Cancer Anniversary or "Cancerversary"

I recently passed/celebrated my first cancer diagnosis date of March 15, 2007. Rather a strange date since I have had two diagnosis since! And to have a surgery on March 17, 2011, was another strange way to celebrate - although, it is wonderful to say NO RESIDUAL CANCER CELLS FOUND! Yippee!

Thanks to my friend, Jack Campbell, for remembering and wishing me Happy Cancer Anniversary.

HRT - Increased Risk of Breast Cancer

An excerpt from an article on CNN Health, October 19, 2010...

A study published in Journal of the American Medical Association confirms that postmenopausal women who take combined hormone replacement therapy (HRT) are at an increased risk of dying from breast cancer.

"Women on combined hormone therapy with estrogen plus progestin were twice as likely to die from breast cancer compared to women receiving placebo," says medical oncologist and study author Dr. Rowan Chlebowski.

To read more, click here...

For an alternative, click here...

My Next Read!

Knockout: Interviews with Doctors Who Are Curing Cancer--And How to Prevent Getting It in the First Place



This is highly recommended, has gotten good reviews, and I look forward to reading it myself!

Three Year CanServersary!

Today, March 15, 2010, is my three year canServersary for my initial breast cancer diagnosis. I celebrated by just yelling out into the universe, "It's my 3 year anniversary if anyone cares!"...I did get two responses back from the family of two - "WE DO!"

That was all I needed to make the day all good - no more no less.

Bone Scan, MRI, and CT Scans....Oh My!

Whew! I have been mighty busy in October with all kinds of tests since they took out a small nodule (thought to be a sebaceous cysts) and found some cancer cells. Damn. Apparently, this is classified as a local recurrence, which is fairly rare in bilat mast cases (like me). I guess this makes me a two-time cancer survivor (that sucks), BUT - GOOD NEWS! All the tests have resulted in clean, beautiful results! YIPPEE! I have one more test to do (just added on), but will be waiting until January I think. Spread the finances a bit, ya know?!

As part of my wellness plan, I will be going to the Hippocrates Health Institute in the near future.

Anyway, just sending an update that I am feeling great and moving forward!

Hugs, Tina

This is Riley and I at the "Mom Prom" on 10/18/2009!

A Typical Day (Menu) in the Life of Tina

Hello all you Wellness Warriors!

I have been asked quite frequently lately what a "regular days menu" looks like for me. I am honored at your requests and thank you so much for the lovely comments/emails I have been receiving lately. You are all very special for sharing/reaching out and I am very glad to share what I know works for me with you. I am thrilled to say that I am in excellent health and have been cancer free for over 2 years. See my earlier post here about some of the other changes I have incorporated into my new lifestyle (some of these have been tweaked a bit). I have never felt better in my life. Wellness is my daily goal in all that I do. It can be for you too - whether you are a cancer cowgirl/boy or not! Shouldn't all of us have the wellness goal to be healthy and happy for as long as possible?! I say YES!

Please remember that this is a typical day for me right now (warm weather). Also note that most, if not all, of what I eat is organic. See bottom of this post for more information about pesticides and the link to cancer and other health issues.

Morning:
Upon rising:
32 oz water with juice of 1 lemon / 1 tsp of MSM powder
4-6 oz wheatgrass (Sweet Wheat)
I take my supplements with my water - DIM, Calcium/Magnesium, B-Complex

Green smoothie in the a.m. - this concoction varies, but overall here is what it looks like lately:

• 1 banana
• 1 citrus (usually orange that I just cut skin off of and leave as much pith as possible)
• 1 fresh or frozen dark berry (blueberry, strawberry, cherry, blackberry, raspberry) or a combination - usually 1/2 - 1 cup or so...I like frozen simply because it makes my drink cold
• 1 green leafy item (large handful of spinach or 2-3 kale leaves generally)
• 1- 1.5 Tbs flax oil
• 1 tsp spirulina
• 1.5 teas to 1 Tbsp coconut butter
• Small handful of cacao nibs
• Sometimes 1/2 cucumber
• Sometimes 1-2 Tbsp brown rice protein powder (only rice product I intake)

If it tastes too green, add more water, 1/4 of lemon (skin included), or 1/2 cucumber. Again, this smoothie will vary with what I have on-hand, but above is pretty typical...today I did all those ingredients except the rice protein, and I also added some fresh strawberries and blueberries along with a little frozen mango. Keep trying new things! My smoothies are rarely identical day-to-day.

