By Henry Relfield

Having a loved one diagnosed with cancer can be devastating. As a caregiver, you are faced with your own set of challenges as you are physically and emotionally stretched to your limit. In fact, studies have demonstrated that individuals who are caring for a loved one with a serious illness can often succumb to physical and emotional issues as well, including:

* Worsening of their physical health.
* Impaired social and family quality of life.
* Increased anxiety and depression.

According to the United States Department of Health and Human Services, more then 50 million family caregivers are taking care of a loved one in the United States due to chronic illness, disability, and injury. Three of four families will find themselves caring for a cancer patient. The quality of life for these caregivers is often overlooked. Just as the patient's life changes dramatically during serious illness, so do the lives of their caregivers. Caregiver quality of life is influenced by the seriousness of the illness of their loved one, individual coping methods, social support, and many other factors. From a diet and lifestyle perspective, caregivers can benefit from the same advice given to the patient. This includes eating a whole foods-based, healthful diet, performing consistent physical activity, taking dietary supplements when appropriate, and regularly engaging in proactive stress reduction techniques. In addition, caregivers will benefit from the following advice:

1. Develop an organizational system that helps you manage the details of your loved one's medical situation.
2. Ask for and accept help from family and friends.
3. Do not isolate yourself.
4. Remember that your feelings of fear, frustration, anger, or whatever they may be are valid and deserve to be recognized.

Psychological and social support including groups such as Gilda's Club, the Wellness Community, and others provide a wealth of benefit to families of people who have been diagnosed with cancer. Caring for a loved one with cancer is perhaps one of the most difficult things you will ever face. By taking care of yourself during the process, you will also be taking care of your loved one.

By Ramesh T Kumar

Brief History:

Radiation therapy has been utilized for over a century in the treatment of cancer. Traditional radiation treatments involve machines called Linear Accelerators which produce intense, high energy x-ray beams which when aimed to any part of the body will destroy tumors. Since, there is a significant dose of radiation that is spilled over into surrounding normal tissue causing side effects, these treatments are generally given once a day (rarely twice a day), 5 days a week over several weeks ranging from two weeks to eight weeks. Delivering such small amounts of radiation allow a relatively greater control of side effects. Essentially, the dose of radiation to the surrounding normal tissue, in several instances limits our ability to deliver higher amounts of radiation to destroy cancerous tumors. Thus, we have the results that were somewhat mediocre in several instances where we could have done better.

A new field of Radiation therapy was born several years ago called Radio surgery. Unlike, traditional radiation therapy, this form of radiation delivered by specialized machines allowed massive amounts of radiation to be delivered to the target area from multiple different directions that any of the surrounding normal tissue received a relatively meager amounts of radiation thereby limiting the degree of side effects that patients would experience. This also allowed these high doses of radiation to be delivered in one to five sessions instead of the several weeks that was involved with traditional radiation treatment.

Radio surgery implies that there is some form of surgery that is involved. This is not the case. The term indicates that huge amounts of radiation is directed to the target area from the outside in and has such a destructive effect on the cancer, that it is as good as actually going in and removing the tumor surgically. The other advantage of Radio surgery is the fact that this form of radiation can be directed safely to tumors located in areas of the body where any surgeon would fear to tread!

Types of Radio surgery Systems

The Old Guard:
Gamma knife radio surgery system was the first form of radio surgery that was put into clinical practice. The machine uses what is called gamma radiation that is produced by radioactive cobalt sources located within the machine. The main disadvantage of this technology is the fact that this can be used in selected patients with brain problems only and it is incapable of treating targets outside the cranial area. The procedure also involves placement of a halo which is basically screwed into the skull bone which has to be done to ensure accurate delivery of treatment. The procedure involves several hours and generally is used for one session.

Linear Accelerators Re-Invented:
Heavy duty computers that began rolling out at the turn of this century, allowed a major leap forward for Radio surgery technology. With the enormous computing powers that were made available, Linear accelerators were modified to perform this procedure. Unlike Gamma knife, radiation physicians now had the ability to perform Radio surgery on targets anywhere in the body and not be restricted to the skull area only. Linear Accelerator based systems include the Novalis TX and Varian Trilogy unit.

