Spirit of the Season

Dear Blogger Family & Friends,

Holiday greetings and big bear hugs from the Pink Crusader! It's been a few weeks since our last visit, so come on in, grab a hot ginger cookie fresh from the oven, and read on...

"Christmas is more than a time of festivities, family and friends; it is a season of generosity, gladness and gratitude."

-William Arthur Ward

Oh the joys of the holiday season! This is the time of year when we seek out that which is familiar and gives us great pleasure. A time when we feel cozy, safe and loved. A time when we remember all of our favorite things with child-like expression and are hooked with anticipation of the ultimate winter vacation. We allow our sentiments to take over as our minds drift back to warm and fuzzy memories of yester-years...Memories that paint sweet images in our minds...Memories that we take to bed and keep us warm on those long cold winter nights. It's a wonderful state of existence...and an easy-going journey as our hearts coast through the next 30 days and bring us to a rolling stop at the year-end mark.

The spirit of the season is better than any bottled magic. It removes the cloud of disgruntlement from our otherwise everyday existence and guides us to a place of inner peace. People are nicer, things are prettier and food tastes better. It is also a time of charity and selfless outpouring to others. There are good intentions and general warmth for all we come in contact with, and we are reminded that what brings us together in celebration cannot be contained in tinsel, wrappings or boxes....although presents are a nice bonus!

For those who find the holidays to be stressful or particularly lonely, there are still meaningful ways to connect with others and erase any unpleasantness from the past. Dig deep and you will find the spirit of the season within you....that's where it all begins...and it will continue to keep getting better if you are open to the possibilities. You will find yourself when you give of yourself, and hopefully experience great happiness in the process.

Don't let the spirit of the season get away...we're just getting started!
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SURVIVOR UPDATES:

Karissa Ma

Best wishes and Good Luck to survivor and book participant Karissa and husband Erik on their relocation to Phoenix, AZ. We will miss them!
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FYI:

From Linda Yagar (per Rosemary Barr):

For any of you that did not get this via the Rosebuds ListServ, here are
Linda Yarger 's e-mails highlighting Saturday, November 17 talks at the
MBCN (Metastatic Breast Cancer Network)conference. - Rosemary

M. D. Anderson hosted a metastatic breast cancer conference today. Several
rosebuds attended, rosebuds both with and without metastasis. I wonder if
recurrence is just a spec less scary for those rosebuds without metastasis
who attended the conference. It was inspiring to learn of new treatments
and research in progress and to learn that life expectancy has been
steadily increasing for women with metastasis. For those rosebuds with
advanced breast cancer I hope today provided hope, support, camaraderie
and new questions to ask their doctors.

Dr. Murray talked about therapeutic vaccines. Before today I thought that vaccines worked poorly in cases where tumor burden was high. Apparently improved design has renewed the hope that vaccines may still have a role to play. A Phase 1 metastatic breast cancer trial of NY-BR-1 is about to start at MD Anderson. NIH has a trial which combines a vaccine with docetaxel. Patients are randomized to either a vaccine plus docetaxel or vaccine alone. If the patient progresses on the vaccine then they get the docetaxel. Another possible combination would be a vaccine with a cytokine.

Dr. Murray talked about targeted therapy for metastatic breast cancer. New
combinations are being tried. For ex. there is a trial accruing of
trastuzumab (Herceptin) plus bevacizumab (Avastin). This is a phase I/II
trial. Interim statistics from this trial show a rather decent overall
response rate of 54.1 percent. Dr. Murray talked about many agents in the
pipeline. Many of these have worked in solid tumors other than breast
cancer. Sorafenib and Sunitinib were mentioned more than once. They
target the VEGF pathway. Someone in the audience asked if you can test
for VEGF overexpression. The answer was yes - you can test tumor tissue-
but it is unknown if overexpression of VEGF will correlate with a good
response in a drug that targets VEGF. A rosebud in the audience asked
about rebiopsying to see if tumor markers may have changed once cancer has
progressed. Dr. Murray said that yes - tumor markers can change. For example,HER2 positive can go to HER2 negative (normal) and vice versa. Hormone receptors can also change. If you are basing treatment on these receptors it makes sense to see if they have changed. Women in the audience complained that rebiopsy is not a standard practice.

