29 Comments Always speak to your specialist before taking vitamin and mineral supplements. Featuring Tara Whyand Vitamin deficiency is common in the general population so your issue may not be related to NET. But read on to learn the risks for NET patients. Despite learning early on in my journey that nutrition was going to be a […]
I enjoyed reading an article written by Dr Eric Liu entitled The Complications of Surgery. In his article, Dr Liu, himself a surgeon, explains that surgery comes with risks, and patients should be made aware and be able to discuss these risks with their doctors. This got me thinking about my own experience which goes […]
Neuroendocrine Cancer has certain unique features whereby tumours can produce one or more symptoms which are known collectively as a syndrome. Neuroendocrine Tumours secreting excess amounts of serotonin, can be accompanied by Carcinoid Syndrome which if not diagnosed and treated early enough, can lead to an additional complication known as Hedinger Syndrome (often known as […]
I also found myself smiling at the fact that flushing is connected with the toilet and a type of red warm feeling in the upper torso – the two main symptoms of the Carcinoid Syndrome associated with the most common type of Neuroendocrine Cancer. “Please flush after use” – erm…yes sure but actually – no thanks
Cancer isn’t always a one-time event. It can be a chronic (ongoing) illness, much like diabetes or heart disease. Cancer can be closely watched and treated, but sometimes it never completely goes away. The cancer may be ‘controlled‘ with treatment, meaning it might seem to go away or stay the same, and it doesn’t grow or […]
‘The C Word’ or ‘The Big C’ – the subject which must not be discussed. Or is this now an out of date phrase? I read a useful article a month ago where the author debated where we might be if, 50 years ago, we were as open about cancer as we are now (there, I […]
Share on facebook Facebook Share on twitter Twitter Share on pinterest Pinterest Share on whatsapp WhatsApp Share on email Email It’s that time again, every 6 months I need some checks. I’ve done the specialist blood test (Chromogranin A – CgA) and the 5HIAA and am waiting on my CT scan appointment. It’s also time […]
The acronym ‘NET‘ (NeuroEndocrine Tumour) can be advantageous to NET advocates and organisations because it occasionally attracts readership from outside the Cancer community when links are accidentally found by ‘surfers’. NET just also happens to be a common truncation of the word ‘Internet‘ or ‘Network‘. The vast majority will realise the irrelevance (to them) and move on but 1 or […]
Interesting piece in the news today and there’s an amazing story behind it. The “Lung Cancer Breathalyser” is not a new technology but following the death of his wife from advanced colon cancer, inventor Billy Boyle has produced something good enough to have been accepted on a trial basis by the NHS. If successful, it has the potential […]
This post has been superseded by the following: Lanreotide: it’s calling the shots – click here. Lanreotide: 10 more years please! – click here. Lanreotide vs Octreotide – click here. Original post: The UK general election steps up a gear this month and social media is playing a huge part in the debate leading up to 7 […]
I’m extremely pleased and honoured to have been selected as the first guest contributor to feature in the Carcinoid Cancer Foundation’s blog site! I’ve been following these guys since I was diagnosed. They have been serving the Carcinoid/NET Community for over 44 Years and they are in my opinion the largest and most respected […]
My wife and I were in London recently and we took the opportunity to visit the world-famous Victoria and Albert (V&A) Museum in South Kensington. A particular display caught my eye entitled “Disobedient Objects” and I immediately thought it had a scientific sound to it. Imagining a set of everyday objects which somehow didn’t behave as you […]
I’ve been reasonably lucky with my health over the years, suffering only the usual common ailments. I was slightly asthmatic as a child but this seemed to disappear when I left school going straight into military service. They say an army marches on its stomach… only partly true but the military did look after my […]
My plan for this week’s blog was to continue with a surgery theme using the story of a lady who had what was described as the “Mother of all Surgeries” after being late diagnosed with a very rare and advanced type of appendiceal cancer. With NETs, surgery is a topical subject as not everyone will be able to […]
Hope you all had a nice festive break? Chris and I had 3 separate dinners making sure we made the most of our extended family base. We decided to join in the Christmas jumper fashion statement which seems to be vogue this year – thus the picture! At least we got to wear them 3 times! Now that […]