The New Kid on the Block:
The pinnacle of a true and dedicated Radio surgery machine had to wait till the introduction of Cyber knife Robotic Radio surgery system. Even though the word includes "knife", as discussed above, it basically indicates an ablative amount of radiation that equates to actually going in and cutting the tumor out. The technology is unique and different from the gamma knife system and the Linear Accelerator based systems, in the fact that this is the only Radio surgery system that can achieve what is called "realtime tracking of the tumor". What this means is that the Cyber knife system uses imaging technology that actually "sees" the target and tracks its movement very similar to the way our eyes move when watching a moving object. The position of the tumor at any given point in time is relayed to the radiation arm of the machine which radiates the tumor no matter where it moves about within the body. This is very similar to the way a boxer watches and follows the movement of his opponent while continuously jabbing away thereby knocking the daylights out of him!

What kind of patients are helped by Linear Accelerator based Radio Surgery Systems?

Several selected patients with both malignant and non-malignant situations are candidates for Radio Surgery. The following are examples of situations where Radio surgery has been found to be both safe and effective.

Among the most common non-malignant situations would be those patients with a condition called Trigeminal Neuralgia. Others include benign brain tumors such as pituitary tumors and tumors of the acoustic nerve.

In the Malignant category, patients with small cancers of the brain including solitary or few brain metastasis can be helped with just one session of Radio Surgery.

Patients with tumors involving the spine, can be treated effectively with very little effect on the adjoining spinal cord.

Small lung cancers that are isolated and with no evidence of spread can be treated effectively with 3 sessions of Radio Surgery treatment. An article that was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association Patients with inoperable non-small cell lung cancer who received stereotactic body radiation therapy had a survival rate of 55.8% at 3 years, high rates of local tumor control, and moderate treatment-related morbidity. 3 year survival rates for such patients treated with traditional radiation over several weeks was only 20 to 35%. The difference seen is huge and gives new hope for such patients.

Prostate cancer: Selected patients with early stage prostate cancer can elect to be treated with Radio surgery either as the only method of treatment or added to a short course of traditional radiation for about 5 weeks and subsequently undergoing Radio Surgery as a "boost" dose to knock the tumor located in the prostate.

Radio surgery as a sub-specialty of Radiation Oncology is a young and rapidly evolving field and is allowing more effective, safe and non-invasive ways of treating cancer patients, enabling better cancer control rates without disabling surgery and without all the risks associated with it. This has given new hope for patients with cancer as well as their families.

By Brian Elliott

The causes of mesothelioma has seen the focus mainly on only one material... asbestos, but there are other material with structures similar to asbestos that can cause people to develop the deadly lung disease, if inhaled. One such material is erionite, a not so common cause of mesothelioma of the pleura.

Erionite is a mineral found in volcanic ash that has been weathered over time to form a wooly, fibrous material. It is from a group of minerals known as zeolites. The name erionite itself is derived from the Greek word for wool. Just as with exposure to asbestos, erionite by its very nature and composition, gives the body the same problem of how to discard the cancer material from the body; a problem it cannot solve as the fibers cannot pass through the system and lodge and accumulate in the mesothelium.

People exposed to erionite are therefore at risk of developing mesothelioma.

Recently, it has been shown that erionite is poorly cytotoxic, induces proliferating signals and high growth rate in human mesothelial cells. Additionally, long-term exposure to erionite transforms human mesothelial cells in vitro, leading to rapid development of the cancer cells.

High levels of exposure to the vast erionite deposits is blamed for the high incidence of Mesothelioma in Cappadocia, Turkey and the danger of erionite has been relatively ignored in the US, but now it has been announced at a symposium that a North Dakota road material containing erionite may increase the risk of mesothelioma in that region. The symposium was sponsored by the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO), the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (ISLAC) and The University of Chicago.

North Dakota is not the only state with deposits of erionite. Neighbors South Dakota along with Arizona, Nevada, Oregon and California also have quantities of erionite.

The causes of Mesothelioma continue to cause health problems due to the long latency of the disease. The erionite in North Dakota is another instance as over 300 miles of road have been paved in the last 30 years. What about South Dakota, Oregon, Arizona, California and Nevada? The problems continue.

By Steven R Newton

Yet another reason to discover alternative cancer treatments.

Early in 2011, there's an indication of shortages in some drugs in the North American pharmaceutical market. Hospitals and pharmacists are seeing an ever-increasing trend in the frequency of these shortages. Manufacturers offer several reasons for this including shortages in raw materials, manufacturing problems, tougher regulations in other countries, and unprofitability. That may well be, but let's examine another thought for a moment.

