August 2010...anyone starting chemo besides me?!
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Thanks for the explanation Cal - it's wonderful that your daughter volunteers there.0
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Hi Everyone. Hope everyone had a great weekend. The weather here was gorgeous and I got plenty of vitamin D!
Seriously though, I too was vitamin D deficient and currently take 1000 IU daily.
Cal: It looks like everyone really enjoyed those fawns!
Lizzy: I came to the conclusion a while ago after exhausting research, that I couldn't follow all the suggestions I read about "changes to make" to prevent cancer. So, I kind of weeded through to make a couple little changes that allowed me to still enjoy my life. You are right though, all we can do is make these little changes and hope it is enough. BTW...your stories are fantastic....you really have lived life Lizzy! That one about the boy in the store was heartbreaking, this cruel disease gets to even the "tough ones" because mom is still mom.
Tex: Hope you are feeling well. I am keeping you in my prayers for a smooth ride through this round of chemo.
Have a great week everyone!
Debbi
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Good day warriors-
I hope everyone is well! It is hot and humid here but better than raining...although we are having tornado warnings tonight! Oh well!
Omaz: Please...seriously? You and I both know that *CAL* did not answer your question. She is not on here daily anymore so I thought I was being nice in trying to perhaps explain why they have so many. I do not *know* for sure that is the case but again, was just trying to tell you what things are like in the Northeast and the overpopulation of deer. I am sure Cal can respond more definitively at some point. Really?
Sptmm: Yes, I have lived but not enough for people to not be able to surprise me w/their crap!!!! As for trying it all, it is like Dr. Oz! I watch his show every day and not only would I go broke trying to implement every bit of advice, it would also be impossible! I will take D and iodine, however.
Tex: I hope you are doing well. I don't know if you had chemo yesterday b/c of the holiday...perhaps it was today? Hope you are well.
Happy trails to all and to all a good night!!!!!
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Omaz- mostly because of "abductions" sadly.
People find a fawn and assume it is "orphaned" . Truth is, the mothers will never leave the baby. She is often very nearby and waiting for the person to leave. A fawn will "flop" when it's afraid - just lie down, say in the middle of the road, or if it cannot keep up. Well meaning people pick up the fawn, sometimes take it home and attempt to feed it all kinds of stuff. They finally give up and turn it into the wildlife center; one of the few licensed wildlife rehab facilities in the state.They will remain there and gradually be moved to outdoor pens, into small herds of four or five. Then they will go into larger pens eventually are put in a large octagon pen on a property where deer are known to pass through. The gate is opened and they join the wandering herd.
The deer with the cast was found caught in a fence. It has a broken leg; they have a pair of twins whose mother was hit by a car; and one that a coyote got (she has a head trauma) but the remainder have mostly been found and turned in by well meaning but mistaken people.
We try to get the word out that if you find a fawn to leave it alone for 24 hours; the mother is most likely near and will return for it.
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Lizzy - I think Omaz though you were me!
You got to the question before I did. Yes, my daughter loves being there. It's only three minutes from here - it's giving her fabulous work experience at 15. She's taking extra shifts next week. I think she was kind of miffed that when we went to pick her up, the vet put us to work with feedings - it's kind of "her" thing, if you know what I mean - teenager asserting her independence.
I was impressed with her ability to handle them though- they are NOT loving and cuddly -they are very skittish and at one point, one went nuts and ran all around the room. Definitely not like lambs- very definitely wild animals even at one or two weeks old. I was afraid to even try to pick them up but she did great. She had to go to a special training session only for fawns. 0 -
Cal you are right!! I was reading on my little phone and mistook Lizzy for you! If I don't have on my super-power reading glasses I can miss stuff. We don't have very many deer around here, just mule deer and few at that, probably not enough brush to eat. Lizzy, my post sounded like I was being sarcastic but honestly I didn't realize it was you.
On another note, I had an LE massage today for my side which seems to collect a bit of fluid - she put on tape to help, anyone else had that?
