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Friday, September 27, 2013

Winter moorings


Like many other boaters we just recently had an e-mail regarding winter moorings for continuous cruisers. For readers not familiar with C/cruisers, it is by definition a boat that is always on the move; not stopping longer than 14 days in one place. Nb Valerie comes within this group.

In the past seven years I and now we have never taken a winter mooring, preferring to move through quiet canals and enjoy the winter scenery.
There three types of winter mooring permits: general towpath, selected visitor moorings, and central London sites with length of stay ranging from 1-5 months.

1.  The selected moorings out of London would be £8/9 per meter per month. Nb Valerie is 17.6m so approx. £140-158 per month.
2.  The London sites vary between £10/16 p.m.p.m so Nb Valerie would be £176-£281 per month plus you have to breast up (moor alongside) another boat.
3.  Last option is the general towpath permit that enables you to moor all over the system with some exceptions, both the above being two of them. This would cost between £5/8 per meter per month.
So just as an example for Nb Valerie the cost of a 3 month permit for each option is;
1. £422           2. £686               3. £343

Now mooring up over winter is not for us but I can understand why some that do. We prefer the freedom continuous cruising gives us to roam. Some folk like to be close to say shops or a transport link to a town or village and perhaps be near services.
If we had to curtail our cruising over winter then my choice would be the general towpath option No. 3.
With all the options I think most boats need to move for services, water, rubbish, and sanitation  so one won`t be stationery for the whole time.
With option 3. you could stay in one area, say near family, but still move short distances and stay past the usual 14 day limits then turn back to where you moored  previously. During these movements you could--with careful planning--pass services and shops or at least transport options to them. You also have the choice of not being moored in a long line of boats.  All options mean being on the water in winter and with a nice fire you can be warm in any location.

Anyway overall I think the Canal and River Trust have made a good effort to accommodate boaters wishing to moor over winter.
Our situation at the moment means we are forced by my health issues, to stay in one  area. C.aR.T. are aware and are allowing this. Perhaps in the future they might ask us take a permit mooring; only time will tell. For now everything is just bridges, some to cross or pass under, but all of them can only be done one at a time.
Speaking of my health, the pre op check up Wednesday went well with Blood test and ECG. A chat with the Enhanced Recovery Nurse told me they will want me up the day after the surgery. Try and stop me was my reply. The Pharmacist wanted to know of anything other than food that was going into my mouth with instructions of what to stop pre op. She also gave me the bowel prep to take on the eve of surgery. A few other checks on breathing and allergies ended the two hour session. All that remains is a chat with the Stoma nurse who was not available and another blood test within 10 days of surgery. All systems are go.
This from Jaq: Les' blood sat rate (saturation rate of oxygen carried in the bloodstream) went up from 60% in August before we began any alternative treatments, to 99% this week. This is due to taking Chlorella--a blue/green algae. This is a tremendous improvement for which we are both thankful. As I think I've mentioned previously, Cancer likes a very low oxygen environment. I didn't know about Chlorella when I was going through cancer treatment. I had to walk two miles a day doing deep breathing exercises the entire time in order to improve my blood sat rate from 43% to 99% over three months time. Gotta' go--it's time to make the next juice.

Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Coming off the Thames and Mr. C the lodger

Sitting here on a lovely day, the washing line is set up on a fairly wide piece of grass towpath and two machine loads are drying in the mid afternoon sun. We both sit at our laptops; Jaq is answering e-mail and I, having checked in to the canal forums, am now typing this. For all intents and purposes it is a normal enough day on board--but for our temporary lodger Mr. C.  Just three weeks today and he will be gone. Good riddance as well; just turned up out of the blue, paid no rent and expected me to give up everything.
It is said this unwelcome guest shows up years before it is discovered and attempts to take over your life.  Mr C. might have got his way if not for my secret weapon, my little Alaskan who can be as ferocious as a grizzly bear if needed. Thanks for being there Jaq.XX
So the plan was not just to wait for the scalpel wielding  bailiff to evict my lodger. We decided to starve Mr. C. and make him less likely to cause problems pre scalpel. I must be honest at this point and say that if I had still been on my own nothing in my diet would have changed and the lodger would have caused havoc in the plans to remove him.
He has been deprived of anything that might help him settle in and disrupt my normal day to day shall we say movements and cause Mr. Scalpel to adopt a different attack plan.
It seems he is not happy with his diet and has kept a low profile for a while now, I don`t miss feeling his presence and know his days are numbered.
Once again life is good although a post surgery battle to good health is yet to come but we are ready.
Ok so I`ll never be a writer but my mood just led my fingers across the keys.

