13 YEAR OLD BOY WHO SURVIVED RARE CHILDHOOD CANCER TWICE SUPPORTS NEW FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN – MENAFN.COM

(MENAFN - Pressat) 13 year old Ryan Savage, from Billingham in Stockton-on-Tees, features in a new Christmas campaign with Neuroblastoma UK, to raise vital funds for neuroblastoma research.

Ryan was first diagnosed with neuroblastoma, a rare childhood cancer, when he was just three years old. He was given a 5% chance of survival and doctors told his parents that he may not live to see Christmas.

This Christmas campaign aims to #GiveHope to families like Ryan's, by raising money for leading research projects which aim to deliver new, more effective and kinder treatments for children with neuroblastoma.

Ryan's mum Lisa says, 'Christmas is Ryan's favourite time of year - he's not a child who asks for much but he is always just so happy to celebrate Christmas with his family. Every time Christmas comes around, it's a precious reminder to our family that another year has passed since Ryan fought this terrible disease twice, and won.

'Ryan was first diagnosed with neuroblastoma on 29th October 2009 - a date that will be etched on my memory forever. He came home from nursery complaining of stomach pains. He wouldn't eat and the pain got worse, so I took him to A&E that night. Doctors thought it was constipation or trapped wind but two days later, he had a high temperature, was in extreme pain and, worryingly, he couldn't move his legs.

'We took him back to A&E and they did an immediate MRI scan. They found a tumour wrapped around Ryan's spine and we were told that Ryan could have less than two months to live, and he might not see Christmas.

Our world was turned upside-down by a cancer we had never even heard of before.'

Ryan began chemotherapy immediately, followed by surgery to remove the majority of his tumours. After a gruelling year of cancer treatment, Ryan was in remission and the family could celebrate another Christmas together.

But two years later, doctors found another tumour in his chest and their consultant said it was the worst case that she'd ever seen.

'Our little man endured another two really tough years of treatment including chemotherapy, radiotherapy, a stem cell transplant and major surgery. He also needed ribs removed as the cancerous tumours had wrapped around his little bones. By March 2012, the only tumour left in his body was a growth behind his heart. In October 2013, the heart tumour no longer appeared on his scans.

Ryan endured years of treatment including chemotherapy, radiotherapy, a stem cell transplant and major surgery, after having neuroblastoma twice.

'Seeing what Ryan went through, it breaks my heart to think of all those children fighting neuroblastoma this Christmas. They should be at home enjoying the fun of the festive season with their families. I know from personal experience that their parents will be hoping against hope that the treatment their children receive will help them beat neuroblastoma too.

'Little children simply don't deserve to be robbed of their precious early years, nor should they have the threat of their cancer returning constantly hanging over them. But there is still so much more research that needs to be done to prevent children suffering like Ryan did.'

Katherine Mobey, Fundraising Manager at Neuroblastoma UK said, 'Neuroblastoma is a cancer that almost exclusively affects children, with around 100 children diagnosed every year in the UK. Christmas is a time when families should be together and having fun, not going through harsh cancer treatment.

'With our new fundraising campaign, we want to give hope to more families like Ryan's. By funding more vital research, we can help scientists search for new and kinder treatments, give children with neuroblastoma a better quality of life after treatment, and move closer to finding a cure.'

To make a donation, visitwww.neuroblastoma.org.uk/christmas .

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13 YEAR OLD BOY WHO SURVIVED RARE CHILDHOOD CANCER TWICE SUPPORTS NEW FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN - MENAFN.COM

Heartbreaking photograph shows the reality of childhood cancer – Yahoo News

Sophia Soto is pictured tearfully awaiting cancer treatment. [Photo: Caters]

The mother of a cancer survivor has released a heartbreaking photograph to show the reality of the disease.

Sophia Soto, from Florida, was diagnosed with stage four neuroblastoma at just 14 months old after unusual bruises developed around her eyes.

READ MORE:Girl with neuroblastoma declared cancer-free after pioneering treatment

With doctors dismissing it as just a fall, an eye specialist eventually found tumours behind her eyes were to blame.

The toddler endured 60 rounds of chemo, 20 of radiotherapy and a stem cell transplant over six months. She was snapped just before having treatment.

Sophia, now six, has been in remission for five years and medication-free for the past 24 months.

Speaking of her daughters condition, Sophias mother Rosie Soto, 40, said: The picture of Sophia upset really does hone in on the reality of childhood cancer.

She was having a lead put on her chest for her treatment, which she didn't want, hence why Sophia was so upset.

