The 40th Cancer Council webinar was streamed live, here, in the Online Community!

 

The topic for this Webinar was: Men in Survivorship - stuff mates don’t say.

 

Scroll down for further information about the webinar, including panel information.

 

The panel members for this webinar were:

We encourage you to utilise this thread to ask questions ongoing. We'll add the recorded link to the webinar for you to rewatch when it becomes available.

 

More about this Webinar

Many more men are more likely to die of preventable cancer than women, and even more unlikely to talk about their disease. It is estimated that over 78,000 men will be diagnosed with cancer in 2019, with an average five-year survival rate of 69%.

 

With so many men being diagnosed and surviving cancer, this webinar will explore the physical and psychological effect that cancer can have on many aspects of a man’s life.

 

What do I need to do?

If you're not already a member of the Online Community, be sure to sign up beforehand - choose a nickname, not your full name! Either way, you can watch the Webinar right here in this thread once it becomes available on Thursday night, nothing else is involved.

 

The chat here is text based, so no additional software is needed other than a web browser on your phone or computer. To keep up with the latest posts, just hit the refresh button on your browser as the page won't automatically update. As more people chat, page numbers will appear at the bottom of the page to help you jump to the next post in the conversation. Please note, this will pause the live stream and you'll have to hit play when you refresh - if you're on a computer or tablet, consider opening a new tab in your browser to post and one to watch the Webinar!

 

We'll be here as well to field any questions you might have. If you want to post during the chat, simply hit the Reply button on the post and post away. Everyone is welcome!

 

If you have any questions about how to use the Online Community, check out our Frequently Asked Questions or How do I? thread. If you're really stumped send us an email: onlinecommunity@nswcc.org.au

11 Comments
sytrader
Visitor

Hi

this is my first post, so please excuse me if I screw up!

 

I was diagnosed with bowel cancer stage 3 in November  2018. I had my hemicolctomy in a private hospital, after that they sent me to a rehab home for the elderly for 2 months! I was just 51!!! I started their chemo by pill eventually in January 2019. About 2 months later, I complained of discomfort in my abdomen! They finally did a PET scan and said the cancer was advanced and had spread! They gave me 6 months to live on current pill therapy or maybe 2 years with IV chemo. At this point, I just totally lost confidence in these people and requested my GP to arrange transfer of my case to Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre. About a month later I was in their professional hands!

 

My new Oncologist is a very personable chap. They did a PET scan on me and diagnosed me with stage 4 peritoneal disease in the abdomen. He is open, yet doesn't give me feel good bullshit like the previous oncologist did! He always talks to me about options, including surgery/resection. At NO time has he ever made me feel like a lost cause like the previous oncologist. When I see him, I always feel in his care and he is working on solutions!

 

I start cycle 13 of my chemo (FOLFIRI) next week, and am seeing a PeterMac surgeon this week to discuss if I'm fit enough for a peritonectomy. This is where I'm getting scared! I've tolerated 12 cycles of chemo very well, but now I'm getting to crunch time!

 

I thank PeterMac for everything, not least for allowing me to regain my sense of hope and desire to live! Not only have you given ME hope for the future, but you have also given this hope to my wife and our two year-old daughter!

 

That's my story! I hope I haven't sent anyone into a coma with this post!

 

Cheers

David

 

Budgie
Super Contributor

Hi @sytrader , & welcome to the community.   

Yes it certainly does make a difference with an oncologist who cares about his/her patients.  I've had a few over the 7 years since I was diagnosed & there were one or two who seemed to just not give a damn. 

I hope things go well for you with the upcoming surgery.

 

Budgie

RJG
Frequent Contributor

A couple of questions...

 

1. Do you believe that there is a generational difference in the preparedness of men to get advice and/or treatment for symptoms that indicate that they may have cancer? That is are Baby Boomers generally presenting with more advanced stages of cancer than those born in the 60s and 70s and they more advanced than those born after in the 80s and 90s?

 

2. Do you believe that the prognosis (curable vs palliative treatment) influences a man's willingness to share his thoughts and feelings with others?

 

Thanks,

Rick

RJG
Frequent Contributor

Another question...

 

People in rural areas tend to just "get on with things" which generally means bottling up - ignoring symptoms and hiding their feelings. How do we encourage people, and particularly men, who live in rural areas to talk about, and seek early treatment for, symptoms of cancer? 

 

I would also be interested in seeing statistics about the proportion of men in rural areas who commit suicide after diagnosis of cancer.

 

Hugs to all,

Rick

Katekat
Valued Contributor

Thanks for the questions @RJG, I've passed them onto the team. It's really good to see you back here 😀

 

 

0 Kudos
RJG
Frequent Contributor

I have been a tad busy of late with:

* work 

* commuting (nearly 3 hours per day)

* checking on our new babies (7 calves with 2 to go plus lambs)

* spraying weeds (100 ac)

* pulmonary emboli  identified during oncology reviews

* dealing with a despicable kidney stone

* (stuff)...

 

In case you didn’t guess, I’m very interested in this topic. 

Rick

Katekat
Valued Contributor

This webinar will be on tonight at 7pm Sydney time - I've put a table above with various time zones around the world to help everyone.

 

@laura-nswcc@Bruiser and @sytrader  - here is your friendly reminder 😃

 

See you tonight all - you are welcome to continue posting questions in here, if we don't get through them tonight, I'll work with the team to get them answered over the next week or so. 

0 Kudos
laura-nswcc
Cancer Council Team

Looking forward to chatting with you during the webinar 🙂

Katekat
Valued Contributor

Just on half an hour to go everyone, see you soon! 😀

0 Kudos
Katekat
Valued Contributor

If anyone was having any difficulties streaming the webinar, it should now be resolved - just refresh your browsers.

0 Kudos
Katekat
Valued Contributor

Now that the webinar is over, how did everyone find it tonight?

 

Any key takeaways? Something that stood out for you?

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