Before I go on my thanks to you all for the good wishes and comments, it means a lot and gives us both an incentive to blog about this unusual cruise along the wet road.

Today we had our 4 yearly boat safety test (£145 $215) carried out and the boat passed with flying colours. Although on board we have both a smoke and carbon monoxide alarms they are not compulsory. WHY NOT?  Strangely one regulation is that all fuel filling points must clearly identify the fuel in use. So if you put petrol in a diesel engine it will cause problems and a big bill, I did this on a van once. Is this more important than dying in bed because you had no idea the boat was full of  smoke or carbon monoxide.
Tomorrow I have to go for a pre-operation check up. This will be to check general health and get to meet the Ileostomy nurse. After that we have a week and a half before the Radio therapy starts.

The following pictures were taken as we came down the tidal section of the Thames from Teddington to Brentford. It was a very high tide caused by the moon and sun`s gravitational forces and a great deal of the towpath was under water.

This was our last mooring at the rear of Desborough Island Walton upon Thames. I liked this mooring as I found a fiver ($7) laying on the grass after we moored. If you lost it and can describe it you might get it back........but then again.


Teddington lock is big (650`x25`) but not as big as Chittenden Locks in Seattle. The large one is 80` wide and 825` long. Blog post.



Notice the little girl paddling in the pub garden.


 
 
That`s all for now. I must say it feels nice to blog something boaty but by the same token I know many of you want the medical updates and I thank you for your concern.

Monday, September 23, 2013

At My Wits End...

