Janet2021

Hi Janet2021, I just noticed that you live in NJ...where is Cedar Grove? I live in Mays Landing, NJ about 12 miles outside of Atlantic City. We moved here from Chicago about 22 years ago. Congratulations on your first grandchild...we have 6. Our daughter has 3 children and our son has 3. You ask me how I have coped with all of this and what will be. All my life I have been persistent and determined. When I was first diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and given the grim statistics of survival...I told the doctor to count me in on those numbers...somebody has to be in there, so it may as well be me. Oh I was afraid of dying just like everyone else, and yes I cried, but I looked at those times as emotional cleansings. The doctors told me that they were going to treat this aggressively. I had my surgery at the University of Penn hospital where they removed 40% of my pancreas! my entire spleen! a slice of my left kidney! and 5 lymph nodes. The cancer did spread to the first lymph node, but the others were clear. They implanted a port in my upper chest and I had a pump and cartridge of the chemo drug 5fu on a slow drip 24hours a day non-stop for 5 weeks. I also had radiation 5days a week at the same time. It tried to take the life out of me, but I refused to give in. I was crawling on my hands and knees in the morning until I could get up enough strength to stand up and go for my next radiation treatment. Boy was I glad when those 5 weeks were up, but they hit me over the head with..."we are going to do another round of chemo." I said..."no way!" They told me to go home for a rest and we'll contact you in 2 weeks. Well when they called I agreed, what was the alternative? This time it was 2-3 hours one day a week for 9 weeks of Gemzar. It was around 2 years after my surgery I started to ask the question..."why me?" Not why me did I get cancer, but why me did I survive while so many others with pancreatic cancer didn't? I also started to go to Gilda's Club for meetings with other cancer patients. When I was in the hospital, after my surgery, I told my wife I was going to read Lance Armstrong's book "It's not About the Bike/My Journey Back to Life." That was 13+ years ago and I haven't stopped reading since. I read strictly non-fiction...I don't think I had read more than 3 books before this, and that was in school. I also read "Lucky Man," by Michael J. Fox. Both Lance Armstrong and Michael J. Fox said similar things about their life threatening diseases. Michael said..."if you told me that I would no longer have Parkinson's Disease, but I would have to give up the last 10 years of my life, I wouldn't do it, because my life is on a different path than it would have been." It took me awhile to figure out how 2 individuals, with different life threatening diseases, would say that they are fortunate to have had cancer and Parkinson's Disease. They both say that their lives are now on totally different paths if it were not for their illnesses. After another year of going to Gilda's Club I found myself supporting those who were newly diagnosed with cancer. I am on 2 other websites and I have offered my email address to anyone of my friends who know people who have cancer. By doing this...one must be prepared to suffer the loss of some of these individuals...it's not easy when it happens. I am still in touch with several family members, and friends of those individuals who have passed. It is so heartwarming to know that just maybe I made a difference in their lives. I was given a second chance in life by surviving 13 years from pancreatic cancer. I too am now at a place where I am at peace with what has happened to me in the past, and at peace with what will happen to me in the future. God Bless you, and keep you safe. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to ask...there are many good people on this website who would be happy to offer you their support.

My best to you,
Russ

Hi Janet2021, if you would like to give me your email address you must go through Greg, (the mgr of WhatNext). He will not print it for all to see. Just send Greg an email giving him permission to send me your email address. I am not a shore person...I was born and raised in Chicago. I lived there for 28 years, another 20 years in the suburbs, and then we moved to NJ at the end of 1992.
My best to you,
Russ

Hello and welcome, we are glad you found us. Please feel free to join in the conversations. Here is a link to our cancer dx page for your type of cancer. Take a look at it to get you started on some information. You will notice at the bottom of that page 4 of our active users who have had that journey already, you may wish to contact them for their experience and wisdom. Also, I encourage you to go to the questions page now by clicking on the questions tab at the top of the page and post what is the most pressing issue you have right now. This will introduce you to the community and get you started on the help you need right now.

https://www.whatnext.com/conditions/cancer/pancreatic-cancer

There are also subtypes listed on this page to narrow down the type of cancer to match your dx.

Also, if you can take a few minutes and fill in some details of your journey so far, it will help others as they try to answer questions for you, it also helps others as they search through the data base to find someone like themselves. Confirming your email will allow you to receive updates and notices from the site when someone answers your questions or writes on your wall.

Thanks for being with us and let me know if I can help you find any information on the site. After you have an opportunity to look the site over and see what great things there are here, we encourage you to invite your friends, family or anyone you know that may be helped by the connections on WhatNext to join the site also. Just click this link to invite them to join. http://www.whatnext.com/recruit-a-friend

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GregP 3X Survivor
Team WhatNext Community Mgr

Hi janet2021,

We have just finished 6 months of chemo, have follow up appt tomorrow. We leave for 10 days in Aruba on May 2 to celebrate my husbands birthday!! Great minds from NJ!!!!

Welcome to the WhatNext family! The WhatNext family is made up of people like you who are looking for help or looking to help others. To help you along your journey the WhatNext family has put together a Beginner's Guide to Cancer that I highly recommend you check-out here: http://bit.ly/10BQKCi. Also, please do not hesitate to reach out to others or ask for help.

Wishing you the best.

David
Founder, WhatNexter