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Omaz and Cal: MEA CULPA!!!! And to think all those years, under the tutelage of my father's wife, learning how to speak "bitch" fluently and in the years I spent working with nothing but boys, my skills have gone to rust! She would be so disappointed!!!
Sptmm: you know, I was talking to a friend today and I realized I did live a lot, an awful lot! I have woven a rich tapestry and not the least of which are memories of all of those very handsome men my eyes were treated to every day in the canyons of Wall Street! Italian, Jewish, Irish etc.. in a sea of Brooks Brothers suits!!!! It was all good, very good indeed! Those were good days and I would not trade the near decade I spent connected to that industry for anything!
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Hope everyone is doing well. Summer feels like it is already here! Boiling hot!
Tex...Hope you are doing OK in chemo. Thinking of you.0 -
Morning everyone
I am doing good- this was my week off of chemo- i have some leagl stuff going on in PA next week so I am not able to make my appointment on Monday, but will go get chemo and see the Dr when i get back on Thur- which is also the day i follow up with my gyno...Our weekend was good- too hot IMO, but we're supposed to top the 100s today continuing until at least Sept! LOL
Cute pics Cal! Looks like you and the kids had fun. I never realised abductions were a problem, but that makes sense.
Lizzy- That'd be a great idea, and prob cheaper to put the animal bridges up than all the man hours moving the dead ones off the side of the road..
I took a correspondance course in bitchiness, must have failed LOL cuz i was lost this last half of the conversation. I literally had to read it through 3 times before i "got" what was going on LOL (i guess i can blame it on the chemo)
Well got to get these pancakes frying! And the babes up for school. Only 3 days left til SUMMER!
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Good day, warriors-
The pollen is so high here, even those of us (me!) w/out allergies are sneezing. I just got through with a machine-gun style series of about 20 in a row!
Rachel: it is crazy hot here as well...no Spring. In CT summer starts in early May, or 6 weeks before it is "scheduled" and ends in late September. Not too shabby!
Tex: to actually get the foot bridges established what the underwriting was about was issuing municipal bonds to finance this. This means the people of the county could buy bonds that pay tax-free interest, and that which are largely considered to be very, very safe investment, to manage the deer and, more importantly, the tick population. One night I was cruising the parkway and had been w/friends in Goshen drinking homemade wine so you get the idea! In any case, I have good peripheral and with my windows down and roof panel open, music blaring, it suddenly dawned on me that deer was *not* supposed to be there!!! It was running along side my car as I passed it, for a few seconds, we were synchronous! It was scary! The worst thing about the deer problem here is no one cleans them up from the side of the road and we are a wealthy, wealthy state so it is not like people are going out to collect the carcass as a food source. I am sure that goes on but not as much as would be helpful.
Good luck in PA next week! I hope everything works out. BTW, you would have had your PhD in "bitch" if you had you the dubious experience of being exposed to that which was my father's greatest mistake! She actually had a friend who was a moron (I know, hard to believe!) who would regularly mispronounce words. That thing would invite this person over strictly to try to trick her into saying those words that she would use/pronounce incorrectly for "entertainment purposes only!" LIke most people, she was not all bad but she certainly wasn't all good...the badometer tilted a bit more where she was concerned!
Ok, another sneezing fit! My cars are green/yellow from the pollen...at least it is not snowing, however!
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Get this - I've been on letrozole (generic femara) for about 2 months now, before that I was on tamoxifen. I have had hot flashes every 40 minutes pretty much since the second chemo. My two estrogen measurements since chemo were 5 and 11 so they figured I was in menopause. I also haven't had a period since the second chemo. Well, last month my hot flashes got super fierce and then in the last couple weeks started dying down to the point where I actually slept 5 hours in a row for two nights. I thought yay, I made it through......at my onc checkup yesterday though I told her what was going on and wondered if we should do another estogen level just to see if that is why my hot flashes were better. She just called and my estrogen was up to 230! SUCKS - I have to go back on tamoxifen. No explanation - apparently they (my ovaries) just came back to life! What can I say, I am 53, they have my permission to retire already!