"If you're going through hell, keep going."  ~Winston Churchill

   We waited all last week to hear from the surgeon's office about the date for Les' surgery which must take place the week immediately following the radiation therapy. As usual over here, no one attempted to contact us and we had to call around to the bowel cancer nurse Linda, who was out all week and who couldn't find her bum pack with both hands and a flashlight.
   This is the same nurse who stood mutely watching through the surgeon's initial rude and arrogant meeting with us on September 6th; who then took us down to the MacMillan Cancer Centre near the Hospital entrance to have a chat with us about Les' very personal health issues and prognosis in front of two strangers--MacMillan community volunteers who hung on our every word. Linda it was who warned me not to engage in research on the Internet--just stick with the MacMillan website. 
   The very same nurse who called Les back on September 16th just to find out how he was feeling about the "radiotherapy" (I refuse to call it that. It sounds so innocuous--as though Les is going to sit in a room with some head phones on listening to deeply moving and cathartic music like Gustav Holst's The Planets, or the Wagner Ring Cycle every day for a week. I will call it what it is: radiation therapy) and a follow up surgery.
   Nurse Linda spent fifteen minutes repeating herself ad naseum about "how much liaising there was to do between the two hospitals" as though it might take some help from Parliament to make it all fall into place, but she had not a clue about radiation therapy times or surgery dates; she wasn't privy to whether or not the surgeon planned to do the Ileostomy and the removal of the tumor and bowel re-section all in one go or in two separate surgeries. Nurse Linda was in short, BLOODY worthless at actually imparting any meaningful information at all.
   Les left her a message this past Friday morning and she returned the call Friday afternoon to say she'd been away all week and she needed a few minutes to get on top of things and then she would get back to us. A few minutes later she rang back to say Les' radiation therapy appointments had been changed--instead of starting this week, they would commence on October 7th and surgery would take place on October 16th! Mr. H. who has been on vacation the week before last, returned to find there simply was no room in his calendar for Les surgery until then.
  What Americans don't know is that over here they have a two tiered system: there is the National Health Service which covers all British citizens, and private practice for which one may pay for out of one's pocket or with private Insurance; in which case one can jump the NHS queue and be seen right away--most likely by the same doctor one would see through the NHS. I wonder how many private payees have jumped this queue to line Mr. H's pocket while Les' tumor continues to grow. 
   I am appalled no one even thought to contact us personally and let us know about these changes. Our son and daughter-in law had to juggle their calendars, and arrange for time off work to take us to the scheduled appointments. 
   I have a very jaundiced eye toward American health care from my own experience but the ineptitude I have personally witnessed over here via the NHS makes U.S. health care look compassionately brilliant by comparison.  
   What's that you say?? "Yes, well but we don't pay for ours." Stop saying that!  I bloody well mean it. STOP SAYING the NHS is free because it's not. It is free at the point of service--which means you pay through the nose for it out of every pay check but you don't pay for services at the time of delivery. Les worked from age 15 to 58 and believe me he has paid for the health care he has received and the actual care he should have received but has not, due to incompetence and lack of anyone really giving a rip about high quality health care delivery in this situation. And they will keep getting away with offering inferior service as long as Brits put up with it as their due because after all, "it's free"...
   I either rant here, or I will have to remove the surgeon's liver with a cocktail fork after he completes Les' surgery--if he ever actually gets 'round to it. All the other appalling, inconsiderate, incompetent things that have happened to Les throughout this debacle will be detailed in my book I started writing about my own journey through cancer. Now the book will have at least a chapter detailing Les' journey and possibly that of our Canadian friend B. who follows our blog, in order to offer a more comprehensive look at this agonizing experience from country to country.
   Rant over. We are choosing to look on this extra time as an opportunity to work on getting Les stronger physically and better able to withstand the radiation treatments and come through the surgery with a good outcome and
healing. He has been on the Gerson intensive therapy diet. We purchased a Green Star G-2000 juice extractor and he has been drinking very high quality juices throughout every day.
   Les takes Chlorella tablets to enhance the oxygen levels in his blood and raise albumin levels as well. Cancer patients typically have low oxygen levels which is what cancer likes. Albumin is a protein found in the bloodstream. According to the National Institutes of Health low Albumin levels signal malnutrition and is a marker for higher mortality rates of cancer patients. Chlorella is a blue-green algae used for preventing cancer, reducing radiation treatment side effects, stimulating the immune system, and improving response to flu vaccine, increasing white blood cell counts (especially in people with HIV infection or cancer).
   Les is also taking Modified Citrus Pectin which significantly inhibits the adhesion of cancer cells to the endothelium which are the cells lining the blood and lymph vessels--the pathway by which cancer metastasizes.
He is taking large doses of B vitamin for energy and high doses of Vitamin C which not only fight cancer but promote wound healing. 
  This week we will add in supplements such as Glutamine which accelerates healing after radiation therapy, increasing healing of irradiated intestines and decreasing systemic infections resulting from bacterial translocation; Woebenzyme which is an adjunct to radiation therapy which inhibits metastatic cancer. These enzymes modulate the immune system, activating macrophages which cause phagocytosis and release tumor necrosis factor alpha, stimulating lymphocytes to penetrate tumor sites, eating the tumor cells. 
   We are also using Co-Q10 which removes toxin, protects the heart muscle against damage by radiation therapy and high doses of Adriamycin (antibiotics often administered as a chemo therapeutic agent).
   Finally we are adding in Low Temperature, 100% Cross Flow Microfiltration (CFM) Whey Protein which acts as a barrier to to further bowel invasion incidences of cancer, and inhibits tumor growth. 
   All of this is in addition to potassium supplements to engage changes in Les' bio chemistry at the cellular level, and twice daily doses of Essiac herbal decoction with blood root tincture to cause tumor cell necrosis (death). 
   Since we began the Gerson therapy diet, juicing, Essiac, Chlorella, Modified Citrus Pectin and potassium supplements almost a month ago, Les' energy levels have climbed to the point he felt well enough to split wood the other day. He also reports that before we started this regimen he could feel the tumor in his rectum all the time. It felt like someone had their finger up his bum. Lately he cannot feel it at all. I am doing everything in my power as a Green Witch, medicinal herbalist and a healer, as well as an academic researcher, to ensure Les survives.

