One tumor is sitting on his one kidney and bladder. It is 6 inches long and the doctors say they can't operate on it because M would not make it through the surgery-he would hemorrhage to death. He is having surgery this morning and they are putting in a stint to relieve the pressure from his kidney and bladder. After this, the doctors will decide what to do next.

He applied to a cancer study in Maryland but didn't qualify-due to him being on chemo numerous times. There is another study in Cincinnati that is more targeted to his specific needs that we hope he qualifies for. The hospital will fed-ex his scans to that hospital today.

He is a very strong young man. He has accomplished so much during his journey fighting this horrible and rare cancer in children. He graduated from High School with honors. He has also completed his first two years in college.

I have a luncheon to attend today and then I am headed to Chattanooga to be with him and the family. I believe in prayer-I believed it helped this time last year when we thought he was going to have his colon removed-he didn't have to have it removed. Please pray with me for my cousin, M, and his family. Thank you so much!

EDIT: I did not go to Chattanooga today-M's Mom said it would be better to come on Sunday. They are warn out and he will be coming home tomorrow-which will be another tiring day for him to get settled in and have to deal with the feeding bag. Still waiting for the exact outcome of the surgery and what the future holds.

Posted by Mercedes at Mercedes' World and only for Mercedes' World

more info can be found in this article and this article. both from eurekalert.org

scientists have also identified a new anti-tumor drug.

scott

Unique advantages of a personalized, patient-specific immunotherapy include:

Because it is important to be enrolled in the study prior to surgery, interested patients should seek referral at CORT for consultation PRIOR to surgery, so tumor tissue that is obtained at the time of surgery can be utilized in preparation of the individual DC product. 

For more information about this study, contact one of our Research Coordinators at trials@cortpa.com or call 972-566-5588.   Information about CORT and this study is also available at www.CORTPA.com.

Pediatric malignancies are more common in the Northeast, and boys are at higher risk than girls, study finds

By Serena Gordon
HealthDay Reporter

MONDAY, June 2 (HealthDay News) -- A sweeping government study of childhood cancers has found numerous differences in cancer types depending on a child's age, sex, race and where he or she lives in the United States.

White children had the highest incidence of all cancers, the researchers found, and youngsters in the Northeast were diagnosed with cancer more often than children in other parts of the country.

The study also found that boys were more likely to have a pediatric malignancy than girls, and that adolescents are more likely to have cancer than are younger children.

"We looked at the childhood cancer incidence rate from 2001 through 2003, and further looked at the data by age, sex, ethnicity and U.S. census region," said the study's lead author, Dr. Jun Li, an epidemic intelligence office for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta.

"We identified 36,446 cases of childhood cancer during these three years, which is about 166 per every million," he said.

Li said the information for the study, which represents more than 90 percent of the U.S. population, came from 39 National Program of Cancer Registries and five Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) databases.

Results of the study are published in the June issue of the journal Pediatrics.

Three cancers accounted for about 60 percent of all childhood cancers. Leukemias were the most common childhood malignancy, affecting just over 26 percent of youngsters with cancer. Central nervous system tumors, such as brain tumors, were the next most common type of pediatric cancer, affecting about 17.6 percent of children with the illness. Lymphomas affected about 14.6 percent of kids with cancer, according to the study.

Overall, boys were more likely to develop cancer than girls. The incidence rate for boys was 174 per million, while the incidence rate for girls was 157 per million. The type of cancer each sex commonly developed also varied. Boys were more likely to have lymphoid leukemia, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, Burkitt lymphoma, hepatoblastoma, osteosarcomas, and more. Girls were more likely to develop kidney cancers, thyroid cancers and malignant melanomas.

The cancer incidence rates for those between 15 and 19 were 210 per million, while the incidence rate in children 14 and under was about 151 per million.

White children were the most likely to have cancer, with an incidence rate of 173 per million. The rate for black children was 118 per million, 131 per million for Asian/Pacific Islanders, and 164 per million for Hispanics. American Indians and Alaska Natives had the lowest rates, with 97 per million.

Geography appeared to make a difference as well. Kids in the Northeastern part of the country are most likely to develop cancer, with an incidence rate of 179 per million. In the Midwest, the rate was 166 per million; in the South, it was 159 per million; and in the West, it was 165 per million. Interestingly, the study also reported that the Northeast, despite having the highest cancer rate, also has the lowest death rate from pediatric cancers.

Li said the researchers weren't able to identify the reasons for the differences in this study, but he believes the data will lay the groundwork for future research. Knowing these differences may help other scientists target their research, he added.

"This is an interesting study, but as a practicing oncologist, I won't be advising families any differently. And, as a father of three sons, I wouldn't have any added concern as a parent living in the Northeast," said Dr. Adam Levy, a pediatric hematologist and oncologist, and director of pediatric neuro-oncology at the Children's Hospital at Montefiore in New York City.

"My fear is that people may over-interpret this study, and parents really don't need added anxiety. We're still talking about very rare pediatric cancers and mild differences. Mostly, this gives epidemiological researchers clues. Parents don't need to become overly worried by this," concluded Levy.

If you have kidney cancer, you might not get symptoms until the disease is advanced. Not long ago, such a diagnosis was bad news. But now, thanks to technology, teamwork and medical expertise, people are beating this deadly disease.