Workout:
Monday through Thursday I workout before lunch. This is usually cardio warm-up followed by strength training. I try to switch that up and do only yoga on Wednesday, but that is not static. I try to walk or do other activities Friday - Sunday.

Lunch:

• Avocado
• Tomato
• Red or Yellow Pepper
• Romaine Lettuce
• Herby seasoning (can use Spike, etc)
• Olive Oil /Balsamic or Braggs Vinaigrette
• I either have a large salad or cut the veggies up and roll them in romaine leaves as a "wrap".

Snacks (I usually have 2-4 snacks daily, just depends on rest of day):

• Almonds/Goji Berries
• Apple
• Carrots
• Red Pepper
• I try to have at least one cup of organic non-caff green tea each day - usually in the morning at work.
• Sometimes I get on a real "salt snack" kick and when I do nothing feel more satisfying to me that a bowl of organic popcorn made with organic olive oil or coconut oil and Herby seasoning. It is my "vice" for "feel good" food. Now you know!!

Dinner:
I generally have a salad, blended soup, or zucchini "pasta" with spaghetti sauce.

Why Organic?
Eliminating foods that are non-organic is a good decision all the way around....here is a great article about "Why Organic?".

In addition to the wonderful reasons listed in that post, the one on top of the list for me personally is to reduce / eliminate the pesticide and chemicals that infiltrate my body. Most pesticides have the chemical structure of estrogen and, when ingested, provoke a weak estrogenic effect on our systems - add this to other provokers of estrogen in our body (plastics, etc), and it is a formula for disaster for anyone, but especially for men and women with estrogen positive cancers (like me) such as (most) breast and prostate cancers. Here is an interesting article about the connection of pesticides and cancer. There are a ton more...again, do your research and educate yourself!

Komen Race in DC

I am late in getting these posted, but here are some awesome pics from June 6, 2009!

Face Painting and the DC Komen Race For the Cure - What?!

Okay, so what do you think about this face painting design for tomorrow's 5K race? I thought I might as well combine the two activities I am currently involved in, right? So, here is a design I came up with yesterday - enjoy!

This one.....

Or, this one....??!!!

Or this one, which is kinda like the one right above, but since no hat, there is more embellishment on forehead. Also, some additional eye detail.

Komen 5K This Saturday, June 6, 2009 - Join Me!

Hi friends and family!

As you know, the Komen Global Race for the Cure is the only "pink" fundraising I personally do for breast cancer support. The Komen organization simply does too many good things for so many people in our area - and beyond - and I feel it is very important.

Up to 75 percent of the money raised by the Susan G. Komen Global Race for the Cure stays in the D.C. area to fund screening, treatment and education programs through the National Capital Area Grant Program. The remaining dollars support the Global Promise Fund, reaching underserved people in areas where breast cancer mortality rates are the highest.

If you would like to support me, please visit my page here. Any donation amount is appreciated.

As you may recall, I walked just 5 weeks after my surgery in 2007 and then ran it in 2008. As info, this year will be a run/walk. Sending hugs to each and every one of you and thanks for supporting me for the 3rd year as a survivor (5th year as a participant).

Hugs, Tina

Can it Really Be February Already?

Wow, I have so much going on that I am not sure where to even begin!