Thursday, September 19, 2013

The Treatment Plan:

“A further sign of health is that we don't become undone by fear and trembling, but we take it as a message that it's time to stop struggling and look directly at what's threatening us. ” ~Pema Chödrön, The Places that Scare You

    We met with the radiographer and the Oncologist yesterday at Mt. Vernon Cancer Centre. They briefly went over the short term and long term side effects of radiation therapy and Les had to sign a document which stated he had been informed of such. 
   Possible short term side effects: diarrhea, a mucous discharge from the rectum, pain and tenderness at the radiation point and rectally, frequent urination with pain, pain passing stools, tiredness. 
   Possible long term side effects: persistent diarrhea, fibrosis and stricture of the bowel, difficulty passing stools, impotence, second line cancer.
   Les was led away for a CT scan while son Kevin and I sat in the waiting room amongst the other patients and families. Those waiting to receive radiotherapy often had a thermos of hot water from home. One woman had her husband's water thermos tucked under her armpit to warm it. This is necessary because every time they irradiate you, an empty bowel and a full bladder are required.
   The water on offer at the centre is chilled quite cold and drinking a large amount of it causes a drop in patient temperature and shivers which makes it difficult to lay perfectly still during the radiotherapy which is essential. One would think the specialists at this centre would ensure their patients have access to warm drinking water on the premises without having to cart it from home.
   Still others were waiting for more chemotherapy, their bald heads, pasty white complexions, and lack of energy marked them out from family members waiting as well for the coffee bar to open. 
   And what does the hospital coffee bar sell? Candy bars, chips, sandwiches made with white bread, coffee, tea and soda pop. I think it is negligent at best and criminal in the worst sense of the word for the hospital to feed their patient's disease when each one is fighting for their life and it enrages me.
   I frame this in light of a conversation earlier that morning with Les' Oncologist Dr. J. He was distant and preoccupied and looked quite tired as he sat down to speak with us. After he laid out Les' treatment plan I commented that statistics indicate at least 70% of all cancer could be prevented by a proper diet (like that of Gerson as an example). The Oncologist slumped forward in his chair, ran his hands over his head and replied without looking us in the eyes, " Oh, I would say a lot more than 70%. In fact nearly all cancer could be prevented by a decent diet." Even his doctor gets on him for eating things he knows are not good for him.
   We have yet to hear from Mr. H., the surgeon. He was on vacation last week. Dr. J said he would contact the surgeon's office and get it sorted. According to him, Les will undergo radiotherapy every day next week and then the following week Mr. H will operate and create the Ileostomy, remove the tumor and re-sect Les' bowel all in one go. Les will be hospitalized anywhere from 7-10 days and then released to come home if there are no complications. 
   After 3-5 weeks we return to visit the oncologist who will review any further recommendations for postoperative chemo/radiation therapy based on what the surgeon finds.  

Saturday, September 14, 2013

Waiting for Monday

Back to the hospital Monday for  a treatment planning appointment with the oncologist. It seems they might do another CT scan and mark out the parts of my body that the radiotherapy will treat. The marks (tattoo dots) will be so the treatment area remains the same over my 5 days of therapy. Also it will be a chance to ask more questions about the surgery.

All this is what I have read on many many web sites so if anybody has any first hand knowledge I would be grateful.

Lately I have been having some days when I feel as though nothing is  wrong with me. I feel it might be the change of diet based on Gerson and some other herbal treatments are doing good. Anyway surgery is needed for sure but I am for sure feeling better.

I am sure Jaq will go into more detail in the future when the time is right.

Thursday, September 12, 2013

Rock `N` Roll is for sale

Well it was with great relief we discovered George and Carol are not about to desert the canals but are in fact going to change to a wide beam boat.

 
 
Lots of pictures HERE

Lots of reading HERE
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Also still for sale UCCELLO
 Full details are HERE
Another excellent boat that has been in the care of  Derek and Carrie.

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Look back at the Thames trip plus latest news

We had a phone call yesterday to say they are going to coordinate the treatment so the surgery follows closely to the end of the Radiotherapy. My questions were as to what surgery do they mean.

Will they just fit a stoma first to avoid a bowel blockage and if so when will the tumour be removed?.
Will both of the above be done in one surgery?.
The answers we are told will be decided in the next few days. It just seems to be dragging on and I think it should have been operated on at least a week ago. I really don`t want something growing inside me. Am I getting panicky or does it normally take this long?