For more information about this study, visit the CORT website (www.CORTPA.com), or call and speak with a study coordinator at 972-566-5588.

I was listening to a song tonight that said "there are two kinds of trouble in this world--living and dying." Somehow it struck me to the core.

Dying seems like a horrible option. I don't care how long we've lived, or how much we've suffered, the struggle to let go of this life cannot be an easy one. The life force is so strong, that we will go through many things, in hopes of staying alive.

I remember reading Tuesdays With Morrie, and thinking how much Morrie fought to remain on this earth, when almost every pleasure had been taken from him, and he was able to do nothing more than lie in bed. Yet he lived every moment of his slow death. Having once been a professor, he continued to teach a favorite past student. But the lessons weren't the textbook variety. They were life lessons. Lessons about how to live, and how to die.

Many of us don't learn these lessons until we are actually dying. But then it's too late to go back and redo the story. It is what it is.

Here's a novel concept--what if you were to live like you were dying? How would your life be different?

Most of us have been there momentarily, when we've gotten bad news. Not long ago, I was told that I could have kidney cancer. Many days passed before the test.  And then there was the actual day of the kidney x-ray, with the contrast material. Then once again, many days passed waiting for an answer. Waiting, and waiting, and waiting for the results. In a way, life came to a standstill while I waited. But I was doing a lot of thinking.

Maybe you've been through something similar. Suddenly all the things that seemed so important--aren't, and all the things that didn't--are. Petty arguments are of no consequence, and money and material possessions don't mean a thing.

What really matters is faith, family, and friends. You don't have time to guess about whether you're right with God anymore. You have to know. You have to be sure. And those people that you thought you'd always be with (for many years in the future) become closer to your heart with every passing moment, and leaving them seems painfully impossible. Good friends become the support you need with reassurance, comfort and prayers. (And it's then that you really learn who your friends are.)

Somewhere along the way, it crosses your mind that your life could really be over, and you wonder what you've accomplished. Did you live for the Lord, and to love and help others? Did you make a difference in anyone's life? Was there a reason that you were here?

Some people never think on these things until they are dying, or someone close to them dies.

Funerals are sad events, but people are probably never more open to receiving the Lord, as they become in those moments, because they are forced to decide if they believe in an afterlife, heaven, hell, Jesus, eternal life, salvation, seeing loved ones again, etc. In this busy world, minus a tragedy, many people aren't going to stop and focus on the purpose of their life--because they are so busy living it. It was John Lennon who said, "Life is what happens to you, while you're busy making other plans."

I have had a loved one taken from me unexpectedly. (Several in fact.) At that moment, you are shaken to the depths. You would give anything to have one more day, and most of the time, so would they. But the final chapter on earth ends, and it's over. (Ready or not.)

It turns out that I did not have kidney cancer, and I can tell you that the sky looked bluer, and the sun shone brighter the day that I received the good news. But I began to think of all the people that don't get good news--the ones who had been waiting, just like I was. (But they were not as fortunate in their diagnosis.) It happens every day.

So what's my point? I think you know by now. It comes down to this--how would life be different, if we would all live like we were dying?...

Please read other articles that I have written here:

http://www.associatedcontent.com/user/109497/lonnette_harrell.html

Matt loves to play soccer.  He and his younger brother, Dillon, have played all of their lives.  When Matt was 14 years old (five years ago) he was playing indoor soccer.  He got slammed into a wall during the game.  He went to the restroom and was throwing up.  Some parents that were at the game that are also EMT's told my aunt (Matt's mother) she should take him to the hospital-something was wrong.  They live in Signal Mountain, TN which is near Chattanooga, TN.  They went to Erlanger in Chattanooga.

It was discovered that Matt had a tumor on his kidney.  The doctors removed one of Matt's kidneys.  We-the family-thought this accident was a blessing in disguise: found out there was a tumor on his kidney and removed the kidney.  Of course the tumor ruptured-but the family never thought about that part at the time. His diagnosis was renal cell carcinoma~kidney cancer. This cancer is mostly common in males over age 40.  What is going on here? A 14 year old child?  So confusing!

I immediately began researching renal cell carcinoma, and at the time didn't realize how serious this cancer was~since he had the kidney removed and for some reason I blocked out the part of the tumor bursting.  Anywho-Matt is a trooper and he is so strong!

To be continued...

The risks of treatment on this study are fatigue, anemia, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, proteinuria (protein in the urine), delayed wound healing, bleeding, or thrombosis.

For more information on our research studies, visit www.CORTPA.com, or speak with a Study Coordinator at 972-566-5588.

The risks of treatment on this study are fatigue, anemia, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, proteinuria (protein in the urine), delayed wound healing, bleeding, or thrombosis.

For more information on our research studies, visit www.CORTPA.com, or speak with a Study Coordinator at 972-566-5588.

A report in the British Journal of Cancer, suggests that alcohol consumed in standard portion sizes may reduce the risk of Kidney Cancer. During a research, it was discovered that patients who drank two glasses of red wine per week had a "40% reduction in kidney cell cancer risk. Before rushing to the store, please consult with your doctor.
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