I look back at the picture now and wonder how I did it. It was so hard watching my little girl so ill.

Neuroblastoma is a rare type of cancer that mainly affects babies and young children,according to the NHS.

READ MORE:Childhood Cancer Survivors Are Twice as Likely to Have This Condition

Around 95 youngsters in the UK are diagnosed every year, making up 6% of all childhood-cancer cases,Children with Cancer UK statistics show.

In the US, around 800 are diagnosed annually, also accounting for 6% of all cases,according to the American Cancer Society.

Neuroblastoma develops in specialised nerve cells called neuroblasts, which get left behind during a babys development in the womb.

The disease tends to start in one of the adrenal glands above the kidneys or nerve tissue next to the spinal cord, before spreading.

Mrs Soto became concerned when her daughter develop bruises around her eyes, with no obvious cause.

I kept taking her to the doctors because the bruising wasn't going away, but they just said it must have been from a bump or something, she said.

Sophia wasn't referred for a scan or biopsy until I went to an eye specialist, who knew straight away it was caused by a tumour.

Story continues

She was sent for an MRI, where black spots appeared on the scans confirmed the tumours behind her eyes.

[A] biopsy found tumours on one of her kidneys as well, which led to her stage four neuroblastoma diagnosis.

Sophia discovered she had the disease in March 2014, aged just 14 months.

After extensive treatment, the youngster has been in remission since that November, but still has check-ups every six months.

The tumours behind her eyes cannot be removed, however, doctors believe they are now benign.

READ MORE: Mom beats breast cancer and then books 'dream' trip

Doctors are reluctant to remove the tumours Sophia has behind her eyes as they've said it would be likely the surgery [would] disfigure her face, Mrs Soto said.

Whilst they are tumours, doctors are reasonably confident they are not cancerous so we have decided to not have the surgery right now, but it may be something she has when she's older.

Over the worst, Sophia loves dancing and dreams of one day becoming a vet.

No one can imagine what she went through looking at her now, she just looks like a normal regular child, Mrs Soto said.

Sophia has her moments when she asks about when she was sick and has questions about her treatment scars, but overall she's a pretty happy girl.

If I was to say anything to other parents with children battling cancer, I'd say to not give up, stay positive.

It's really important not to compare your child's process to anyone else as everyone battles illnesses differently.

We're over the moon Sophia is now doing so well. We're really blessed she's such a fighter.

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Heartbreaking photograph shows the reality of childhood cancer - Yahoo News

Family releases photo sharing the reality of childhood cancer – NEWS.com.au

A family have released the heartbreaking photograph of their toddler undergoing cancer treatment to highlight the reality of childhood cancer.

Sophia Soto, now six, from America, was diagnosed with stage 4 neuroblastoma an aggressive and rare cancer at just 14 months old after tumours were discovered behind her eyes and on her kidney.

The heartwrenching photograph is of Sophia having a lead put on her chest as part of her cancer treatment.

But luckily little Sophia has been in remission for five years and now looks like a completely different child compared to the one in the heart wrenching photograph.

The picture of Sophia upset really does home in on the reality of childhood cancer, her mum Rosie Soto, 40, said.

She was having a lead put on her chest for her treatment which she didnt want hence why Sophia was so upset.

I look back at the picture now and wonder how I did it; it was so hard watching my little girl so ill.

Rosie became concerned about Sophia after she began developing bruising around her eyes something she claims doctors repeatedly dismissed as being from a bump or fall.

It wasnt until Rosie took Sophia to see an eye specialist that she got some answers.

Sophia kept getting bruising on her eyes and I didnt recall her falling over or anything, so I didnt understand where they were come from, Rosie said.

I kept taking her to the doctors because the bruising wasnt going away, but they just said it must have been from a bump or something.

Sophia wasnt referred for a scan or biopsy until I went to see an eye specialist with her who knew straight away that it was caused by a tumour.

She was sent for an MRI where black spots appeared on the scans confirming the tumours behind her eyes.

It was then the biopsy which found the tumours on one of her kidneys as well which led to her stage 4 neuroblastoma diagnosis.

After being diagnosed in March 2014, the then 14-month-old endured 60 rounds of chemotherapy, 20 rounds of radiation and a stem cell transplant over a six months period.

Following her treatment, Sophia has been in remission since November 2014 and has been medication free for two years.

Sophia isnt yet classified as cancer free so has check ups every six months with specialists.

She still has tumours behind her eyes which cannot be removed due to the placement of them, but doctors believe the tumours are benign and therefore not causing her too much harm.