Day to day life is not to bad although some days are better than others. Tiredness has become a daily occurrence and the bloatedness becomes a worry until things start flowing again. Biggest worry is that it all stops before they do the surgery.
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The blog post last week featured a post box on Sonning bridge. Sandra commented that the BBC had it on their local news. The BBC has a video of a reporter trying to post a letter from a narrow boat.  It also features in the Daily Mail.
BBC LINK             Daily Mail Link

Looking back through the pictures on the Thames I found this tree that had during it`s

life battled with metal railings and won. Some of the metal rods have been swallowed by the tree.

 The lock keepers shelter from the sun. I think it would change canal cruising for the worse if we had assisted passage at the canal locks.


 One way to travel even in the pouring rain.

 Every now and then something big comes along to remind you this is a river not a canal.

 A young deer came within twenty feet as we sat by a diesel pump in a marina on the R. Wey.

 Windsor has two stations, Windsor Central and Windsor and Eton riverside. They both opened in 1849 but the Great Western Railway`s Central opened just ahead of  the London and South Western`s arrival at riverside. Both were used by Queen Victoria and gave access into London but the most interesting is Central station pictured below. Now re-named Windsor Royal Station it has mostly been given over to shops and restaurants although the structure remains owing to the listed status of the building.

 My modern day picture without the colour shows the building much the same as 100+years back.


The all wood ticket office is now a tourist information centre. Just look at the Victorian craftsmanship that built it all those years ago.


 A young pupil of Eton College in his 3 piece tail suit. Fees now total £32k ($48k) per year. FEES


 I wish the water points on the canals were like this.
 
 


The Swan Uppers on their way up the Thames. One lock keeper said it was just a booze cruise nowadays with a few Swans not quick enough to escape  a few inebriated men in funny costumes.



Sunday, September 08, 2013

Finding Our Way Forward

“Education has failed in a very serious way to convey the most important lesson science can teach: skepticism.” ~ David Suzuki (Canadian environmentalist, broadcaster and scientist)

   The oncologist appointment went well. Dr. Jones is thoughtful, kind, calm, and really cares about his patients. He is really the first person other than the enterologist who gave us the initial diagnosis of cancer, who has treated us with any dignity, respect, compassion, and understanding.

   Dr. J seemed appalled by the way in which the surgeon Mr. H treated us at each step along the way and was quite surprised I have a transcript of what exactly was said and took place in the exam with the surgeon.
  NEVER allow the ones you love to go to any doctor's appointment alone. The accompanying person needs to be able to take detailed notes because we don't hear and cannot take in everything thrown at us. So I was able to provide a very clear picture of what has taken place to date. The oncologist will be calling the surgeon to discuss things, and we may be asking for a new surgeon.
   He laid out three treatments and said Les and I, in conjunction with him, would make the final determination of what--if any treatments--Les chose. The tumor is quite nasty. It has progressed to angiogenesis--establishing a blood supply to feed and spread to other parts of the body. The CT scan also found a small node on Les' left lung which the oncologist is sure is not cancer but caused by exposure to TB as a child. He says all Brits of Les' age have had exposure to TB and these lung nodes are frequently seen, however it will bear watching. So the treatment choices we were given are:

1. short course radiotherapy of five days (1 fraction of radiation exposure per day) with surgery to follow one week later to remove the tumor. Rob says this will not shrink the tumor but keeps it from spreading and in his experience it keeps the cancer from returning to the area. He used the analogy of a sunburn. If you stay outside all morning and get sunburned, you will feel the consequences far more if you wait to engage in activities the next day as opposed to that same afternoon. Following the radiotherapy with immediate surgery will remove a lot of the irradiated tissue before the side effects are felt in the extreme.

2. Long course chemo/radiation of five weeks with administration of chemo drug 5FU (flourouracil) and radiation treatments. Les would have to recover sufficiently from this treatment before surgery could occur some 3-5 months later. We made it clear this would not be an option we would ever consider. Dr. J was surprised at our choice and said patients usually deal with the pill form called Capecitibane just fine and that radiotherapy was the more difficult one to overcome.

