A Lump

[Gorilla]

best wishes to you Cedar and family. i know what you're going through.

[cedarblue]

continued thanks to you all for your good wishes and kind words...

dad's op went very well on wednesday , the surgeon was very pleased with it.
he had a couple of drains on which are now removed and he is sporting a very frankenstein-esque stitched scar. he cannot use his right arm at the moment due to the op but the stength there will gradually come back.
we have no news yet as to whether he will need any radiotherapy.....
being a very active oldie he is bored to tears in the hosp so its good news that he is going home today!!!!!

i am going to visit him with flowers and treats tomorrow

WOOHOO! thank you all again so very much....

love to you all

[Seaside]

Good News!

I'm glad to hear he is coming home. I hope there is no need for further treatment!

[tails4wagging]

Sounds as if he has a possitive atitude which helps. Glad he is on the mend.

[Cal]

Excellent news.

[Roxy]

Glad to hear your Dad's operation went well. Here's wishing him strength during his recovery!

[my3labs]

Awesome news!!!!

[Gorilla]

great to hear your dad's on the mend Cedar.

[eve]

Glad your dad's making a good recovery. Cheers

[cedarblue]

well since dad's been home he has been experiencing panic attacks and mild depression which imo are perfectly to be understood considering the emotional and physical shocks his body and mind have undergone in a relatively short space of time between diagnosis and surgery.
he is taking a couple of weeks of a mild antidepressant to help with this. he is confused as to where these attacks are coming from and why he cant seem to control them. he is a very fit 73yr old who looks after himself, runs marathons etc is very active.

anyway he is having radiotherapy treatment soon and has been to have a face mask made for the therapy. unfortunately he has to go up to a london hospital every weekday for 6 weeks for 1/2hr of treatment a day. he is also having to have a p.e.g. feeding inserted into his stomach through his abdomen for extra feeding in case his throat swells and dries so much that he is unable to take in enough nutrition to maintain his body mass. he expects to have this fitted next friday. he is going to make the journey up to london by train every day until he cant manage it due to fatigue or feeling poorly from radiotherapy.

the radiotherapy will result in his neck and maybe face being extremely 'sunburnt' for a while.

we will all be glad when this episode is over.
hope dad will be able to get his head round the next stage of treatment. i spoke to him this morning and he seems to be accepting of the whole thing. i hope when the reality of the tube being fitted and the trauma (physical and emotional) of the therapy hit him he has the strength (* as before) to look beyond those 6 weeks to cessation and recovery.

please continue to think of him if you would.

thanks all

[foxytina_69]

sending your father good wishes and luck. he seems to be a very strong man! sending my love!

[tails4wagging]

Positive vibes for your dad.

[Aurora]

Lots of healing for your dad

xx

[Cal]

cedarblue, that all sounds very traumatic for your dad. I do hope he can stay really positive and get through this next stage. I'm thinking of him and sending good wishes, as are many people on this forum.

[Gliondrach]

Cedarblue, I hope your dad makes a full and speedy recovery soon.

I would advise him to avoid too much sunshine. We don't want him damaging his skin.

Certain foodstuffs are believed to have a role in preventing cancer from spreading and minimising its effects if it does. Such things as blackberries, green tea, lycopene and other carotenes, elderberry, soy, raw broccoli, spinach, and red peppers. Carrots and tomatoes are best slightly cooked, to allow their carotenes to be more easily absorbed. I'm sure you'll be advising your dad to eat a healthy, preferably organic, mix of vegetables and fruits.

I'm also including your dad in my healing thoughts each day.

Regards,

Martin.

[Gliondrach]

Just read my post again. I only meant to say that the broccoli should be raw. It could be misunderstood. There's nothing wrong with eating most of the others raw but most people wouldn't like to.