The basic law of supply and demand states that as supply decreases, demand increases. Typically, with an increase in demand, we also see an increase in costs because the market usually supports that. Or put another way, with a decrease in supply we see an increase in demand...and cost.

In recent years there have been a number of drug patents expire which has created an opportunity for more manufacturers, often from countries with lower manufacturing costs, to enter into the generic drug market. In effect, this has created an increase in supply, which has resulted in a decreased demand...and profitability. Good news for the consumer as the prices of generic drugs are usually cheaper. Basically, the more manufacturers there are the less they can charge for a product and the less profit they can make.

Conventional cancer treatment drugs are not cheap and they're highly profitable. So given that there has been an influx in cheaper generic drugs into the market can we expect to see a similar trend in conventional cancer treatment drugs? Frankly, I doubt it. Think about this for a moment.

The drug companies that manufacture products for cancer treatments related to chemotherapy, radiation, immunotherapy, or in support of surgery are pretty well established in the North American and global markets. And they've got their markets fairly well protected in several countries, either by law and/or substantial penetration into the medical universities. Today's doctors only know what they're taught. They're taught to prescribe drugs for the symptoms. They're not taught to diagnose and treat cancer causes. Nor are they taught a whole lot about nutrition, particularly how it relates to alternative cancer treatments.

It's not illegal to treat people with alternative cancer treatments but you won't find any mainstream doctors doing that. They're taught how to treat cancer symptoms with drugs at the universities. The same universities that are funded by the large pharmaceutical companies for research. The same universities that are regulated in law by what they can teach about cancer treatments. The same universities that are regulated by the same government agencies that approve new drugs for cancer treatments. The same government agencies that are run by people with strong ties to the pharmaceutical industry. The same pharmaceutical companies that have strong lobbying capacity at the federal government level. The same government agencies that regulate the drugs that doctors are allowed to prescribe. Drugs that are manufactured by the same pharmaceutical companies that fund the research at the universities. You get the point. Cancer is a business. A really, really big business.

So I don't see a cheap influx of generic cancer drugs anytime soon. It's just not in the financial interests of the large pharmaceutical companies. And they have enough power to keep hold of their markets. So what does that mean to those of you who seek cancer treatments?

One possibility is that the large pharmaceutical companies will keep the prices high on their cancer treatment drugs. They can do that by maintaining control of their markets, much the same way they have for years. Or it's possible that some smart pharmaceutical company folks will figure out that they can ride the "drug shortage" wave and create artificial demand. Much in the same way that the OPEC nations cut back on the amount of oil they release into the world market to create a demand and drive the price of a barrel up, the pharmaceutical companies could do the same with their cancer drugs.

So if you start to see lots of media attention around drug shortages and rising prices, ask yourself if it's real or if it's just a marketing ploy. To my thinking, I'm not so sure I would want my health being controlled by large market forces that are profit driven. So for my own peace of mind, I am researching alternative cancer treatments for a couple of reasons: (1) to understand better what my options would be if I did get cancer; and (2) understand cancer prevention better. You should too...

By Carolyn Hansen

That word - cancer strikes the very fear of God in to us. No matter what type or stage it is still lumped under one heading of being an unrelenting and unstoppable villain. The older we get the more fearful we become as we see family members, friends and people we know and hear about fall victim and have their lives changed forever.

We would not be human if we did not occasionally wonder if cancer is something that we might get and the fate meant for us. We tend to think of it as being a matter of luck and something we have no control over. Yet we now know that 90 percent of all cancer is preventable so it makes good sense to try and stop it happening rather than trying to fix up a broken body once the wheels fall off.

One of the main preventative measures is to keep our body composition (muscle/fat ratio) at a healthy level as one of the main drivers of cancer is how fat we are. Although it is easy to see when we are overweight there is another hidden type of fat that is not so obvious. In fact it can only be detected with body imaging such as an MRI scan.

This fat lies deep inside the abdomen and even thin people of normal weight can have it. It surrounds the internal organs, changes hormonal levels and releases toxic chemicals that encourages disease particularly cancer. If your waist measurement is over 35 inches for a woman or 38 inches for a man you are very much at risk of this hidden problem.

