Current Newsletter - November 2005

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" height=120 BGCOLOR="#CCCC99" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="03f8dfe1esnpes.jpg"> <div> <B>November 2005</B></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id3.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Calendar"><U><B><U>Calendar</U></B></U></A><A HREF="id3.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Calendar"><U><B> </B></U></A><B>  |   </B><A HREF="id60.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Carers Group"><U><B><U>Carers Group</U></B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="id2.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Group Guidelines"><U><B>Group Guidelines</B></U></A><B>   |  </B><A HREF="id61.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Library"><U><B> </B></U></A><A HREF="id61.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Library"><U><B><U>Library</U></B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="id4.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Current Newsletters"><U><B><U>Current Newsletters</U></B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="id16.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Archived Newsletters"><U><B><U>Archived Newsletters</U></B></U></A><B>   |   </B><B><U>Pamphlets</U></B><B>  |  </B><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Northern Beaches Prostate Cancer Support"><U><B><U>Hom</U></B></U></A><B><U>e</U></B></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" height=360 BGCOLOR="#CCCC99" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="03f8dfc3.jpg"> <div> <B><U>NEWSLETTER</U></B></div> <div> No.40.  November, 2005</div> <div> Editor: John Conroy</div> <bR> <div> <B>1.</B>  <B>COMING  EVENTS</B></div> <div> 6.30 pm,  Tuesday, 1 November Associate Professor Phillip Stricker [St Vincent's Hospital, Darlinghurst]:Recent Advances in Diagnosis and Treatment of Prostate Cancer</div> <div> Professor Stricker is one of Australia's leading authorities on Prostate Cancer and we are fortunate that he is able to spare time to pay us a second visit.  He is certainly well known to a number of our Members and we are very pleased towelcome him back to the Northern Beaches.</div> <div> Much work is being done in Australia and throughout the world in respect of improved diagnosis and new methods of treatment both for localised and advanced Prostate Cancer.  More funds are becoming available for research into the nature of the disease, into finding more reliable markers of its presence, into finding more effective techniques for its treatment.  Professor Stricker will deal with some of these matters in his talk.</div> <div> Please extend an invitation to any friends or relations whom you feel might be interested in hearing up-to-the-minute information on Prostate Cancer from one of Australia's leaders in the field.</div> <bR> <div> 6.30 pm,  Tuesday, 6 December CHRISTMAS  GET-TOGETHER</div> <div> Don't miss it!  Make sure you mark this date in your diary.  Not only is it a happy occasion for members and their partners to socialise, but there will be a guaranteed first class meal provided by Jo-Ann Steeves and her team, a 'Christmas Trivia' contest organised by Norma Bennett, and a Lucky Door Prize.</div> <div> So that Jo-Ann can cater adequately, we need to know in advance how many will be coming.  If you plan to be there, please contact Jo-Ann on 9918 6575 or John on 9918 9358 and we will send you the required number of tickets. We shall ask for a donation of $10 on the night to cover the cost of the meal and drinks.</div> <bR> <div> <B>2.    Report of the Meeting Held on Tuesday, 4 October </B></div> <div> Apologies were received from:  Richard Darmopil, Geoff Emanuel, Jack and Merryl Godfrey, Freda and Ernie Treloar, Mark Tweeddale. We welcomed two new Members:  Wal Christie and John Kirkland.</div> <div> Members may remember Professor Miles Little and Ms Emma-Jane Sayers from the Centre for Values, Ethics and the Law in Medicine who visited our Group on two previous occasions.  This month, we were very pleased to welcome another speaker from the Centre, Ms Catherine McGrath.  Catherine took as her topic: 'Cancer and the emotions - life after diagnosis and treatment'. She began by asking the question: "Is there a life 'after' cancer?" Whether we have just been diagnosed, are under treatment, or in remission, cancer is always with us; - it never goes away.  So there is another question:  'Now that my body is healing, what about my head?'</div> <div> There are about 75 000 new cases of cancer diagnosed each year in Australia.  