Okay first, I have decided to delve into the world of raw food coaching! I have found this way of eating to be such a positive influence in my life - physically, mentally, psychologically and even spiritually - that I feel compelled to "pass it on". To share. To inspire. I am in the process of building a new webpage and welcome any and all suggestions! The name of my passion is "Positively In The Raw" and the site is located at http://www.positivelyintheraw.com/. If you go there now, you will only see that it is under construction, but please bookmark it for future reference! Also, please sign up for my mailing list (at right) for updates and notifications of the release. I would LOVE to hear your input on that site, or anything for that matter, and you can either leave them here as a comment or send to my email address (also located in right, at the very bottom).

Second, which is also tied in to my above project, is that I will be taking Karen Knowler's Raw Food Coaching course and am part of the Raw Professionals Network! How exciting is that? Karen is known worldwide as The Raw Food Coach, so this is very exciting.

Third, I have been relying on wonderful dehydrated creations by other dear folks for over a year now, but I now have my own fabulous Excalibur 9-tray dehydrator....how exciting is that?! I can tell you that I am anxiously awaiting kale chips! Now, you may be asking, "why anxiously awaiting", "why aren't you already enjoying them child"....okay well, that brings me to another incident in my life...

I recently cut my pinky (pretty badly) on the mandoline. (For the non-kitchen types, that is a slicing board, similar to a V-Slicer, that you slide food across to cut it.) Ouch. Not sure what happened though, since the zucchini I was slicing was still about 5 inches long. I remember my hands were wet and the next thing I knew I was holding my hand with lots of blood around. Then the ER. Two days later, the regular doc. Then 4 days later, at my 6 month follow-up with my general surgeon (breast cancer), she took a look at it and gave me the name of a hand surgeon "just in case". He believes that it will okay with probably some slight nerve damage. It should heal over though and look like "normal" in about 3 months....yep - THREE MONTHS! Oh well, it's all good....my nail wasn't affected and my finger is still attached.

Okay, so back to those kale chips....until my hand heals a little more I will have to hold off on making a lot of raw creations, darnit! But, I will keep you posted on the progress of the finger and my dehydrating....I am sure you are just on the edge of your seat, right?

So, all-in-all it has been a busy 2009 so far and I look forward to eveything this year brings. Very exciting things. Very exciting times. I am blessed that you are all here for the ride.

ps - my 6 month appointment went well and she has no indication I require any tests. I will be seeing an orthopedic for my hand as well as for the discomfort I continue to have in my left hip area (see this post for previous details).

Big Ouchie!

But, it's all good!

Eat (or Juice) Your Broccoli!

More evidence that broccoli is good for you - click here for a December 2008 article from Science Daily.

If you are wanting to prevent cancer, or are battling cancer then you will want to take a moment to read this article.

The Science Daily site has a lot more great article to check out, here is another great one about broccoli and cancer prevention.

To Your Health!
Tina

Blog Action Day 2008 - Topic: Poverty

As a participant in the Blog Action Day 2008, I am submitting information with regard to the worldwide topic of poverty. The intent is to make this topic relevant to your particular blog. Everyone in the world participating in this event will be posting something that has to do with poverty on this same day, October 15, 2008. Since my blog deals with breast cancer, I thought it would be helpful to pass along information on low-cost or free mammograms. In addition to this information, I am also sharing a particularly helpful list that I ask each of you to check out - 88 Ways to DO Something About Poverty Right Now.

Now for the list of low-cost or free mammograms:

Contact the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) at (888) 842-6355 or visit their Web site at http://www.cdc.gov/. Appointments for free and low-cost mammograms is limited, so it is best to make your appointments early in the year.

- excerpt from wiki.answers.com

If you do not have health insurance...
· Call your local chapter of the American Cancer Society ("ACS" number in your phone book) or the national toll-free number, 1-800-ACS-2345. The ACS will be able to tell you about any low-cost or free mammography programs offering screening to women unable to pay for it themselves.
· Call your State Department of Health (number in your phone book). Every state now has a Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program funded by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This program offers screening to qualifying women unable to pay for it themselves.
· Call the YWCA's ENCOREplus Program for access to low-cost or free mammograms. To find which YWCA facilities offer this service and if you are eligible, call 1-800-95EPLUS or your local YWCA.
· Call the National Cancer Institute at 1-800-4-CANCER for the names of FDA-certified, accredited mammography facilities in your area. If you explain your financial situation, some mammography facilities are willing to work out a lower fee or payment schedule that will make the test more affordable. Ask the facility if they are willing to discuss these options with you.
· October of each year is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and many mammography facilities offer special fees and extended hours during this month. If you are unable to schedule a mammogram another time of year, you may wish to call in September to reserve an appointment.