Dr. Symmans then talked about molecular classifications. He also talked
about a tissue test which can distinguish between a primary tumor and a
metastasis. (Pathwork Diagnostics) MDA will start using this kind of test
next year. For ex. if a breast cancer patient has a nodule in her lung -
this test could be used to distinguish between a true lung cancer or a
metastasis from the original breast cancer. (Would this eliminate the
pathologist ?? I thought pathologists were pretty good at this.) I'm sure
many in the audience were interested in his list of agents that might be
especially good for patients who are triple negative (ER negative, PR
negative, HER2 negative) - if you talk about molecular classifications
this is called "basal". I managed to write down irinotecan + carboplatin,
cetuximab, carboplatin + cetuximab and dasatinib. In general agents that
are "platins" are good to consider. For triple negative it is also good
to consider a cytotoxic agent with a molecular agent. Again someone in
the audience asked about rebiopsy once cancer has progressed. Dr. Symmans said that about 30 percent of tumors that are originally ER positive will become ER negative. He believes in rebiopsy because he believes that "two shots are better than one." The patient who asked the question said that
her tumor had been classified as ER negative. Upon rebiopsy it was
classified as ER positive. Dr. Symmans thought it was probably ER
positive to begin with.

Dr. Valero talked on chemo agents - way too much to try to summarize. He
was excited by how many new agents had been introduced since he first
arrived at MDA. He was humble and funny when he tried to pronounce Ixepra
- this is the trade name for Ixabepilone - Ixabepilone is the most recent
agent approved by the FDA for metastatic patients. This drug was
formerly called epitholene B. It has good activity in triple negative
patients.

Dr. Uneo talked next. I know Dr. Uneo best as the researcher for high
dose chemo. But apparently he has other expertise also. He talked to us
about bone metastasis. He did a good job explaining the normal dynamics
of bone maintenance. Sometimes cancer treatments (ex. removal of ovaries,
or drugs) can cause bones to become weak. Sometimes cancer itself causes
weak bones. He emphasized that when bones become weak it is absolutely
best to do surgery to support the bone BEFORE fracture. It is not good
practice to let a fracture occur and then attempt to give relief. This is
a more difficult surgery. He also explained that it is difficult to find
clinical trials for bone mets because trials need to asses response and it
is difficult to asses response to drug treatments for bone mets. He
talked about using plain film (xray) CT, MRI and PET/CT. I loved his last
slides. They were entitled "Can we cure bone mets ?" and "Can we develop
drugs that target bone mets?" He offered hope for the future.

Then we had breakouts - you picked a topic. I picked surgical oncology.
Dr. Babiera talked about surgery for women who were diagnosed initially as
stage four. She then talked about surgery for women who originally had
their breast tumor removed and then developed distant mets. In both cases
there can be a place for surgery depending on how well the tumor is being
controlled and on the extent of the metastasis. She emphasized that you
should have stable disease because if you are contemplating surgery then
you have to go off treatment for several weeks before surgery. I learned
a new word -metastectomy - it means removing sites of metastasis. In some
cases doing surgery can prolong survival.

Next there was - the best part of the day - a panel of survivors with
mets- all more than 8 years out - 3 of the 4 panel members were rosebuds.

Hugs, Linda

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From Cheryl Donlin:

Reprinted from Good Housekeeping Magazine, November 2007

Anticancer Combo

It's the best twofer we've heard of recently: Taking calcium/vitamin D supplements not only keeps your bones strong, it may also prevent cancer. In a study at Creighton University in Nebraska, researchers found that women who took a daily dose of 1,400 to 1,500 milligrams of calcium, plus 1,100 International Units (IU) of vitamin D, had 60 percent fewer cancers diagnosed in the four years of the study. Your calcium pill may already contain vitamin D, but probably not enough. Many experts feel that the official U.S. guideline of 200 to 600 IU a day (depending on age) is outdated, and now recommend a daily dose of 1,000 IU.
To read more: http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/health/nutrition/nutrition-news-1107
©2007 Hearst Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved
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From Kimberly Powell (be-lie-ve Lifestyle Boutique)

Happy Holidays!!
As the holiday season is here I know the stress of the perfect gift for the ones we love is often on our minds and impossible to find!! This year give a gift that gives back!!! Watch, record, or view online (www.greatdayhouston.com) the Tuesday (11/27) show of Great Day Houston where I will showcase some gifts that truly give back!!!
The show airs live on channel 13 at 9am!!
Have a happy and blessed holiday!!!
~Kimberly 713.843.7714
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DAILY REMINDER #1:
"Fund Free Mammograms" Go to The Breast Cancer Site at http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/tpc/EEB_0115_BCSm
and help fund free mammograms for the homeless, working-poor, and un-insured women. It costs nothing to you, except one daily click on the pink "Fund Free Mammograms" button. You can even request automatic reminders via e-mail. Please make your free click now, and thanks for your continuing support! The Breast Cancer Site, One Union Square, 600 University Street, Suite 1000, Seattle, WA 98101 Phone: 1-888-811-5271

NOTE: This November, help fund 500 MAMMOGRAMS for U.S. women and The Breast Cancer Site will donate an ultrasound machine to McCord Hospital in South Africa through its charitable partner Greater Good.org. They have reached 68% of goal as of this week. Please keep clicking...