Doctors are reluctant to remove the tumours Sophia currently has behind her eyes as theyve said it would be likely the surgery to disfigure her face, Rosie said.

Whilst they are tumours, doctors are reasonably confident that they are not cancerous so we have decided to not have the surgery right now, but it may be something she has when shes older.

Sophia now looks happy and healthy. She loves to dance and hopes to become a vet one day.

No one can imagine what she went through looking at her now she just looks like a normal regular child, Rosie said.

Sophia has her moments when she asks about when she was sick and has questions about her treatment scars, but over all shes a pretty happy girl.

If I was to say anything to other parents with children battling cancer, Id say to them to not give up, stay positive and keep your faith.

Its really important not to compare your childs process to anyone else as everyone battles illnesses differently as every situation is different.

Were over the moon that Sophia is now doing so well were really blessed that shes such a fighter.

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Family releases photo sharing the reality of childhood cancer - NEWS.com.au

"For the first time in 25 years this means hope" – Leeds family fundraising for life-changing MS treatment – Yorkshire Post

A Leeds family are desperately raising funds to help pay for a "life-changing" treatment that could halt the progression of Multiple Sclerosis.

Father-of-two Jean-Christophe Verro, 47, lives with MS - a condition that affects the brain and spinal cord.

There is no cure for MS and symptoms, which include vision problems, speech and swallowing difficulties and mobility problems, can develop and worsen steadily over time.

Mr Verro, a former captain in the French Marines, was diagnosed with the condition in 1995 and following a relapse in 2015, he now uses a wheelchair.

He and his wife Lisa Verro, who live Moortown, now want to raise 55,000 for private Hematopoietic Stem Cell Therapy to try and stop symptoms progressing.

Explaining the illness, Mrs Verro, 45, said: "MS itself is not fatal - it is the side effects that go through your facilities one by one.

"He could lose his brain function, start having seizures, become bedridden or have trouble with swallowing.

"It's very unpredictable. There's no cure, no drug treatment.

"We can deal with it as it is now but if he starts to lose his functions it will be so difficult. His main concern is the brain shrinkage and I worry that if he loses his functions, say in his arms, he wont be able to drive or go out into the local community.

"This would devastate him as he is very independent and works full time.

She added: "When came out of hospital in 2015 the doctors said "why don't you give up work" but that's just not my husband.

"He tries to just get on with it. He tries to live as normally as possible. He likes his job and contributing to society, he doesn't want to be on benefits.

"He just wants to be like and do what every other dad does."

Mr and Mrs Vero, who are parents to seven-year-old Oliver and five-year-old Charlotte, first became aware of the HSCT treatment during a BBC Panaroma programme.

Since then they have come across various groups on Facebook with people who have successfully had the treatment.

According to the Multiple Sclerosis Trust, the number of people who are accepted for treatment on the NHS is extremely small.

Mr Verro did not meet the criteria for the limited NHS treatment and now the family are hoping to have the treatment abroad in May.

Mrs Verro said: "If he doesn't have it in May it could never happen. His condition is unpredictable so he could not be well enough.

"This treatment would be life-changing for us as a family.

"My son's bedroom is in the attic and he's always saying, 'I want my daddy to be able to play Lego with me in my bedroom or 'I just want to play football in the park with my daddy' but it isn't possible.

"The kids don't appreciate the seriousness of his condition and how it can progress - that's what we are thinking about with this treatment.

"We have two young children, we've got to try whatever we can to stop the progression.

"We appreciate that its a very large some of money to give but I hope the the local community can get behind us."

For Mr Verro, even the possibility of receiving the treatment has given him "hope" for the future.

The SEO manager said: "For the first time in 25 years this means hope.

"Since being diagnosed with MS in 1995, I have been through every step - there's no way out of it. No treatments, no cure.

"I've tried most treatments and they come with a lot of serious side effects.

"Apparently some clinics have been offering this treatment for 20 years. I just wish I had known about it three or five years ago.

"It just feels like hope after so long - like the windows and the shutters have been closed and now here is the chance to open them out wide and take a big deep breath of fresh air."

The family have already raised 3,000 of their target.

They have opened a Go Fund Me page and will be hosting a series of events in the community.

A Reindeer Dash has been organised in Roundhay Park involving a 5k or 2k run/walk, as well as a raffle.

it costs 15 per adult and 8 per child and guests will receive reindeer antlers, flashing red nose and mince pies in the entry fee,

It will take place on Saturday, December 14 at 10am.

Jean-Christophe's fundraising page can be found here.

