Cancer Did Strike My Family

As I talk about my thyroid experience and the thought of cancer creeping into my mind, I start to remember my husbands brother. He died of cancer at 41.

He had been complaining for months about stomach pains and he was always taking pain killers. He started developing other symptoms and my husband asked if I could check on the internet to see if I can find out any information on his symptoms.

I did find some information but it was not good. I told my husband it sounds like Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma by the symptoms you have told me, but he needs to see a doctor to be sure and if its Lymphoma, he must go immediately. Especially since he seemed to have advanced symptoms.

He was afraid to go for a while, but after a few weeks of excruciating pain he does make an appointment. He sees a doctor but I don't know what went on during his appointment. My brother in law decides to go to a hospital close to his mother and he passed away a month later.

Apparently, by the time he saw a doctor, he had stage IV Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma. It had spread mostly throughout his lower abdominal area. He must have had an idea what was happening to him because about 8 years previously, the oldest brother had died of the same disease at the age of 39, except that his disease was concentrated in the upper body.

I have to add that they had a sister die of a brain tumor at 41. So cancer is an important topic to us. I want to know all I can and why this could happen in one family. So as I study about thyroids I also study about cancer.

I am a believer in taking charge of your own health as much as you possibly can. Gain whatever knowledge you can and when you feel strange pains that are constant, see a doctor right away. It is not normal to feel pain all the time. I know some of us can tolerate more pain than others while some are more sensitive to pain. Just try to listen to your body and take the necessary action.

There's great information on the internet, talk to doctors and get second and third opinions but when it comes to certain cancers, time is of the essence. I also suggest not only going the conventional medicine way about cancer but also consider natural, alternative ways to prevent and treat cancer.

Cancer is now expected to strike 1 in 2 men and over 1 in 3 women in their lifetime. I have searched and researched and continue to search for information on prevention and cures for cancer and found this website http://www.naturalcancertreatments.com/index.htm that has very informative ebooks with lots of information like 350 different natural ways to treat cancer and alternatives to compliment chemotherapy treatments to make them more effective. In the website it also gives you some surprising ways you can prevent cancer like not consuming aspartame and having root canals.

There is a lot of information for you and I encourage everyone interested in prevention and cures for cancer to do some research. Following is a small list of sites that helped me get started and some new ones that I stumbled upon recently.

1. http://www.dana-farber.org/
2. http://www.oncolink.com/index.cfm
3. http://www.aacr.org/default.aspx
4. http://www.cancercare.org/
5. http://www.cancer.org/docroot/home/index.asp
6. http://www.cancermonthly.com/
7. http://www.oncologychannel.com/
8. http://www.cancercenter.com/
9. http://new-cancer-treatments.org/
10. http://www.cancertutor.com/index.html
11. http://www.mskcc.org/mskcc/html/44.cfm
12. http://www.cancer.net/Cancer/cancer.html

And there is so much more information to find including information on specific cancers. I am looking forward to a cancer free world.