In operation since 1909, McCord Hospital is striving to meet the projected health needs of an increasingly "westernized" urban and predominantly African population. There is an increasing need for healthcare services that will provide for earlier detection and treatment. Equipment such as an ultrasound unit which can be used for screening and diagnostic purposes for breast and uterine masses, and for cardiac echocardiography, will greatly help in providing better services for these patients. Click now! Please click daily!

DAILY REMINDER #2:
Help eliminate Breast Cancer with a daily click at
http://breastcancer.care2.com/ebc-about.html
You'll be one of the first people to participate in the largest virtual mountain climb in the world! With every click, (or "step") you generate a donation to
eliminate the environmental causes of breast cancer--for free. Sponsors pay for your click and fund The Breast Cancer Fund's programs focusing on environmental links to breast cancer. It only takes a second! The Breast Cancer Fund is the leading national organization focused on identifying – and advocating for the elimination of – the environmental and preventable causes of the disease. For more details on the organization’s work, visit www.breastcancerfund.org
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UPCOMING EVENTS: Mark Your Calendars and Save the Dates!

ROSEBUDS II MEETING
November 29th, 5:45 - 7:30 pm
Breast Cancer Support Group Meeting
For those who have had or are at high risk for recurrence
and/or metastasis, 2nd and 4th Thursday of each month
The Rose, 3400 Bissonnet.
Open to all Breast Cancer Patients/Survivors
Future Meetings: November 29*, December 13 & 27,
Note: *Rosebuds II meeting will be on the 29th of November
since the 22nd of November is Thanksgiving

KNOCKOUT ROSES
A support group for women diagnosed under 40
2nd Monday of each month, @ 5:45
December 10
The Rose, 3400 Bissonnet.
Contact Amy Rigsby, Technical Director of The Rose
713-660-6675.

JOIN US FOR A SPECIAL HOLIDAY TEA!
Sat. December 15th &; Sat. December 22nd
at Serenitea Tea Room and Gift Shop.
13889 Southwest Freeway Sugar Land, TX

Share the joy of the holiday season over a cup of steaming hot wassail and spiced pecans along with a delicate assortment of finger sandwiches; gingerbread with honey nut cream cheese, egg salad with watercress, spinach and pimento stack-up, ham and pear with walnuts, and the classic cucumber sandwich.

You will also enjoy classic English scones with a twist, chocolate chips and orange. And for dessert try the mini traditional rum fruitcake, chocolate-dipped shortbread biscuits and grapes.

A pot of tea...your choice from the Tea Selections menu. Plus, a special gift for everyone...compliments of Serenitea!
By Reservation Only. Phone: 281-491-4588
Cost is $30 per person + Tax and Gratuity
www.SereniteaTeaRoom.com

ROSEBUDS MEETING
December 18, 5:45 - 7:30 pm
Breast Cancer Support Group Meeting
The Rose, 3400 Bissonnet.
Open to all Breast Cancer Patients/Survivors
1st and 3rd Tuesday of each month
www.RosebudsSupport.org
Note: There will be no Rosebuds meeting on December 4 inasmuch as
the annual Holiday Party will be at the home of Janet Covington on
December 4, 2007 We look forward to seeing you!

THE ALICE THOMSEN LYMPHEDEMA AWARENESS GROUP of Houston Meetings are scheduled on the 3rd Tuesday of every other month at the American cancer Society Building,6301 Richmond (between Hillcroft and Fountainview) at 7:00pm. Next scheduled meeting is Januaruy, 2008.
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"SHARING is CARING"
As always, The Pink Crusader welcomes your comments, stories, poems, events and photographs! Posts are updated each week. Please send your written contributions to thepinkcrusader1@aol.com.
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"I wish we could put up some of the Christmas spirit in jars and open a jar of it every month."

- Harlan Miller

Until next week stay strong, stay well and keep on dancing to the holiday sounds!

Love, Josie
The Pink Crusader
thepinkcrusader1@aol.com