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Omaz - I'm so done with estrogen. Really. I'm tired of constantly trying to balance it with the progesterone cream I have. If I stop it, I have wicked hot flashes....and feel generally unwell with moments of dizziness and temperament.
I keep thinking I'm going to get a period - It's been a couple of months - just tired of the flashes!
Well, I woke up this morning, looked at my disgusting sunporch and decided to empty it completely. You have to understand - it's basically become a room for my girls' cats. Plus the chicken my husband decided to move in, as she was brooding on a nest......plus the chickens that wander in when the door is open - yeah, you get the idea.
I gutted the whole room. All around the walls were rubbermaid tubs and boxes full of toys and crap. We emptied it. COMPLETELY 100 percent. I got rid of at least two 6" shelves of books - moved out literaly - not kidding, at least 35 large rubbermaid tubs of stuff plus other things - vacuum cleaners, space heaters, etc. It's all out on the lawn in the back now! I used a snow shovel - yes, a snow shovel to scoop all the misc toys and games that the cats knocked off the shelves and hauled out I cannot tell you how many full garbage pails of stuff - 8? 10?? The very scary thing is those are just the cans I filled. I will probably be filling them for weeks in order to throw it all away - meanwhile the stuff will have to just sit in my back yard due to lack of cans.
I then used the old vacuum and sucked up whever else I could and took the carpet cleaner that I have for out there that cost $5 at a garage sale (I refused to use the one I have for inside the house!) andcleaned the carpet. I actually took bleach and water and threw it in buckets on the floor, hauled in the HOSE from outside and hosed it all down, and then sucked it up with the carpet cleaner.
it got most all the stains out -I know it needs to be recarpeted, but it's a big room - the cheapest I can figure out is around $250 and we just don't have the money.
So meanwhile I have to go through 35 tubs of stuff, condense, throw away,etc. I plan on only bringing back in about 1/4 of it since I like the room finally looking like a room again! It will be easier to manage keeping it clean from the cats without so much junk out there. (Why it is appealing to knock books of a shelf and then pee in them is beyond me..)ANyhow this colossal project took me 11 1/2 hours. I stopped briefly for dinner - lunch was a handful of cashews --around 3:00..........
I have NO idea where all this energy came from (some kind of hormonal surge no doubt) but I imagine I will pay for it tomorrow. Just praying for no rain tonight as all the stuff is on the lawn! -:O0 -
Good day, warriors!
We had the most amazing weather here today! 80 and dry....perfect! I am watching AGT and people are swallowing swords etc.... I watch w/1 eye open!
Omaz: I just got a menopause panel about 2 weeks ago. Your post reminded me I did not get the results yet. Bottom line is that I might be switched to an AI but that staying on Tamox is just fine. She said it was not necessary to change. I do get nervous when my hot flashes change because it makes me think the estrogen is coming back. In long, I feel more comfortable with hot flashes! I can't believe your ovaries came back to life but I guess the efficacy, in your case, of the femara was negligible. On that note I would be plenty happy to get back on Tamox!
As for my cycle, I have not had it in over 2 years. I did, however, have an absolute nightmare recently that it "came back" with a vengeance. It was awful. I am so glad it is gone even though I was one of those that had it for 4 days, no pains, relatively light. For me now, if it came back, it is a sign that estrogen has gotten going again so I don't want it! Funny how bc causes you to despise and fear almost everything about your being that is "female!"