This highly metabolically active fat is particularly dangerous as it aggressively changes the chemical environment inside the engine room of the body around the most important organs that keep us alive. It is these changes that accelerate and promote the growth and division of cells making cancer easier to develop and take hold.

If you live a no-proper exercise lifestyle your risk is high of having this nasty type of fat but the good news is proper exercise is the solution. Strength training exercise is the quickest and most effective way to deal to this fat. It rebuilds and 'wakes up' weak flabby muscles that have allowed the body to accumulate this fat rather than burn it up in the muscle cells harmlessly for energy.

Also of benefit is when the muscles are directly worked with adequate loading circulation is improved which helps the immune system circulate natural killer cells that locate and reutilize stray cancer cells trying to attack the body. Research is also uncovering how a process called apoptosis (programmed cell death) is triggered by vigorous activity such as strength training exercise causing cancer cells to die.

You can see that we have a very good case to support the fact that regular proper exercise is vital not only to prevent cancer, but if you already have it, during your treatment and afterwards as well.

To get even more 'bang for your buck" ditch as many processed foods from your diet as possible and replace them with natural whole foods cooked from scratch. You need to put some effort into your exercise program so you need good nutrition to support your energy and strength levels.

So, you can see, there is such a simple solution to reduce the need to worry yourself about contracting the most vicious killer disease of our modern world. But you will need to make it your number one health goal and priority, to become stronger, fitter and healthier and stay that way for the rest of your life.

By Marilyn Broomer

Tips for Avoiding Cancer Now or in the Future

This article touches on good solid eveyday tips to help you stay cancer free and also educates you to a degree on what you should be discussing with your Doctor or Health Care Professional.

Most people feel that cancer is purely genetic, and this allows a person to consider it cannot be avoided, well that is not entirely true. Scientists and Researchers with both the American and Canadian Cancer Society, feels that Healthy behaviors could possibly prevent half of the cancer deaths that are prevalent in today's society.

The following are those lifestyle changes, which are based on absolutely latest research, and improves the odds against a diagnosis of cancer now or in the future.

Don't smoke, if you do smoke or use other types of tobacco products, try to quit and don't give up, speak with your Doctor for any aids that will help you, there are many ads now, just remember there has to be ONE that will finally work for you.

With both men and women, screening is extremely important for the most prevalent types of cancers including screening for colon, breast, prostate, cervix, and skin and lung cancer.-- due to a persons age and Family Health History - you need to know intervals and what age you should start if not already started! It is a known fact that finding cancer early will greatly increase your chance for a cure and reduce your risk from dying from any cancer diseases

Keep your alcohol intake to a minimum of no more than 2 drinks per day for men and one for women. Being consistent with alcohol on a daily basis is the key - no binging due to non consumption during the week.

High fat is another problem because it is associated with obesity. Team this up with estrogen in
women and research tells us that obese women produce more estrogen, which can fuel the development of cancers, especially breast cancer in women. Eating more healthy Fruits and Vegetables is highly recommended.

Be knowledgeable about what your daily use of personal products contain, some chemical components have been deemed by Governments and Researchers to have carcinogenic infusions of chemicals that can mutate cells, and can cause an abundance of estrogen, which feeds certain cancers, especially in omen's bodies.

Always protect your skin when outdoors, use safe sunscreen (without parables) which Governments are taking off the markets. Your sun screen should have an SPF of 30 or higher and is expected to protect against both UVA and UVB rays. Sun Hats should be worn with wide brims and of course sunglasses that protect against dangerous sun rays.

Be a physically active person, not necessarily an athlete to get the benefits of exercise. They can be straight forward brisk walking, biking, dancing, swimming, aerobics,,. any type of exercise that raises your heart rate, with some sweating would be most beneficial.

Do your best to keep your weight to a normal range for your height, and keep your body mass to 25 or less. You can go on line to calculate the BMI rates. If possible try to stay 5 to 10 lbs of what you weighed at 20 years of age. Get medical help if necessary to accomplish this!

Should you be in menopause, try to avoid taking HRT therapy. This has to be discussed with your Doctor, if you must use HRT it is recommended by most Doctors to limit them to 5 years or less, some Doctors say 7 years or less - this may depend on your prescribed medication.

Listen to your body, this comes more easily when you start to age, you seem to know when something isn't going right, then make the all important appointment with your Doctor, this is the best way to get all of the screening you may need to save your life.