- excerpt from http://www.breasthealthonline.org/

Peace and abundance to us all, Tina

Bone Results - FINALLY!

Good news - no, GREAT news!

All is normal with my bone scan - hips, pelvic, kidneys, skeletal from cranium to phalanges - all is good, clean and normal!!!

WOO-HOO!!!

Finally, I was able to get the results from my bone scan two weeks ago - so thanks to all of you who were thinking of me and saying prayers - Love ya!

Bone Scan Tomorrow

I had x-rays taken last week to take a look at my left hip joint since it has been causing me pain since I "trained" for the Komen Race for the Cure 5K in May 2008. Due to the chronic nature of this discomfort (which varies at times to mildly annoying to real zingers), they opted for an x-ray to look for arthritis, avascular somethin', somethin', or cancer. Breast cancer.

Good news was that the films were normal! Yippee! However, they want to do a bone scan (tomorrow) and gave me the option if I wanted to have it performed. Duh, of course I will. Well...I am all for it, except for the radioactive material they have to inject me with - how do you detox from that??!

Anyway, I have placed some links at right under Tina's Hot (Pink) Spots about bone scans and other medical tests/treatments - the top two links are new.

Be well,
Tina

National Race for the Cure - June 7, 2008, Washington DC

June 7th 2008 - This was the day of the National Race for the Cure in DC. What a fabulous (and quite warm!) day! I was part of the Postal Team at HQs and due to the wonderful support of friends and family was able to raise a total of $1375 for the event - thanks everyone!

A small group of friends, along with Jack and Riley, made the foggy trek into the nation's capitol for the 5K walk at 6am. As it turned out, Lisa, Chris and I ran the event and made it to the finish line in about 39 minutes. It was blazing by the time we finished due to the humidity.

Then, the staff in the Survivor's Tent asked me to participate in the "Best Costume" because of my t-shirt and guess what??!! I came in second place! What a hoot! I also had more pictures taken of my chest (and back) than I have ever had in my life...too funny. I handed out some little cards with my blog address, so if any of you lovely ladies are checking this out - hello to you!!!

So I have posted some photos for your viewing pleasure!

Fake what?

Well, after some time I decided

to design a t-shirt that says it all:

fake?

of course they are fake! the real ones tried to kill me!

I know the audience is limited for this tee - and thank goodness

for that - but I just had to do it.

I plan on wearing mine at the

National Komen Race for the Cure on June 7th!

See box at right to order...

Did You See the Article About Me?

Hi all,

In case you didn't see me in the Breast Cancer Wellness Magazine, here is the link to the article about Me!

Tina in the Breast Cancer Wellness Magazine!

I am bringing this to everyone's attention because the lovely author and President of St. Conti Communications, Donna St. Jean Conti, was honored this month as a member of the team that produces the magazine. The Missouri Association of Publications (MAP) awarded the fall 2007 issue of Breast Cancer Wellness magazine the 2007 Dan Ranly Award for “Best Issue” in the consumer category.

The St. Conti Communications News Release says, "Breast Cancer Wellness is a division of ONE Health Institute, an IRS qualified 501(c)3 charitable nonprofit foundation (ONE Health Institute). The mission of Breast Cancer Wellness is to help empower the healing journeys of breast cancer patients and survivors by providing education and support how the mind, body and spirit affects the overall well-being of a person. Breast Cancer Wellness provides the only free magazine in the country for breast cancer patients and survivors that embraces holistic health and wellness."

The magazines link is: Breast Cancer Wellness.

Congratulations Donna!