okay first of all, change doctors. Find one with a better attitude. I am stage 4 metastatic breast cancer, mets to my lung in 2010. 2 weeks before my 1 yr anniversary, they discovered a brain tumor. It has now been removed and I am doing fine.
I hate doctors who try to scare you into thinking your life is going to end. I have a blog about positive attitudes and how it can get you through anything. If you are not ready to die ( who is) then you make dang sure you don't die. Period.
I have had chemotherapy and radiation both. 6 rounds of chemo every 3 weeks for the first run of cancer, and 5 solid weeks of whole brain radiation the second round. I dare cancer to hit me a third time, cause I will bust its chops again!!!!
I am still a bald chia pet, but it's okay, it will grow back eventually.
Dont let a doc give you a life sentence. My first oncologist did that to me, my second one, and my hero said I dont give prognosis' anymore. You wanna live, fight it and live. And I did.
And you will too.
*hugs*
The Following 3 Users Say Thank You to musicandwriting For This Useful Post: brittneybruce (03-24-2012), fairy1963 (02-17-2012), Phoenix (06-09-2012)
im not sure what to say as i just found out i have a brain tumor and im only 22 and im scared crapless to be honest! but id find a different doctor and get another opinon
i sympathise with you having had two major surgeries for tumours over the past 15 years - the last one was not fully successful and i live with this knowledge also of a tumour in my head. the only suggestion i can give to you is to live your life as if you did not have one, enjoy every day and work on those things that you want to develop about yourself. the thing is no one knows how long they have got, yet some doctor has told you a time frame...he/she is not god and neither should you take their word as being the truth. just forget about it until there are problems presenting that you need assistance with . you can live your live as anyone else.! god bless xxj
I was diagnosed with an Fribrillary astro grade II in 2001, the Doctor (head of the neuro dept) told me I probably wouldn't make it past 3 - 5 years. It's now 11 years since and I've undergone a total of 4 debulking surgeries and a round of radiation. I was completely devasted by the diagnosis and it took me a very long time to get over it. Every day that I wake up is a miracle - I can still walk, talk, and function almost normally ( I do however fatigue very easily). A prudent thing to do - as all of us should - is make sure that a will is in place, we could also be run over by a bus tomorrow. I think the thing that helped me the most was the recognition that as a patient with a terminal illness my number could be up any day, and being concious of that lets me enjoy each day more conciously. When I have a good day - I recognize it as that, when I have a bad day I tell myself that tomorrow will be better. It sounds cliche, but stop and take time to smell the flowers, watch sunrises and sunsets, find the beauty in a rainbow, enjoy the music of a child's laugh, hang a bird feeder outside your window.
I hope that helps a bit. Stay in touch on the board - There's a lot of support to be found in places like these.
keep on keeping on,
Ralph
The following user gives a hug of support to whynotme: Phoenix (06-09-2012)
Steve, I'm so sorry to hear this. However, you should definitely get a 2nd opinion and preferably from a doctor who specializes in your kind of cancer and works at a research hospital. You want the doctor who sees hundreds of similar cases a year, not one who sees several as part of a more general practice. You want a doctor who is familiar with the latest research.
Other things to do ... If there is a person in your life that you are at odds with & you wish you could set things right, esp if that is a family member, then give it one more try. My brother did this when he was diagnosed & it was a great gift both for himself & for the rest of us.However, if there are people in your life who are an energy drain & you don't see a quick path to harmony, dump them. You need positive people around who love you.
Learn as much about your disease as possible, what the best treatments are, what hospitals/universities are researching it, what to expect from the disease, how to fight against it. Know your enemy. At the same time (this will sound contradictory, sorry), remember that you are most likely reading about the average case, not necessarily your case. For example, statistics told me that people in my brother's age range with his disease, lived on average 520 days. However, it's been 3 years, and while he is failing, he is still alive.
Finally, such a cliche - but try to love every day you are here and find something beautiful in it. Everyone should do this, not just people who have cancer. None of us know how long we are here on this planet, so we should enjoy it while we're here & try to make it a better place for those around us.
Re: what to do when th dr gives you 2-4 years? 