Calamtykel: sounds like a very productive and laborious day! I got tired reading that. I think the energy comes from just getting tired of looking at something. I wish I had that much energy! I am happy you got through that room. Sense of accomplishment comes to mind. Why don't you check Ikea or online for "carpet tiles." They use them all the time on HGTV, they are very durable, you can just replace one in case of staining/damage and you can certainly inject some nice colors into any room...or not! Something to consider. They are very inexpensive as well and largely can be likened to indoor/outdoor carpet.Found some at Overstock: http://www.overstock.com/Home-Garden/Do-It-Yourself-Carpet-Tiles-36-Square-Feet/3672065/product.html
Tex: hope you are doing well and feeling good
Hope your trip goes well.I was so excited today to find out that my hair is long enough to pull back in a hair elastic and I actually have a small ponytail! Before all this, my hair was not ½ way down my back but pretty close. In any case, I was kind of "known" for wearing my hair like the women in that famous Robert Palmer video "I Didn't Mean To Turn You On." In fact, twice on Halloween I went out as "one" of them! One year there were 4 of us and my friend Geoff was Robert Palmer! Good times! We went to Webster Hall where my friend and I proceeded to break from the group and take advantage of passing Batman back and forth between us on stage!!! Reminds me of another song..."oh what a night!"
In any case, I am so happy that w/some gel, I can put it back like that again and it stays!!!!!! It is long enough, alas it is long enough
Have a good night, all-
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Lizzy - Congrats on the pony tail! I agree, the femara probably wasn't doing a thing but I think this is a very recent development, plus I have only been on the femara since April so I don't think I have gone very long without coverage. Makes me wonder about other women who don't get their estrogen checked. I think managing younger women with hormone issues is probably a bit of a challenge for clinicians.0
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I have a close up of one night on the "Palmer" Tour but I still can't put pics in here...I will try Flickr!
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Omaz: it is just really sad that so many women are unaware of the hazards of estrogen. I believe last night on "Nightline" they were discussing how perhaps "hormone therapy" is not as good an idea as once was thought. I hope more women become aware of how estrogen is tantamount to some pretty serious problems in our bodies.0
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Kel, go you! I am so impressed by your tenacity in getting this job going and done as far as the excavation goes!
Someone told us we should have one more liter box than cats. I can see that could get cumbersome but constantly having to clean up after them is a nightmare. Our two cats are 14 and 15 years old now. I suspect one of them is just peeing whereever he feels like it when he feels like it. Sometimes all is good for a while and then one day my DD will walk in the front door and say, "someone is peeing on the landing." Dogs can't get up there so it is a cat and Rudy is the one who hangs out upstairs. My DH is very attached to the cats and I have no idea when to let a cat "go." Our previous cats died from cancer so it wasn't a question once the vet said it was time. It is just hard to think about but shall I let them destroy a rental house where we have a huge deposit? We use the various enzyme cleaners and pros too. Don't worry, I wouldn't put either of them down for mistakes and we always try to fix what we are missing ourselves. I am just coming to realize these kitties are getting old.
I wonder if my feeling sick last week is related? I got UTI symptoms on tuesday and after getting my hair cut (tada!!!) I went to the Doctors. I had bacteria in my sample and the Dr started me on Cipro. He called this AM, thursday, to tell me the culture grew E coli so Cipro would be fine. After I went to the DR I got much sicker very quickly before I got the Antib's, chills and shking the entire deal. I am so glad I went to the DR.
My friends who live in Haiti full time, and run the water filter program, managed to get Typhoid a few weeks ago. I think that is E coli based too. Cipro is used to treat it as well. It isn't unexpected to get typhoid in Haiti. I think they need to get their vaccines updated while they are back in June. Our base is in the area that has had huge Cholera outbreaks and they have managed not to get that so far.
Stay well everybody.
Hugs Ginger
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I just found this elsewhere on these boards:
Hi, My estridol level was 189 (range 0-571) when checked before my hyster/ooph. I had been on Tamoxifen for 6 months--no periods, had the test that says I metabolize it well. Tamoxifen is not going to reduce those levels, that is not its function. Tamoxifen functions by blocking the estrogen you have from plugging into some estrogen receptors. It blocks estrogen from plugging into breast cancer cells local and distant, but it has an estrogenic effect on our bones, and heart--which is good, it is better on our bones and heart than AIs. That same estrogenic effect is what can cause uterine cancer, and clots--kind of like being on the pill. Why do you think your estridol should be less than 20? Post-menopausal women are 45 or below, but if you are pre-menopausal your body will have higher levels even on Tamoxifen. If you want to lower your levels and are pre-menopausal ask your onc about chemical suppression of your ovaries, or surgical, which is what I did, but I'm 49 and done having kids. I'm staying on Tamoxifen, even though I had my ovaries out.