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"For the first time in 25 years this means hope" - Leeds family fundraising for life-changing MS treatment - Yorkshire Post

Calgary MP won’t give up effort to add donor consent option to tax forms – Calgary Herald

Calgary MP Len Webber has become a dogged advocate for increasing Canada's rate of organ and tissue donation.Crystal Schick / Postmedia

Its a crusade that began with his beloved wifes dying regret.

Calgary MP Len Webber has become a dogged advocate for increasing Canadas rate of organ and tissue donation, a fire that was kindled after his wife lost a lengthy battle with breast cancer in 2010.

When she did pass away, she said the one regret she had was that she wasnt able to donate her organs, said Webber, who in October was elected to his second term in the House of Commons after serving for a decade as a Calgary MLA.

From there, it just evolved. You start getting involved and the more you do that, the more you get motivated to do what you can.

Three years after her death, Webbers private members bill, the Human Tissue and Organ Donation Amendment Act, was passed by the Alberta legislature, establishing a single agency to co-ordinate organ and tissue donations while also establishing a provincial organ donor registry. It further required agents at provincial registry offices to ask for peoples consent to become an organ or tissue donor.

But Webber wasnt finished.

Soon after he was elected to represent the federal riding of Calgary Confederation, Webber started working on a plan to bring the conversation of organ and tissue donation to every Canadian household.

So, he turned to one of lifes two certainties as a new lever to increase the nations donor corps taxes.

Last November, Webber received unanimous consent on Bill C-316, a private members bill that will add a question on tax forms about whether people will consent to becoming organ and tissue donors. Those who sign up will then be added to the rolls of provincially run organ donor registries.

This is not a political issue; it is a human issue, he said last September in the House of Commons.

Any one of us could be in need of donor organs or tissues at any time. Just asking this simple question could increase the number of donors.

Canada remains a middling performer globally when it comes to organ and tissue donation, with about 22 Canadians per million population becoming donors. Despite consistent polling that finds about nine in 10 Canadians in support of the idea of donating their organs, only around 20 per cent nationwide have their names on donor registries, a puzzling ratio Webber has long hoped to narrow.

Webber dedicated the bill to his friend Robert Sallows of Red Deer who received a double lung transplant when he was just 17, and had become an ardent supporter and counsellor to the Calgary MP as he crafted the proposed legislation, even through deteriorating health.

He helped me lobby that bill even through his difficult time, said Webber, noting Sallows also helped him pass the bill that created Albertas organ donor registry.

Sallows died just a week before the federal legislation, which he helped craft, passed second reading unanimously in a rare show of support across party lines.

It went on to the Canadian Senate but died on the order paper when the federal election was called in September, meaning Webber will now have to start the process anew.

I lobbied hard in the Senate to get this through, but the Senate is also very political, he said. It died on the table. So, now I have to bring it back to the House of Commons.

Despite his disappointment, Webber expects the bill will now face a smoother ride among his parliamentary colleagues, though he admits the uncertainty of how it might be impacted by a minority government is troubling.

I do worry about minority governments because not a lot happens, he said. However, a bill like this shouldnt be political. Its something all parties agree with so damn it, lets get it done.

This concludes a month-long project from Postmedia Calgary and Edmonton, which examines the state of organ donation in Alberta whats working, what isnt and how the system can be improved. Catch up on the series here:

Also, Albertans share how the issue of organ transplants has changed their lives:

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Calgary MP won't give up effort to add donor consent option to tax forms - Calgary Herald

Every 13th man has a hair transplant according to Bookimed study – PR Web

BOSTON (PRWEB) November 28, 2019

Aesthetic tourism is especially developed in Thailand, where 20% of all patients are from abroad. Hair transplant is one out 5 of the most popular surgeries and the most frequently performed cosmetic procedures for men.

Hair transplant: facts and figures

Revolutionary methods of hair plantation

High demand gives rise to great discoveries. Doctors around the world are working on the development of new therapies that will help solve the hair loss issue by minimizing risks and reducing treatment time.

Except for the traditional hair transplant methods as FUE (follicular unit extraction) and FUT (follicular unit transplant), specialists apply stem cell hair restoration and robotic operation.

A doctor chooses the most effective treatment method according to your personal features and test results.

Hair transplant market trends

The hair transplant market is one of the fastest-growing health care specialties. The market size of hair plantation has developed by 64% since 2014, according to ISHRS statistics, and accounts for 6.5 billion USD.

