hatch from our daily lives and well-made comedies give us the bonus of laughter. But something not so funny has happened to comedy films in recent years. Some of them unexpectedly veer into not-so-funny things. Dark humor, it’s called. But it’s not everyone’s idea of a good time. For people like mesothelioma patients who … [Read more...]
What To Do After You’ve Received a Malignant Mesothelioma Diagnosis
You’ve received a malignant mesothelioma diagnosis. Now what do you do? First, let us at Mesothelioma Circle tell you how very sorry we are. Learning that you have malignant mesothelioma can come as a shock. How did you react? You may have felt numb, frightened, or angry. You may not have believed what the doctor was saying. You may have felt all alone, even if your friends and family were in the same room with you. These feelings are all normal, according to the National Cancer Institute. (NCI) For many people, the first few weeks after a malignant mesothelioma diagnosis are very hard. … [Read more...]
How Pets Can Make Mesothelioma Patients Feel Better
Mesothelioma patients may often feel alone, whether at a social gathering or isolated at home. How can you help? What if the mesothelioma patient could feel the unconditional love of a pet? The purr and warmth of a contented cat on a lap or the grateful tailwag and lick of a happy dog by their side? The warmth and affection of a pet can add joy to the life of a mesothelioma patient for who so much has suddenly been subtracted. Pets may even provide subtle but significant health boosts for mesothelioma patients. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control states: Pets can decrease: Blood … [Read more...]