I thought it was pretty interesting especially b/c the author seems to know a lot about tamoxifen and its affect, or lack of, on estrogen.
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Interesting stuff about estrogen levels and tamoxifen. Thanks for the info. I've never had my estrogen levels read, RACHEL have you? Maybe it's a Canadian thing that we don't test for. I have a onco appt in July and I will ask then.
TEX: Happy start to the kid's summer holidays. We have another 3 weeks before the kids are out for good.
LIZZY: I just wore my hair in a pony tail at work today for the first time. Everyone has been saying, "...there's something different about you..." YES. PONYTAIL FOR THE FIRST TIME IN TWO YEARS!
CAL: Saw your collosal sun room clean out on FB. HOLY COW! I want the hormonal surges you're having!
Have a great weekend all. We're heading up to the cottage for the weekend. It's supposed to be about 16 degrees and rainy. Also it's bear cub season, so mama bears are out and territorial. FUN. I think there will be a marathon Lego-fest INSIDE the cottage this weekend.;)
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I have never had estrogen levels done. Probably Canadian healthcare system!! I am still on Tamox after being more than two years in menopause (thanks to rad hyst). I asked my onco last appointment and he said no reason to change from Tamox.
It is raining like crazy here today...and go figure it was on my summer friday halfday!
Have a good weekend!0 -
P.S. i am slightly jealous of the ponytails! My hair has taken FOREVER to grow back. I have had three trims to shapen but still my hair is just past my ears--kind of bob--but it is super fine--looks like a lot of hair but when you touch it....baby fine hair. I was hinking of cutting it down again to see if that would help but am not sure i want to have super short hair again!
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Rachel: I don't think it is customary here to check estrogen levels. In fact, the only thing that seems customary is to rack in all those chemo dollars and then disappear! That is our "hot oncologic" healthcare system! Those of us that get panels done really mean we have found an oncologist who actually does their job...a rarity indeed!
Don't go getting too jealous about these ponytails!!! Mine is a pathetic pony at that!! All of 3"!!! It still feels good but I also have not gotten it cut since last summer and I also have not started highlighting again. Might not even that until next summer. But, yeah, no need for jealousy at all...more like pity!!!!!
Sweeney: hope you have a great weekend in the cold, dodging bears at the cottage! CT has had a lot of beer..meant bear (!)..sightings recently. Someone also shot a bear because that person was a moron and has been charged with something like being a moron! In any case, just today there was video of one bounding through a park, completely anesthetized to the mayhem it was causing! I say let them be. Geesh...kill, kill, kill- I don't think that is the answer. On that note, I hope you have a nice bear-filled weekend!
Happy trails-
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New TRIAL news!
Tex: this one is FOR YOU...try to get on it. If I find more info, I will PM you. It was on Nightline and the woman they spoke of was dxd w/Stage IV at 22, when she graduated college. She is now 29 and is doing pretty well thanks to TDM-1 as the story goes.
TDM-1...showing a lot of promise.
http://health.msn.com/health-topics/breast-cancer/is-tdm-1-a-miracle-drug-for-advanced-breast-cancer
We are getting closer, marching forward, to a better place and time! GO TRIALS! May the FDA deign to give you coveted approval thereby affording us some more years! Well HER2+ anyway!
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Omaz: I was 53 and still had periods up until my BC chemo, so that's when the doc suggested taking out my ovaries. It can be done laproscopically and the surgery is a piece of cake. You might want to ask about it. But, my hot flashes got worse after that, at least for a while. I've been having joint pain in my hands and toes, so at my checkup last week, the NP changed me from Arimidex to Aromosin, which is supposed to not affect joints as much. So far, I can't tell any improvement, but's it's only been 5 days. I hope it helps. Some days I can barely close my hands until halfway through the morning.