Four factors are affecting the surgical hair restoration market:

1. the increasing number of people who suffer from baldness over the world2. the growing interest in self-care procedures within the Asia Pacific region3. development of minimally invasive and painless hair transplant techniques4. changing lifestyles globally.

Because of the high demand, there are a lot of clinics providing this procedure at different prices. According to Bookimed stats, the lowest hair transplant cost is offered in India and Turkey due to the general price policy within the country and residents' living wage. Patients also choose the UAE, Thailand, and South Korea in the interest of the combination of affordable prices and vacation.

About this study

This research is conducted by the Bookimed team and based on:

About Bookimed

Bookimed is a global platform for matching medical facilities over the globe and arranging the medical trip in the shortest term. Over 300,000 users from almost 30 countries request Bookimed to get treatment assistance each month.

Bookimed is a medical tourism provider that cooperates with 340 medical centers to help each patient receive timely and high-quality health care. The services of this platform are free of charge for patients because all the proceeds Bookimed gets from the partner clinics.

For more information, visit The Treatment blog or follow Bookimed on Facebook and Twitter.

Related Linkshttps://bookimed.com/

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Every 13th man has a hair transplant according to Bookimed study - PR Web

Heartbreaking photograph shows the reality of childhood cancer – Yahoo Sports

The mother of a cancer survivor has released a heartbreaking photograph to show the reality of the disease.

Sophia Soto, from Florida, was diagnosed with stage four neuroblastoma at just 14 months old after unusual bruises developed around her eyes.

READ MORE:Girl with neuroblastoma declared cancer-free after pioneering treatment

With doctors dismissing it as just a fall, an eye specialist eventually found tumours behind her eyes were to blame.

The toddler endured 60 rounds of chemo, 20 of radiotherapy and a stem cell transplant over six months. She was snapped just before having treatment.

Sophia, now six, has been in remission for five years and medication-free for the past 24 months.

Now six, Sophia has been off medication for the past two years. [Photo: Caters]

Speaking of her daughters condition, Sophias mother Rosie Soto, 40, said: The picture of Sophia upset really does hone in on the reality of childhood cancer.

She was having a lead put on her chest for her treatment, which she didn't want, hence why Sophia was so upset.

I look back at the picture now and wonder how I did it. It was so hard watching my little girl so ill.

Neuroblastoma is a rare type of cancer that mainly affects babies and young children,according to the NHS.

READ MORE:Childhood Cancer Survivors Are Twice as Likely to Have This Condition

Around 95 youngsters in the UK are diagnosed every year, making up 6% of all childhood-cancer cases,Children with Cancer UK statistics show.

In the US, around 800 are diagnosed annually, also accounting for 6% of all cases,according to the American Cancer Society.

Neuroblastoma develops in specialised nerve cells called neuroblasts, which get left behind during a babys development in the womb.

The disease tends to start in one of the adrenal glands above the kidneys or nerve tissue next to the spinal cord, before spreading.

Sophia's parents Javier and Rosie Soto watched her battle the disease. [Photo: Caters]

Mrs Soto became concerned when her daughter develop bruises around her eyes, with no obvious cause.

I kept taking her to the doctors because the bruising wasn't going away, but they just said it must have been from a bump or something, she said.

Sophia wasn't referred for a scan or biopsy until I went to an eye specialist, who knew straight away it was caused by a tumour.

She was sent for an MRI, where black spots appeared on the scans confirmed the tumours behind her eyes.

Story continues

[A] biopsy found tumours on one of her kidneys as well, which led to her stage four neuroblastoma diagnosis.

Sophia discovered she had the disease in March 2014, aged just 14 months.

After extensive treatment, the youngster has been in remission since that November, but still has check-ups every six months.

The tumours behind her eyes cannot be removed, however, doctors believe they are now benign.

READ MORE: Mom beats breast cancer and then books 'dream' trip

Doctors are reluctant to remove the tumours Sophia has behind her eyes as they've said it would be likely the surgery [would] disfigure her face, Mrs Soto said.

Whilst they are tumours, doctors are reasonably confident they are not cancerous so we have decided to not have the surgery right now, but it may be something she has when she's older.

Over the worst, Sophia loves dancing and dreams of one day becoming a vet.

No one can imagine what she went through looking at her now, she just looks like a normal regular child, Mrs Soto said.

Sophia has her moments when she asks about when she was sick and has questions about her treatment scars, but overall she's a pretty happy girl.

If I was to say anything to other parents with children battling cancer, I'd say to not give up, stay positive.

It's really important not to compare your child's process to anyone else as everyone battles illnesses differently.