UNDER CONSTRUCTION I’ve been interested in science since my school days and seem to remember it being separated into Biology, Physics and Chemistry for study and examination purposes. Biology wasn’t on my radar and as I found Chemistry boring, I focused on Physics which seemed to be more ‘modern’ and exciting. Curiously, at the beginning of my Open University degree course some 25 years […]
I’ve never smoked so I’m reasonably confident my own cancer experience is not related to this type of personal lifestyle. I did, however, grow up in a world where smoking was widespread and a generally accepted behaviour. We now know that smoking causes more than four in five cases of lung cancer. Lung cancer not only has one of […]
Orginal post – 25th Nov 2014. The papers and social media seem to be full of awareness and early diagnosis articles this month. This coincided with World Neuroendocrine Cancer Day on 10 Nov and Pancreatic Cancer day on 13 Nov. Social media was, therefore, buzzing with messages from organisations supporting and advocating for both of […]
When Tony Blair swept to power in 1997, he said: “Ask me my three main priorities for government and I tell you education, education, and education”. His approach of repeated word emphasis has been copied and recycled by many others replacing the words with something to suit their own message. I’m now guilty of similar plagiarism! One […]
I was a spectator at the Bournemouth marathon on Sunday 5 Oct 2014. I was there to shout for my old army friend, Steve Davis, who was running 26.2 miles for PLANETS Charity. When Steve found out I was living with Neuroendocrine Cancer, he immediately volunteered his services to help raise funds. Steve is a […]
I think I first met Gym at school in the sixties – we normally met on a weekly basis. We were reacquainted when I joined the army and hooked up more frequently! It was there I met some of Gym’s friends, known as PTIs (Physical Training Instructors). Their opening line was normally “Ten times round my large […]
I recently blogged about my boxing experience in post: http://wp.me/p4AplF-r7 In those days I was just a wee skinny 16 year old guy! I think I was in the Bantamweight category, somewhere between 8 and 9 stone (50 – 57 kg). Although I gained some weight after years of service in the military, I didn’t really […]
Apparently all Scotsmen wear kilts, have ginger hair, eat nothing but deep fried Mars Bars and they like a good fight! Stereotyping is frequently used to wind people up and can on occasion be used in an irrational or insulting manner. However, I believe one of those attributes is accurate. I was once ‘volunteered’ for boxing […]
Just back from a nice relaxing holiday in Tenerife. I don’t know about you but when overseas I find myself looking for ‘hotspots’ everywhere I go……. I don’t mean trendy entertainment venues, I’m talking about the modern phenomenon known as a WiFi signal! I also mean free and open connections. Even recent price reductions within Europe did […]
One of my favourite memories from childhood is the vision of the finest looking cattle in the UK – the Highland ‘Coo’ (for those who are thinking I’ve made a mistake in my title spelling, read on!). The memories are not confined to seeing them grazing in the fields but I also remember them as the […]
I already explained Day 1 of this 3 day ‘scanathon’ in blog: http://wp.me/p4AplF-lY Bit techy but added some humour to dilute some of that down. Just a quick post to elaborate on the remainder of the experience which was completed yesterday. I’ve had this scan twice previously with the last one in the […]
You can tell there is a football competition on and they don’t get bigger than the World Cup which I believe is one of the world’s great sporting competitions second only to the Olympics? Like it or not, this is a time when football fans suddenly become experts, apparently knowing even more about […]
When I was in the military, I was given basic training in how to deal with the threat of Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Warfare (known then as NBC). However, there was a focus on the chemical side as that was classed as the most defendable of the 3 and probably the most likely scenario […]
One of the first tasks on return from Hadrian’s Wall was to catch up with my favourite TV show Game of Thrones (GOT). The latest story concerns Tyrion Lannister, the dwarf son of Lord Tywin Lannister. Tyrion is technically the heir to House Lannister, thus why his father Tywin is plotting to get rid of him using the […]
The final leg of the our Hadrian’s Wall walk took us from beautiful Carlisle to the remote coast of North Cumbria at Bowness-on-Solway. We are staying there tonight before beginning our journey home tomorrow (via Newcastle). Amazingly our digs have a wicked view of the Scottish coastline and the setting sun – see picture above […]