Be knowledgeable, read and understand what you are reading, discuss any areas of concern with a Medical Professional, this is mandatory to ensure that YOU are taking all the correct steps to ensure you stay Healthy and Wise.

By Eddy S. Lee

Cancer is a life threatening killer disease. Detection of cancer to a family member or close relative turns the entire family circle upside down and puts them into depression. It is a long term disease and the chances of survival are very poor. But thanks to the advancement in the field of medicine, scientists have come up with rewarding solutions to cure or prolong the killer disease. But still the family circle and the core family grieve during the whole process

CLASSIFICATION OF GRIEF:

1. Physical grief: includes sleepless nights or poor appetites or some illness

2. Mental grief: sadness, anger and guilt

3. Emotional grief: unexpressed Fear of death, fear of family future

4. Social grief: social relation, return to work place, social acceptance and participation

The level of grief depends upon various factors like, the stage of cancer, the importance of the family member, age, family closeness, family financial position, personality factors and attitude factors, stage of the family cycle and acceptance levels and periods.

PHASES OF GRIEF:

Shock: The news or the fact may create a shock when cancer is identified or the person dies out of cancer. This is cause because the person is unable to believe the fact.

Searching: death is emotionally not accepted. The person is looked for during dining, family meetings and so on.

Disorganization: As the mind thinks of the patient or the deceased as the case may be, the grieving person is unable to organize his day to day aspects.

Reorganization: This is the stage where the grieving person accepts the fact and tries to come out of it.

GRIEF THERAPY:

Grief therapy is counseling, advice and self help and includes the following

* Providing a different environment
* Making the person express all feelings about the deceased
* Make the person accept the fact that the deceased is no more
* Create an emotional separation between the deceased and the griever
* Providing continuous support of friends and well wishers

GRIEF AND STAGES OF CANCER:

Pre phase: stage of suspicion for cancer and seeks medical advice.

Confirmation phase: During this phase the person is confirmed about the fact of presence of cancer through tests and other medical reports.

Treatment phase: The actual medical treatment takes place to cure the killer during this phase.

Recovery phase/Death: This is the most critical phase as the family can expect cure or death in the near future.Cancer is a life threatening killer disease. Detection of cancer to a family member or close relative turns the entire family circle upside down and puts them into depression. It is a long term disease and the chances of survival are very poor. But thanks to the advancement in the field of medicine, scientists have come up with rewarding solutions to cure or prolong the killer disease. But still the family circle and the core family grieve during the whole process

CLASSIFICATION OF GRIEF:

1. Physical grief: includes sleepless nights or poor appetites or some illness

2. Mental grief: sadness, anger and guilt

3. Emotional grief: unexpressed Fear of death, fear of family future

4. Social grief: social relation, return to work place, social acceptance and participation

The level of grief depends upon various factors like, the stage of cancer, the importance of the family member, age, family closeness, family financial position, personality factors and attitude factors, stage of the family cycle and acceptance levels and periods.

PHASES OF GRIEF:

Shock: The news or the fact may create a shock when cancer is identified or the person dies out of cancer. This is cause because the person is unable to believe the fact.

Searching: death is emotionally not accepted. The person is looked for during dining, family meetings and so on.

Disorganization: As the mind thinks of the patient or the deceased as the case may be, the grieving person is unable to organize his day to day aspects.

Reorganization: This is the stage where the grieving person accepts the fact and tries to come out of it.

GRIEF THERAPY:

Grief therapy is counseling, advice and self help and includes the following

* Providing a different environment
* Making the person express all feelings about the deceased
* Make the person accept the fact that the deceased is no more
* Create an emotional separation between the deceased and the griever
* Providing continuous support of friends and well wishers

GRIEF AND STAGES OF CANCER:

Pre phase: stage of suspicion for cancer and seeks medical advice.

Confirmation phase: During this phase the person is confirmed about the fact of presence of cancer through tests and other medical reports.

Treatment phase: The actual medical treatment takes place to cure the killer during this phase.

Recovery phase/Death: This is the most critical phase as the family can expect cure or death in the near future.

By Rachid Gaidi

Lung cancer survival rate refers to the percentage of patients who manage to survive to the disease, for a specific period of time, after they are diagnosed as developing cancer, comparably with healthy people, bearing in mind the stage and the location of the cancer.