We're over the moon Sophia is now doing so well. We're really blessed she's such a fighter.

Read the original here:
Heartbreaking photograph shows the reality of childhood cancer - Yahoo Sports

253 miles in 4 hours: A Syracuse mans race for a lung transplant, and the angel who helped him – syracuse.com

When the call came, Dimitri Georgiadis would have exactly four hours to hug his two sons, zip up his bag and motor 253 miles from Syracuse to Philadelphia.

If he wasted even 15 minutes, the donated lung would be gone.

Word spread quickly through St. Sophias Greek Orthodox Church community. Does anyone know a pilot?

Ted Limpert immediately said yes. Limpert is a Syracuse city court judge, handling every kind of charge from midnight mishaps to human trafficking.

Before that, he was a part-time fighter pilot one of the first to scramble into action when the planes hit the World Trade Center.

Hes flown 2,200 hours in an F-16 and 750 hours in the A-10 Warthog as a member of the 174th Air National Guard fighter wing.

It was Limpert who flew a jet over Clinton Square, cracking the silence on the first anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.

He has retired from the military, but he still owns an airplane, parked at a small airport in Cortland.

This was the plan: Limpert would collect Georgiadis and his wife Eleni, drive to his plane, fly about an hour to the North Philadelphia airport. They would get a car, even if it meant calling an ambulance, and drive through Philadelphia traffic to Temple University Hospital, where a donated lung would be waiting to replace the ones threatening Georgiadis life.

It would just be another mission, he thought.

We called it TOT, time over target, Limpert said. You can be early, but you cant be late.

Georgiadis, 55, was diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis in 2006. As he got older, the disease grew more and more aggressive. He worked 18 years at Di Lauros Bakery in Syracuse. Then he went to work in the maintenance department, plowing snow and fixing faucets, for the Onondaga County Parks Department.

Georgiadis went on oxygen and disability. He moved up the list for a lung transplant. It would be done at Temple University Hospital, where he was being treated.

He was planning to drive himself to the hospital. Doctors said the call could come in the middle of the night, when accidents are most likely to claim the lives of donors.

It would be a stretch for a man on oxygen and in shock to make it over the foggy hills of Pennsylvania, through Philadelphia traffic and to the hospital in time.

Eleni Georgiadis started making phone calls.

All summer, I was calling different pilots, she said. Everybody we called, they said they couldnt guarantee me. They said well put you on the list, but we cant guarantee.

Even when she offered to pay, there was no guarantee, she said.

Then, a friend from church asked a friend of Limperts for help. The families were strangers.

He said Absolutely, Eleni Georgiadis said.

For two months, Limpert kept the car gassed up. He constantly checked weather conditions. He carried his phone everywhere, to the bench and to bed.

If he left town, he texted Eleni Georgiadis.

When hed come back, hed say Green Light. Your pilot is here. Ready for call, she said.

On Monday, Nov. 18, Limpert checked the weather one more time before heading for bed. It didnt look good.

At about 9 p.m., the call came.

He had not packed an overnight bag, even though his wife told him to. She handed him a Red Bull and he was out the door.

There was too much fog, they would have to drive to Philadelphia.

Limpert typed the hospitals address into his GPS app. It said the arrival time was 1:06 a.m.

That would be too late.

Limpert, a judge, declined to put a number on his speed down I-81, through Scranton and onto I-76.

I was proceeding with traffic, he said, laughing.

But there was no traffic, he said.

Limpert had thought to consult with police officer friends in advance and he was ready to call in the state police for an escort, if necessary.

In the two months leading up to the call, Limpert got to know the Georgiadises. He invited the couple to the Cortland Airport to introduce them to his airplane.

They climbed into the four-seater Mooney, tried on the headsets, made sure they were up for a noisy and bumpy ride. Other times, they shared Sunday dinner, homemade baklava, calzones and stories. They talked about their Greek heritage and their children.

Heres what Limpert did not say:

He had his own type of transplant last year.

In January 2018, a doctor at the VA Medical Center noticed elevated protein levels during a routine blood check and referred him to an oncologist. The eventual diagnosis: Multiple myeloma.

Limpert did six months of chemotherapy with so few side effects, he kept it a secret from his children and colleagues. By July, he couldnt hide the treatment any longer. He needed a stem cell transplant.

Doctors at Upstate Medical University harvested 17 million cells, then pushed 5 million of them back into his body. He was in the hospital for two weeks. The rest are in the bank for future treatment.

On the late night drive to Philadelphia, Limpert thought about his own illness, the way he relied on others to pull him through.