When I was in hospital for major surgery, I remember being briefed by my excellent nursing staff about all the tubes and pipes intruding and protruding into/from my body. One of the most important ones in the early days was known as PCA – Patient Controlled Analgesia. Basically, I could click a button whenever I […]
That was a long day and a hard walk! Started at Steel Rigg and ended at Lanercost and we were accompanied by our friend and ex-Army colleague, Jim Waterson. Jim and I served together in Germany 1977-79 and then again in Blandford Dorset 1983-84. Usual banter all day brought back more memories and news about […]
Chris and I adopted the famous military ‘buddy buddy’ system this morning by checking each other’s feet and applying blister pads. We then set off on a hilly section with some spectacular scenery. But first we collected our friend Dave Taylor who was walking this tough section with us. The forecast rain didn’t arrive until […]
This was the first real piece of the wall we say and it’s the second day We must have been doing a blistering pace today! Four of them – I claim 3 and Chris has one. Nothing spectacular but a discomfort we could do without. Blister kit has been deployed and resupply to see us […]
The first day under our belts but it wasn’t easy. We always knew it would be an odd walk with the first two thirds in urban environments. The first third of the route took us from Segedumun Fort, the official start/end of the wall walk in the east. There is evidence of Newcastle’s previous and […]
One of the most interesting statistics in my blog app is the total number of views recorded each day. It even breaks the total down into which posts were most viewed and which countries the viewers were from (but please note it does not identify the name or any other details of viewers). I’m always very pleased […]
Only a week left until Chris and I set off on our 84 mile trek across Hadrian’s Wall in the North of England. We’ve been training for this since January 2014 and probably covered sufficient distance to have walked the wall 5 times over! Didn’t stop us going for a fast short walk this morning […]
Most of us will have experienced the ubiquitous quotations that somehow manage to go viral around Facebook and emails? Mother, Father, Son, Daughter, Grandson, Granddaughter etc. I instinctively want to share those and like the post but something nearly always prevents me from doing so. I suspect there is something in me that says […]
When I was a young lad, I was fascinated by Astronomy. Not only could I tell you the name of each Planet in order of distance from the sun, but also the actual distance! In those days, space travel was really taking off culminating in the first manned moon landing in 1969. I remember staying […]
There was a 60 minute silence last night as another episode of Game of Thrones was aired. Not a Facebook post or tweet in sight. This has to be ‘up there’ in a list of the best TV series ever? Don’t know about you but I’m sometimes confused about who is who and how they […]
Through the Keyhole is a Panel Game Show on telly originally hosted by Lloyd Grossman (who?) and then Sir David Frost. It was resurrected last year hosted by Keith Lemon. Sorry to disappoint you but this blog is about a different type of keyhole. Today I’m on ‘K’ words (I drew a blank on […]
Decided to do a one off today after reading a story published on 7 May on the PLANETS Charity Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/pages/PLANETS-Charity/122088044556397?fref=ts The is a story about a lady who was faced with one of the most deadly cancers – Pancreatic Cancer, where the 5 year survival rate has not risen for the last 40 years […]
“What have the Romans ever done for us?” Reviewed and updated 5th October 2021 ………. apart from better sanitation, and medicine, and education, and irrigation, and public health, and roads, and a freshwater system, and baths, and public order ……. 😊 (apologies to those not familiar with Monty Python stuff!) Well, they also left us […]
Hope you enjoyed the ‘A’ blog yesterday. Some of you might also note I changed the previous blog titles to make them more catchy. Here’s a few ‘B‘s Bournemouth Marathon I once ran a marathon aged 28 in Verden West Germany 1984. I was there defending the free world from Communism (ahem….). It was a tough […]
I promised you an A-Z so here are some ‘A‘ headlines: Agenda. The walk is 84 miles long – Chris and I will be walking from East to West over 6 days as follows: 25 May – Staying with friends near Newcastle 26 May – Wallsend to Heddon-on-the-Wall (with Nick Naylor) 27 May – Heddon-on-the-Wall to […]
Welcome to my blog! My plan yesterday was to blog for 26 days using the alphabet A to Z as a guide for the content. That would have taken me to 25th May, the day before my walk of Hadrian’s Wall commences. However, Chris and I were playing a game we used to play […]