Lung cancer survival rate is based on the experience of large groups of patients and usually relate to the five years survival rate. However, we cannot predict what would happen to a particular patient considering the disparity that exists between each individual whether suffering from the disease or not.

The lung cancer survival rate depends on many factors such as the stage and the type of the disease, if there are symptoms like coughing or difficult breathing, the patient's health condition and whether the illness has just been detected or has reappeared.

There are two main types of cancer: Non small cell lung cancer very common and spreads out slowly than small cell cancer.

The stage of the cancer refers to how much the disease did spread within the lungs and the other parts of body. The information gathered would directly influence the treatment options and monitors the progress. There are many cancer stages depending whether it concerns the small cell lung cancer or non small cell type.

Stages of the first type are: limited stage, extensive stage and recurrent. the stages concerning the second type include, occult, stages 0, 1, 2, 3 and 4 in addition to recurrent.

The symptoms can give indications about the illness and how it is developed. Accordingly, specialists might conclude to a specific rate.

Whether the cancer has just been diagnosed or has recurred directly influences lung cancer survival rate. In addition to the patient's general health and her or his ability to bear one of the advised treatment options.

Statistics do not mention if the patients that survived the cancer are still under treatment or achieved remission. There are other rates, which deliver specific information such as the disease-free rates, the number of survivors who achieved remission and no longer have cancer.

The progression free survival rate indicates the number of patients who still have the disease, however, the illness isn't spreading because they experienced a certain success with their treatment.

Lung cancer survival rate helps, both your doctor and you, understand your prognosis and your chances to achieve remission by developing a more appropriate and specific treatment plan.

By John Cusworth

Can't Cure Your Cancer? Maybe Not - But You Can Learn to Cope With It Better!

Cancer is an insidious disease which can sneak up on anybody. Sure there are a number of forms of cancer which have links to your behaviour. Not smoking will greatly reduce your chances of getting Lung Cancer. But a non-smoker can still get Lung Cancer. Frequent sun-baking without any form of protection will significantly increase your chances of contracting Skin Cancer. But a person who has rarely been exposed to the sun can still develop a case of Skin Cancer.... Why?

How can a young child get struck down with Leukemia, while an old person who has smoked, drunk heavily and eaten a very questionable diet all his can live seemingly healthily to over 100?... Why?

THE THING IS - NOBODY KNOWS.

Billions of dollars' worth of scientific and medical research has vastly improved our understanding of the various types of cancer. We have bucket loads of statistics telling us what the percentage chances there are of getting a particular disease - or surviving if you happen to be a victim. But these are only statistics. When dealing with an individual they are almost useless.

Nobody knows whether or not you will contract cancer.

Nobody knows what type it would be if you were to get cancer.

Nobody knows whether or not you will survive a short time, a long time or completely recover.

There are numerous instances of people being told that they were terminally ill and would only survive a month or two. Yet they have gone on to live for many years - sometimes with no trace of the cancer remaining.

We should face the fact that we just don't know.

Certainly we can make some informed decisions based on the statistics - which tell us what has happened in the past. Certain forms of cancer have been found to respond reasonably well with modern medical treatments of chemotherapy, radiology and various cocktails of drugs. In other cases alternative, natural or holistic treatments have been shown to be very effective. In all cases these past results are exactly that - results obtained for other patients, in different situations, in a time past. They may or may not have the same effect on you - whether good or bad. The Doctors don't know that either - through no fault of their own. They can only make their best guess based on the evidence before them - which will always be biased towards the type of experiences and treatments that they are familiar with.

However you should not let this discourage you. You are not doomed with an irreversible curse placed upon you. You are an individual faced with a unique set of circumstances. Listen to the experts - but it is your life, and you are in charge of it. Make your own decisions about the course any treatment will take. Above all else remain positive - even if you have to force yourself. After all - many people in the past have overcome cancer.

There is a good deal of research suggesting that a positive attitude and mindset can do wonders for someone with any disease - particularly with cancer. Combined with a healthy lifestyle and natural, balanced nutrition - this can lead to a greatly improved prognosis.

If you sit around moping, expecting to die any minute - then that may just happen and in any case you will have wasted a lot of precious time being miserable.

If you can remain positive, look after yourself physically, mentally and emotionally - then you may end up living much longer, and if not you will at least have enjoyed what time you had left.