In the car, he encouraged the couple to focus on the 10-to-12-hour surgery they faced.

I didnt tell them, Limpert said. I thought they needed to focus on their own health issues.

The GPS sent the three on a ride down the Schuylkill Expressway a highway that often functions more like a parking lot. Limpert took the risk.

We pulled in at 12:43 a.m., Limpert said. We still had 15 minutes to spare.

The lung patient, his wife and their fighter pilot took a selfie. The Georgiadises rushed into the hospital.

Limpert looked at the can of Red Bull unopened in his car. He decided to drive back to Syracuse.

Limpert arrived in his office for arraignments by 9 a.m. Every wall in his chamber has a photo or drawing of a fighter jet. There are commendations and photos from the seven times he was deployed to Southwest Asia, starting with Operation Desert Storm and ending with Operation Enduring Freedom.

This was pretty easy, he said.

Georgiadis surgery was a success.

So far, so good, he said in an interview Tuesday from the hospital. He will be in the hospital for at least two months. He expressed a tearful thank you to the donor, whose identity is not known. They will write a letter to the donors family to see if they want to connect and share their stories.

In the past week, they have stayed in constant touch with Limpert, who they now consider family.

He took a huge burden off our shoulder, Dimitri Georgiadis said. The biggest one ever.

In Greek, Theodore means The Gift of God, Eleni Georgiadis said.

We call Ted our angel, she said.

Contact the author: Michelle Breidenbach | mbreidenbach@syracuse.com | 315-470-3186.

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253 miles in 4 hours: A Syracuse mans race for a lung transplant, and the angel who helped him - syracuse.com

Exploring the Future of Prostate Cancer with City of Hope – Curetoday.com

Although one in nine men will receive a prostate cancer diagnosis in his lifetime, cutting-edge research has allowed more men to live longer or even be cured.

One such program that sheds light on this cause is City of Hopes NoShaver November. The month-long fundraising and awareness campaign urges participants to forego shaving to start a conversation, encourage testing and raise critical funds to continue leading-edge prostate cancer research and promising new therapies conducted at City of Hope.

CURE recently spoke with Dr.Tanya Dorff, a medical oncologist at City of Hope who specializes in prostate cancer, about the campaign, her current work and where she sees the future of prostate cancer treatment shifting in the coming years.

CURE: What led you to City of Hope? What do you do there?Dorff: City of Hope was attractive to me because I am a clinical and translational researcher. The reason I came here was to work with scientists who share what we are seeing in the clinic and who incorporate the latest insights from the scientific discoveries in our laboratories into patient care. There is a real sense of mission and urgency that binds scientists to clinicians at City of Hope in a way that is unique and gratifyingly productive.First and foremost, I take care of patients who remain my central inspiration and raison detre, but I spend part of my time writing and running clinical trials that have real potential to impact how we treat patients in the future how we can do even better in the future than we do today. I lead the genitourinary cancer program, which includes fostering collaborations between the incredible physicians from urology, radiation oncology, radiology and pathology to work together both clinically and in research projects.You are Grammy-winning songwriter and vocal producer Kuk Harrells physician. Can you tell me what it was like to treat him?Kuk is such an incredible gentleman; it has been a pleasure to be part of his care team. His attitude toward treatment was one of diligence, and he has approached his illness as an opportunity for personal growth and for giving back by promoting prostate cancer awareness through his story. It has been inspiring to see him come through what was a lengthy and involved treatment with so much positive energy.How has the field of prostate cancer treatment evolved in recent years?More and more men with prostate cancer can be cured, and the men who cannot be cured with todays treatments are clearly living longer and better. This is thanks to new drug approvals in advanced, resistant prostate cancer but even more so to the application of more intensive therapy earlier in the course of the disease. This has been the biggest paradigm shift in prostate cancer over the last five years: up-front intensification in metastatic hormone sensitive prostate cancer.The next big shift in prostate cancer treatment is just now upon us molecular selection of therapies to individualize prostate cancer treatment. The most imminent example is olaparib (Lynparza), a PARP inhibitor, which worked better than standard treatment in patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer whose tumors harbor mutations in DNA repair genes. But the ingenious theranostic approach will be close behind where imaging (scans) show us whether a cancer is expressing a certain target (i.e. PSMA) and if so, a radioactive particle linked to that target is applied (i.e. Lu-177 PMSA).

