Hi Kazcook, I haven't had radiation but I have had outpatient surgery on my back and on my head for non-melanoma skin cancer, with local anesthetic injected around the occurrences beforehand. The surgery wasn't particularly painful and I found the procedure quite interesting. Personally I'd prefer outpatient surgery rather than radiation because radiation might take several sessions and produce painful side-effects and has small risks of radiation damage associated with it. Freezing the affected area with dry ice is another option for some people. I've had a small mole removed by the freezing technique and that was very simple and I don't remember any pain associated with it. But it might involve several visits to get a large area done or they may feel your carcinoma is too big and well-developed for that kind of treatment. You can read about basal cell carcinoma and its treatment options on the internet eg here http://www.skincancer.org/skin-cancer-information/basal-cell-carcinoma and there are more links here http://bestcancersites.com/skin/ . Good luck whatever option you choose 🙂 Ed. ... View more

Hi Kylie, Here's a couple of suggestions for additional places to go on the internet in search of information and support relating to adrenal cancer. You can read about adrenal cortical cancer and its treatment on the American Cancer Society website in their section "Adrenal Cortical Cancer" at www.cancer.org/cancer/adrenalcorticalcancer/index and on the USA's National Cancer Institute's website in their section "Adrenocortical Carcinoma" at www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/adrenocortical. The Facebook group "Adrenalcortical Carcinoma - Adrenal Cancer" at www.facebook.com/groups/AdrenalcorticalCarcinoma/ currently has 902 members. It can be a tough battle when cancer spreads and I hope your sister-in-law is doing okay. Cheers - Ed. ... View more

Hi Kylie, Here's a couple of suggestions for additional places to go on the internet in search of information and support relating to adrenal cancer. You can read about adrenal cortical cancer and its treatment on the American Cancer Society website in their section "Adrenal Cortical Cancer" at www.cancer.org/cancer/adrenalcorticalcancer/index and on the USA's National Cancer Institute's website in their section "Adrenocortical Carcinoma" at www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/adrenocortical. The Facebook group "Adrenalcortical Carcinoma - Adrenal Cancer" at www.facebook.com/groups/AdrenalcorticalCarcinoma/ currently has 902 members. It can be a tough battle when cancer spreads and I hope your sister-in-law is doing okay. Cheers - Ed. ... View more

Hi Wysewun, Here's a couple of suggestions for places to go on the internet where there are others who may have similar experiences: Go to the vast community forums at www.hystersisters.com and find a suitable forum to post your message there. When I checked on 12th February 2014 the overall stats for their forums were threads..514,381 posts..4,213,992 members..325,109 ! There are links to some lymphedema forums (discussion boards) on the web page http://bestcancersites.com/lymphedema/ I hope the pain subsides soon 🙂 Cheers - Ed. ... View more

Hi Mabelleigh, I just red your post and thought you may find this info useful. The American Bladder Cancer Society at http://bladdercancersupport.org runs a big and very active bladder cancer community forum. You can find it via their home page or this direct link may work http://bladdercancersupport.org/bladder-cancer-forum Ed. ... View more

Hi Shellie, I'm wondering if they have ruled out lymphedema as being a cause of his arm swelling? This is where, when one or more lymph nodes are removed, the lymph system is no longer able to fully drain the arm of lymph fluid so the arm swells up. Sometimes it starts years after the operation to remove lymph nodes. If I remember correctly an infection is one possible trigger. It's quite a common condition or side effect after removal of lymph nodes during treatment for breast cancer. There's an excellent and easy to understand article on arm lymphedema on the Breastcancer.org website here www.breastcancer.org/lymphedema_info.html. ... View more

Hi Pauline, Three diagnoses of breast cancer in close relatives on your mother's side suggests a substantial probability that there is an inherited breast cancer gene on her side of your family. If there is, there's a fifty percent (one in two) chance you've inherited it. There's a lot of good reading on the internet about inherited breast cancer and genetic testing. My suggestion would be to quietly explore the information and discussions at the sites I've given links to below. That will put you in a much better position to make a decision about whether to go see a genetic counselor, and to have an informed discussion with the counselor if you decide to see one. I'd be surprised if they don't suggest genetic testing if that's what you want to do. Three websites where you can find very good articles and discussion about hereditary breast cancer and genetic testing are Breastcancer.org at www.breastcancer.org, the FORCE website www.facingourrisk.org, and the National Cancer Institute (USA) website www.cancer.gov. Here's how to find the info on each site. On the Breastcancer.org website, try this direct link www.breastcancer.org/risk/factors/genetics.jsp or go to their home page at www.breastcancer.org and click on the link 'Breast Cancer Risk Factors' (it's under the heading 'Lower Your Risk'), and then look at the links on the left side of the new page to see the range of topics covered. On the FORCE website, click on the link "Information and Research" on their home page www.facingourrisk.org where you will find links to a variety of good information. On the National Cancer Institute website, go to the Breast Cancer: Prevention, Genetics, Causes page at www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/prevention-genetics-causes/breast and the Cancer Genetics gateway page at www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/prevention-genetics-causes/genetics and scroll down the pages to find links to their articles. Good luck if you get tested and good luck with your testing Mystik73 🙂 Cheers - Ed Http://bestcancersites.com/breast/ ... View more

Hullo Myboys3 and DeeDee and anyone else diagnosed with melanoma who may be reading this thread or anyone else who may wish to pass this link along to others. It's good to know about Melanoma Institute Australia in Sydney as a treatment centre option if Sydney is within your reach. Here's a quote from a document I posted elsewhere: "Melanoma Institute Australia at www.melanoma.org.au (formerly the Sydney Melanoma Unit at ....smu.org.au) - I haven't had a chance to check their website out in detail yet so I will quote: They say: "Melanoma Institute Australia is a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to preventing and curing melanoma through innovative, world-class research, treatment and education programs. Based in the Poche Centre, the world’s largest melanoma research and treatment centre, Melanoma Institute Australia is affiliated with the University of Sydney and St Vincent’s and Mater Health Sydney. Melanoma Institute Australia relies on the generosity of individuals, organisations and government funding to continue its ground breaking work ... " Melanoma SA says [on its website] Melanoma Institute Australia "...is located in the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Sydney and is the largest centre for the treatment of melanoma in the world. It has an international reputation for high quality patient care, research on melanoma and is also involved in community and medical practitioner education about melanoma and other skin cancers."" Cheers - Ed. ... View more

Hi Tracey, If you're thinking about taking steps to try and preserve your fertility before treatment begins, you may find the annotated links I've put on the webpage http://bestcancersites.com/fertility/ useful. Cheers - Ed. ... View more

Hullo Eureka gal :) You may find it useful to browse through my webpage http://bestcancersites.com/colorectal/ for links to colorectal information and support websites, and other cancer-related websites you may find valuable on your journey. This is a good one: "My CRC Connections is a social networking community started by the Colon Cancer Alliance in early 2008 for those affected by colorectal cancer, with the address http://mycrcconnections.ning.com. When I checked on 28th June 2008 there were already 560 members, and when I checked on 15th May 2011 there were 2,225 members. You can have your own webpage with a wall for comments and a blog, you can upload photos and videos, and there's an active message board (forum) and live chat. Some groups have been set up within the site including "CCA Buddy Program" and "Young Survivors". If you're looking for an online community to share information and support with others affected by colorectal cancer please do check this one out." I know it's not face to face meetings but many people find internet support groups open to anyone around the world very helpful. Cheers and good luck! Ed. ... View more