[cedarblue]

another update; dad has decided against the radiotherapy treatment, two reasons. firstly he cannot face another op, namely the one to have the feeding tube inserted and have it in for at least 6 weeks and secondly he has had two conflicting points of view from 'specialists' one saying no radiotherapy needed and the other saying yes, possibly to cover the hospitals butt.

he is going to see his consultant next week hopefully, to confirm his decision.

i support him 100% in his decision. he has felt better since making it, less depressed and anxious. i am insisting however, that he has quaterly mri scans to keep an eye on things.

just thought you would like to know.

thanks.

[Geoff]

I can relate to how your Dad feels, Cedar. After my scan last week, I was told I'd have to go for an angiogram / angioplasty but, after thinking it over, I'm inclined to strictly adhere to the Eat To Live diet and see if I can fix it myself.
Any info on reversing coronary artery disease would be welcome.

[cedarblue]

good luck to you geoff.

at the expense of sounding 'weird' here, sometimes i think its a case of your inner knowing about yourself, your body and your capacity to instigate change/healing/improvement through a carefully thought out diet/attitude and confidence in listening in to your 'body' not just the heart and mind.

do i sound weird?? who cares!

how long have you been vegan geoff? were you/are you a heavy drinker/smoker?
feel free to ignore the above questions if too personal...

as regards reversing coronary artery disease - how about primal therapy? go back in your life to when you first remember being able to make decisions for yourself, decide then and there to be a vegan, to excercise, not drink or smoke (if applicable) and then come back to now - voila! hopefully, full reversal! - er, now that DOES sound weird (all my own thoughts here folks - dont try this at home!! )

[tails4wagging]

I can relate to how your Dad feels, Cedar. After my scan last week, I was told I'd have to go for an angiogram / angioplasty but, after thinking it over, I'm inclined to strictly adhere to the Eat To Live diet and see if I can fix it myself.
Any info on reversing coronary artery disease would be welcome.

Not sure you can Geoff, Angiogram/angioplasty has a very high success rate.

Once your arteries are furred I dont think you can un fur them, so to speak by diet etc,.

Good luck

[Roxy]

I hope all is well with your Dad, Cedar. It must've been a very big decision for him to make.

Best wishes for your self-recovery Geoff. Like Cedar says it's how well you know yourself and how well you think you can recover from this without surgery.

The Power of Positive Thinking always helps too

[Gliondrach]

I can relate to how your Dad feels, Cedar. After my scan last week, I was told I'd have to go for an angiogram / angioplasty but, after thinking it over, I'm inclined to strictly adhere to the Eat To Live diet and see if I can fix it myself.
Any info on reversing coronary artery disease would be welcome.

Geoff, Tails4wagging is right in that the angios are the usual method for treating this. However, there are ways that you might help yourself.

Betain is recommended to help cut high levels of homocysteine, which can lead to heart attacks. Sugar beet and spinach are high in betaine.
Exercise raises levels of HDL and lowers levels of the type of cholesterol called LDL. HDL helps to remove cholesterol from the artery walls. HDL is actually cholesterol, but is the beneficial kind.

Vitamin E and omega-3 oil help to thin the blood.
You probably have high blood pressure if your arteries have become furred up and if you have hardening of the arteries. Make sure you cut down on sodium chloride- table salt which is in lots of produced foods. Lower blood pressure and thinner blood are less likely to lead to clots forming. Magnesium, calcium and potassium are needed to keep the heart muscle healthy.
The B vits are also useful and C. In fact, make sure that your diet provides all the usual nutrients needed for good health.

Omega-6, the carotenoids, and selenium are also helpful in keeping your heart healthy.

I remember reading something about DHEA so I'll look that up. You have enough to be going on with for now, though. I suggest you also practise self-healing imagery. Look in the thread about IBS for a description. If you think you'd like to try that, but need help with it, I can give you more detailed instructions as I used to help people to practise it.

Regards,

Martin.

[Gliondrach]

That Primal Therapy method sounds like some of the Time Line Therapy and NLP techniques. I've used them on myself and others with great success - for healing past emotional wounds. I know they can be used for physical conditions, too, but have no personal experince. Something like that would be worth trying - for any disease.