All, I'm doing good. Feeling really good these days and have gotten a lot of stuff done around my house. I'm really thinking about looking for work. I'd like to work part-time, but decent part-time jobs are hard to find. But I feel a little "useless" not working, since I feel fine and all. Oh well, another "feeling" to deal with!
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Lady - I was wondering if my onc was going to suggest this, so far it hasn't been suggested. I wonder why some doctors suggest it and some don't. Is there a university where you live? They often have interesting part-time jobs.0
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Rachel, Not having estrogen numbers done may be because that you are post menopausal due to hysterectomy. There is no need to do estrogen levels then. At least none that I know of. I don't have estrogen levels done, I also have no ovaries.
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True! When the ovaries are removed there isn't normally a need to check estrogen levels. The AIs can 'handle' the small amounts of non-ovary produced estrogen but just can't wipe out the ovary production.
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Good day, warriors!
Hope everyone is well.
Lady: I am so glad you are doing well! As for working, did you ever consider volunteering? I loved, and for years did, volunteer with the elderly! I just love them. It was so much fun. The hard part---they "go" eventually. Just before bc I lost a lady I just loved. It was hard. Since bc I have not been able to but at some point, I do intend to volunteer with them again. I helped with all the medicare/caid paperwork and took them shopping etc... It was fun
I would also volunteer with animals. I tried on a number of occassions with the local dog pound. It turned out it was just some people looking to collect animals, like the pound was their home, on the municipal dime! I have done Habitat for Humanity about 10 times. We have built houses in socioeconomically depressed areas, cleaned up parks, cleaned up empty lots, picked up furniture etc.... Habitat is a great program.
Ginger: yes, I don't think women without ovaries need get estrogen levels checked. I think the estrogen level checking is for women who were not menopausal going into bc but who still have ovaries.
On that note, the tests the women in the above outlined category need are estrogen, FSH and LH. The results of these tests will determine if one is in chemo-induced menopause or not. I also now would very much like to know, perhaps annually, where my estrogen level is so as to establish the efficacy of tamoxifen.
Good day-
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Good day, warriors!
I know everyone is busy etc... but I am going to send you a PM regarding an event that is coming up that perhaps you might want to be aware of.
From the time my friend's mother had her breasts removed and was released from the hospital to basically go home to die circa 1976, we have come a long way. The women who have gone before us have fought and paved the way for us and have fought for where we are today.
When the George Washington Bridge was built, the primary concern was travel, of course. Over the years, however, complacency and abuse led to egregious tolls and now it costs some $13 to get into NY via the GW. If we become complacent and just ignore the fact there are still many, many issues plaguing women w/bc, they will be paying tolls going forward and many are today, in one form or another. We must continue to fight.
Perhaps I have more fight in me as my grandfather was in politics and my aunt still is and has been for over 30 years. I might have politics in my blood and have had no compunction about sending letters directly to President Obama about the disgusting behavior of capitalistic pig doctors in this questionable healthcare system we have. I have no compunction about continuing to shine the light on the profiteers and "toll takers" who think nothing of capitalizing on this disease by lining their pockets with our pain. I have no problem explaining in letters to our president how some are just mugging and raping bc patients financially and keeping "special" services on a shelf that not too many can reach. That is me, however. I am not asking any of you to do much more than pay attention to the PM and mark your calendars.
A fellow "thread-mate" --so, sue me...I making up words!-- made me aware of this issue. I will fight until the day I die for rights of women with breast cancer and to purge our healthcare system of the profiteers and the punks. My experience has galvanized me in a way I did not even think was possible. That is me but we can all do small things and I am not talking walking 47 miles so Komen can fatten up their political coffers. I just want us to do one thing that is in the interests of the millions of women who are most definitely going to join us, and do every day, in this battle for our lives.
Check your PMs and some day the office I will run for is "Mayor" of the Pink Brigade!!!
Good day-
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