What are you most hopeful for in cancer treatment in the future?I believe immunotherapy will be the way to durable remission or a cure. Here at City of Hope, we are working hard to improve the effectiveness of immunotherapy for patients with metastatic prostate cancer, studying intensive treatments such as CAR-T and bispecific T-cell engaging antibodies, among other approaches. Our scientists are looking at our patients in real time to learn why treatments work or dont work, and how to better engage the immune system. I am very hopeful that these biologic insights will eventually translate into therapeutic success such as we have seen in leukemia with CAR-T and melanoma with immune checkpoint inhibitors.What advice would you offer someone who has just received a cancer diagnosis of their own?One: Play an active role. Ask questions, and if something doesnt sound right or make sense, ask again. It is so important that patients buy into their treatment, understand and feel confident about the treatment plan. No one is perfect, not even the best doctor, and working together as a team will lead to the best success.

Two: Be a squeaky wheel. Patients who communicate symptoms in real time fare better because problems are addressed before they become more serious.

Three: Stay active. Exercise is one of the things that has been shown over and over again to help cancer survivors and cancer patients in various stages. Obviously, a conversation should occur with the treatment physicians to ensure that there are no restrictions but patients who are more active will come through treatment in better shape.

Originally posted here:
Exploring the Future of Prostate Cancer with City of Hope - Curetoday.com

Imani Barbarin Coins #PatientsAreNotFaking to Fight Back Against Negative Patient Stereotypes – The Mary Sue

A nurses Tiktok video titled We know when yall are faking went viral on Twitter this weekend for its mocking portrayal of hospital patients. There was immediate backlash, helmed by writer Imani Barbarin (aka Crutches&Spice), who created the hashtag #PatientsAreNotFaking as a response to the video.

The video especially struck a chord with women, bipoc, fat activists, trans and nonbinary folk, and people who live with chronic illness and disabilities. Essentially, any of us who have been disbelieved or ridiculed by doctors due to the inherent medical bias against anyone who isnt a white man. Many of us, myself included, felt compelled to share some of the many instances that doctors and nurses disregarding or disbelieving our symptoms led to extreme medical emergencies.

Of course, because the internet is the internet, D Rose (the nurse at the center of this) has now been doxxed, which forces me to explicitly state that doxxing is bad. Do not doxx. Except maybe Nazis. But really, just please dont. Okay, back to the main issuegetting doctors and nurses to believe us!

This hit especially close to home for me. For ten years I had a fast-growing rash, accompanied by extreme itching and intense nerve pain, encompass almost my entire body. I felt like I was literally on fire 24/7. I spent those ten years (from age 20 to 30, basically my entire adulthood) going from doctor to doctor looking for answers. And while they could tell something was wrong, they refused to believe that I was in as much pain as I said I was in. Instead, they would gather their entire team of nurses and interns into my examination room to gawk at my naked body, whisper to each other that I was some sort of medical marvel, and the shrug and tell me there was nothing they could do. I had to beg for years to get a doctor to even prescribe me something as basic as a high dose cortisone cream.

It wasnt until a large tumor sprouted out of my shoulder/armpit and its subsequent removal and dissection (which even then the surgeon tried to dismiss as a just a keloid) that I finally discovered what was wrongI had a rare form of cutaneous t-cell lymphoma called Mycosis Fungoides. MF is normally a slow-growing easily managed, if incurable, cancer if caught early. Unfortunately because it took a literal decade for my diagnosis, my MF has had time to well, really dig its heels in. Its turned aggressive and resistant to normal methods of treatment. Which means at three years in, and four different clinical trials under my belt, I am now undergoing chemotherapy and a stem cell transplant is in my near-ish future.

Oh, I also have an extreme codeine allergy that doctors and nurses love to ignore which has also almost killed me too! But you get the point. My story, unfortunately, is not uncommon even if my particular type of cancer is.

The hashtag #PatientsAreNotFaking would not have gone viral if it had just been a few bad apples in the medical field ignoring patients. This is a systemic problem and one only made more complicated by the opioid crisisa crisis created by the pharmaceutical companies pushing doctors to overprescribe the highly addictive painkillers, I might add. And while D Rose and others might claim that this was just a joke and a way for nurses to let off steam (dont even get me started on the twerking and her appropriation of black culture, because black women are some of the patients who suffer the most from maltreatment and disbelief by doctors!) its not a laughing matter for the millions of people who have suffered because of this pervasive and harmful stereotype.

(Photo: Robin Marchant/Getty Images for Twitter)

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Imani Barbarin Coins #PatientsAreNotFaking to Fight Back Against Negative Patient Stereotypes - The Mary Sue