[Geoff]

Thanks Martin. There are doctors who insist that coronary artery disease can be reversed, including Dean Ornish, Joel Fuhrman and John McDougal so I'm following their recommendations (and yours too, of course!). I just want to postpone the angiogram for a while and do regular exercise ECGs to assess progress. And, inspired by Lance Armstrong, I'm going to get back on the bike.

[Gliondrach]

Good for you, Geoff.

I hate to hijack this thread but I'm sure Cedarblue won't mind as it's in such a good cause. Here's the extra info I mentioned:

There seem to be conflicting reports on DHEA. Some researches hail it as a miracle-worker but others advise caution because its use might cause hormonal imbalance. Perhaps it's best to lay off it until more is known. Now for some good news:

Garlic can also help to lower cholesterol levels.

Hawthorn is reported to help in reducing furring. It also strengthens the heart. See a herbalist to ensure this is right for you.

The procyanidins - a type of flavanoid - in pycnogenol (which comes from the bark of a pine tree) is used to treat heart disease. You can buy it in capsule form. Various types of flavanoids are heart protective. The flavanoids in green and black tea, and red wine are particularly effective. Quercitin, found in onions and apples, is also very beneficial to the heart. Beetroot contains flavanoids that are very useful for this condition. This can turn your urine pink when eaten in large quantities.

Returning to vits C, and E - ten years ago The Lancet reported that these taken with niacin unblocked coronory arteries. Worth remembering.

I'd be interested in any links to those medics you mentioned.

Regards,

Martin.

[cedarblue]

well, here we are nearly a year to the date and the bad news is that there is another lump in dads neck

he is not going to have surgery this time but chemo and radiotherapy treatment. he has had his radiotherapy mask made and has to have an op next week to have a feeding tube inserted to his stomach in case he cant swallow during the treatment. he has to travel up to london to st thomas' mon-fri for six weeks where he will be having drip chemo on mondays and radio tue - fri.

we are going out for a nice meal this sunday as its his birthday bang in the middle of the treatment.

...just thought those who knew about the story from last year would like an update.

thanks

[maya]

I am soo sorry!!! Hun I will keep your fam in my thoughts!!!! (((((hugs)))))

[Blueshark]

That is bad news CB. I wish you and your father the best during this time.

[Pob]

That is sad news.

Let him know, we're all thinking positive thoughts for him.

[feral]

I'm sorry to hear that cedarblue, I wish your dad all the very best with his treatment.

[RedWellies]

Oh, your poor dad, Cedarblue! I hope everything works out for him. I'll send positive thoughts your way...hope it helps!

[poppy seed]

Being new to this forum, I just now read the whole thread. I wish you all strength and peace and hope your Dad does wonderfully well!

thinking of you....

[PinkLogik]

Really sorry to hear this Cedarblue. I'll keep you, your dad and your family in my thoughts. I hope everything works out ok. The power of positive thinking can be very powerful indeed. xxx

Sending positive vibes your way... xxx

[insubordination]

Must be scary for you. I hope you both get through it.

[cedarblue]

thank you all so much for your wishes.

dad is going to collect his radiotherapy mask today and to be 'marked' on a scan for where the therapy is to be targeted although of course, all his neck will experience the burn.

i wish we lived nearer to each other.

[Limey]

Oh Cedarblue, I am so sorry for what you and your dad are going through right now. Sending lots of positive thoughts your way. Keep us posted on how things are going.

[foxytina_69]

hugs to cedarblue!! im so sorry to hear that. i too will send positive thoughts your way.

[DianeVegan]

Very sorry to hear about your father, Cedarblue.

[Roxy]

I'm sorry to hear about your Dad, Cedar. It must be very hard for your family to watch him go through this. I hope you can all find the strength you need in each other and in your spiritual beliefs.

I'm sending loving and positive thoughts your way.

Love
Roxy