   This is when I established my credentials as an academic researcher which made him take a second look at me and Les. When I mentioned my research on the MD Anderson cancer center website in conjunction with research on the NIH site (National Institute of Health U.S. medical library, and the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, the oncologist sat straight up and said, "Well it doesn't get any better than MD Anderson."
   This was my quiet way of establishing to Dr. J that the use of partial disclosure of treatment effects was not going to wash with me and Les, especially when I brought up the issue of second line cancers known to be a long term side effect of 5FU. The oncologist said to his knowledge this wasn't an issue in bowel cancers....and this is directly in opposition to what I have found in my research....so the doctor rubbed his face with his hands, leaned back and said, "There is a third way to go and it has been studied by oncologists at Karolinska. They stole it from the Russians..."

3. Is known as 5 by 5: five days of radiotherapy and five weeks of waiting for the tumor to shrink, followed by surgery.

   Les has chosen option 1. The long term side effects of any radiotherapy to the bowel are a frequent need to urinate, a small bit of anal leakage which may require wearing a pad in one's underwear, and impotence. We feel these are thing we can live with and I am hoping the administration of Essiac and following the Gerson regimen with some other supplements will ameliorate the worst short and long term effects of radiation exposure.

   What the oncologist did not tell Les--as it is not pertinent to his specific situation at this point--is that if the tumor was inoperable they would have still recommended option 2 but it would not cure this cancer. I think radiation drives cancer deeper into the body's cells and both chemo and radiation cause second line cancers down the road: breast, Leukemia and Hodgkins Lymphoma to name a few. I believe we can stop any cancer recurrence by adhering to a strictly vegetarian diet, getting daily exercise and taking certain supplements as prophylactics, including Essiac every three months for two weeks. 
   And while I am pleased Dr. J is a humane, kind individual who believes in the efficacy of his work in treating cancer patients, I am still not willing to trust him unequivocally. It would be one thing if there weren't adequate clinical studies and actual living cases of people like me who have used other treatments to a much better effect--driving cancer into permanent remission or healing from the disease, without the terrible side effects of traditional treatments. Gerson and Essiac are only two of these. There is also Dr. Charles Burzynski's work with antineoplastins.
   The crux of the issue is the fact that Gerson, Essiac and Burzynski's antineoplastins cannot be copyrighted by the pharmaceutical companies which drive everything to do with traditional cancer treatment. It is a huge money making "industry" as the surgeon Mr. H. rightly called it. When making money drives the treatment then the cure will not be found because a cure will put the pharmaceuticals, radiologists, chemotherapists and foundations like MacMillan Cancer Foundation and the American Cancer Society out of business.
   Macmillan is huge over here, with a slick company branding and charity status. They pay to place cancer nurses in British hospital oncology wards and in return they are given space in the hospitals for their brochures--created by them for handing out to patients. Looking very closely at their entire site provides an insight into how well engineered this charity is, to profit from this disease.
   The cancer nurse who spoke to us after the surgeon rudely and indifferently put us in our places while she stood on and watched didn't even bother to take us to a private office--she took us to the Macmillan cancer center waiting room in the hospital and sat us down in public--in front of two strangers--who happened to be MacMillan community cancer volunteers--to commence discussing very personal and private issues with me and Les.
   When Les told her we had done some research online she cut him off mid sentences saying, " You must be very careful about doing that. There is a lot of misinformation out there. I would recommend you stick with the Macmillan website." Of course, she as it turns out, is a Macmillan funded cancer nurse.
   A visit to their website was quite informative for me. Slick branding which means they msut have hired a top notch PR firm and attorneys to vet it all, spending millions to create it.
   I looked up the Board of Directors and found not surprisingly two members who have direct ties to the cancer pharmaceutical industry. One is the retired director of Novartis--the world's largest pharmaceutical company which rakes in billions in government funding from all over the world to "continue the fight for a cure..." as long as Novartis can patent it and make billions on it.
   Novartis and other drug companies actively fight Dr. Burzynski in courts around the world because he owns the patent on antineoplastin therapy which just sailed through clinical trials in Japan with excellent results and which the medical journal Lancet refused to publish, saying they didn't have room for the data at this time.
   Until the cancer industry and its adherents stop twisting the data and statistics to shore up their therapies, I will remain a healthy sceptic. An example is the fact that cytotoxic therapy as chemo and radiation are known in medical circles are absolutely deadly (which is why doctors jokingly refer to 5FU as 5 feet under) with not only long term side effects like additional cancers, but often these treatments so weaken the patient, he or she succumbs to death--from the treatment not the disease--but this is NEVER openly acknowledged by the industry or reflected in its statistics. These deaths are added into the general statistics for cancer deaths overall.
   There is also the artificial five year cure rate. If one is diagnosed with cancer, receives treatment and lives without a recurrence then one is considered cured! But wait...if there is a cure why are so many foundations overseeing dragon boat races for funding, runs for a cure....if there is a cure why are all these companies in line with their hands out for donations from you, me and the world's governments to "fund a cure?"
   The fact is frequently after traditional treatment cancer reoccurs but if it happens in year six, nine, or fifteen then it is not statistically related to the original incidence or the treatment modality--at all.
   Nearly 70% of all cancer could be prevented with diet: mostly vegetarian, organic, occasional meals of chicken but no red meat, very little dairy, no refined white sugar, wheat, breads or pastas, sugar in very low moderate amounts, eating mostly fresh, raw fruits and vegetables which is closer to what humans evolved with in nature. Combined with a minimum of 20-30 minutes of daily activity such as walking, swimming, biking, gardening, humans have a much better chance of surviving on this polluted planet without developing this dreaded disease.
  We hope we've found a middle ground--a way of combining traditional modalities with alternative therapies to provide what is known in the States as complimentary treatment for cancer. Les believes this is the best option for him and I am confident together we will find our way forward toward good health, remission, and getting on with our lives for many more years.

