Five years ago I was feeble and fragile, just finished my fifth round of chemotherapy, having coughed for months before diagnosis, still coughing because although chemo helped, it didn’t really help that much. Facebook just reminded me of that time with a photo of some of the many gorgeous flowers that beautiful people sent to us to encourage us, because we all need encouragement, especially when we are travelling rough places in our road.
Another gorgeous gift! 
Gerberas are the happiest flowers! 
I could hardly talk, couldn’t do much more than lie on the couch looking at beautiful flowers. I pushed myself hard, not wanting to give up one millimetre to lung cancer, but even so, those were difficult days. Some of my friends are going through hard times like this now. Those were hard days, because no matter how tough I was or how hard I pushed, lung cancer kept pushing harder, and chemo sure wasn’t doing the job.
Thankfully lung cancer research made a difference for me. I’ve been on a series of targeted therapy drugs for almost five years now, and they have been -not without side effects- better than chemotherapy.
I’m alive and well, and now I’m still fighting! I’m not fighting for my life at the moment, but I’m fighting for others, including those who have not yet been diagnosed.
I’m thankful that I’m not fighting alone. Here are a few of my terrific teammates gathered in Atlanta for the AACR Annual Conference:
Lung cancer research has been neglected, and I can’t understand why. New treatments are game changers, so let’s keep going and make a great life and death difference for more people! Let’s find new targeted therapies to work for more of the lung cancer patients. Let’s turn more patients into survivors!
Lung Cancer needs a little more love, and a lot more research money. More research money means more survivors. Look at me! I’m alive and I’m living life! I’m celebrating life every day because every day is a gift to be celebrated!
A bunch of us -lung cancer patients and others- are walking the Ottawa Race Week-end 2K this May 25. Come join us! We’re going to have a great time! We’re getting tee shirts! We’re just getting started! Stay tuned for more details, and sign up to join our team please! We are “Lung Cancer Team Canada”, and we’re raising $$ for Lung Cancer Canada. Here’s the link.
People matter. People with lung cancer matter. Lung Cancer #ResearchMatters . Tell everybody!
#ChooseHope
Through the Valley 