Thursday, September 05, 2013

The end of the Thames and an update

This afternoon I received an appointment via the phone for a meeting with the oncologist for Friday afternoon. I will let you know how I got on after I contact the family.

This modern looking building was featured on the Grand Designs TV programme. I quite like it but evidently the neighbours protested to no avail. Nb Valerie might fit under it although not with our wood pile.

The building on the right is what stood on the site before the re-build. Picture from architects web page.
  http://www.tappassociates.com/tappassociates/Introduction.html


 I wonder if Sandra said yes.
This can`t be Nick and Sandra just a week later surely. This is the Thames side Monkey Island Hotel.
Just a short distance down stream we did see the bride boarding a boat so arrival here was imminent. Now if you fancy getting wed there take a look at the prices but always bear in mind Jaq and I have found some nice little islands along the Thames so we can do a cut price. Good bbq food and crates of beer with some good music CD`s. Ok not the same but we won`t charge £4.50 for a chair cover, I kid you not, because you`ll be sat on the grass at the Nb Valerie cut price wedding.


Anyone know the story about how this post box ended up surrounded by the Thames. U.S readers this is a typical mail box that can be found mostly in  rural areas. Sometimes they can be set into the side of a cottage or farm building. They are emptied 6 days per week. If memory serves me it`s Sonning Bridge. My theory is the Thames has either widened or deviated from it`s original course and this was once a small stream.

This was the only lock that was occupied solely by narrowboats.

The entrance to the Kennet and Avon canal. Still need to venture along it to Bristol.

 
Caversham Bridge 
 
 
 The stairs caught my eye like two helter skeltas at the fun fair.
 
Just past Caversham Bridge on the edge of Reading. This was the extent of our River Thames trip as following my ending up in A and E (emergency room) we turned to come back to be near the doctors and most important family. Beautiful moorings with open park land to the right. Certainly a place I won`t forget in a hurry.




Goodnight.

Wednesday, September 04, 2013

That Tuesday phone call

Well the call came as promised and the cancer nurse gave us the decision of the Monday meeting. The recommendation was for Chemo and/or Radio therapy to shrink the tumour before surgery. The next appointment will be with the therapy team based at another hospital to discuss the type and length of treatment the oncologists recommend is most beneficial.

From what we have gathered so far the surgery might first be a stoma so that the main surgery can heal without having to cope with the waste disposal dept. If more has to be removed from this dept and repair to the bowel becomes impossible the stoma becomes permanent. I am quite happy with this.....disposable bag or my life......no contest.

What I`m not happy about is that we found out from a good source that if I refuse the therapy the surgeon can refuse to operate on the grounds that `it would not be in the patients interest`. So go along with us or................

So a lot of talking to be done with the oncologists and some big decision making to be done.
Last time I visited this hospital was with Valerie in 2000. I`m not looking forward to it but I will have another strong lady by my side.

NB Valerie & Steam Train by Les Biggs

NB Valerie & Steam Train by Les Biggs