How do people express their feelings about their situation? Catherine suggested that there are four phases of the cancer experience:</div> <div> The chaos of diagnosis. As well as shock, often there may be a state of denial. The relief/euphoria at finishing treatment.  At this point you can have the feeling that you have got your life back again. A growing realization of what's happened to you.  You don't feel you are the same person as before you were diagnosed with cancer. Finding a new 'normal'. You have to learn to be comfortable in your new post-cancer self.</div> <div> The cancer journey is a mixed experience. You may say to yourself: 'It's all over, but why don't I feel normal? That was a wake-up call, so how do I make the most of my life now?'  You may also find yourself facing various conflicting social expectations from well-meaning friends who say such things as:</div> <div> Now that the treatment is over you'll be able to get back to normal </div> <div> The treatment's over, so you should be feeling better </div> <div> You've got through that, so you must feel you've got a debt to pay</div> <div> It's time to move on;  all that's in the past</div> <div> What a hero!  You've got better</div> <div> What's wrong with you?  It's time you got over it.</div> <div> You've got to be positive.  (This is kind but unhelpful, though for some people, being positive is a natural way to react.  For others there can be a feeling of guilt, for example, especially if the cancer recurs.)</div> <div> Somehow you've got to find space for the new normal between the old normal and the extreme of the cancer experience.</div> <div> Often there are feelings of distress after cancer.  People may have feelings of sadness or fear, often undirected. They may experience feelings of alienation:  from self, from others, from the world. They may have vague feelings of unease. They may feel fatigued, without being sure what causes this, - and even medical professionals may find it difficult to explain the cause.  Approximately 50% of cancer sufferers may experience ongoing and persistent distress. They will have varying needs to relieve these feelings:  for example, while 10% will have no specific needs, 60% feel a need to have people to talk to;  25% feel a need for support of some kind;  and 5% will have need for therapy.</div> <div> How do people express these feelings of post-cancer distress?  There are six  common ways:</div> <div> 1.   You may see cancer as a label.  You're stuck with it;  you're set apart by the experience.</div> <div> 2.   You have a changed relationship with your body.  With every new ache or pain, you ask yourself:  'Is it back?'  Your body becomes a house of suspicion;  it's let you down. You have an increased awareness of death. It had always been in your head;  now it is in your heart.  You experience an altered sexual identity and function. Chemotherapy can have an effect on your brain and memory, and you have a loss of confidence in your intuition.</div> <div> 3.   There is a communication gap between you and others.You have encountered new insights and experiences which are hard to explain to others, and this can cause a sense of isolation.</div> <div> 4.   Close relationships are affected. Cancer and its treatment are not shared by your partner.  In a sense, this sets you apart. There may be a loss of intimacy; changed values; hopes and dreams are no longer shared - with your partner, carers, family or friends. All of this needs talking about.</div> <div> 5.   There may be a sense of accountability. You may ask yourself questions like: 'Why did I get to live when others have died?'  'How do I repay my debt?'</div> <div> 6.   You feel a change of identity.  What makes you similar to or different from the person you were?  It is a coming to terms with the sense of being this person in this body with this story.  On the one hand, there is continuity, but there is a reassessing of the meaning you¹re going to give to the plans you had for the future.  This is the concept of future memory.  Values and priorities have changed.  The questions arise:  'Who am I?  What do I do now?'   On the other hand, loss of identity can be unsettling.  The process of recovering or recreating that identity is hard work and fatiguing.  Indeed, recovering earlier identity may not be possible.  But also, the change in identity can be hard for others to understand.</div> <div> In the search to create meaning, questions that arise include:  'What's important to me now?'  'What have I learnt?'  'What gives my life meaning?' In learning what to do about post-cancer distress, it's important to accept your feelings as normal;  to talk about how you are feeling;  and to take active steps in the chosen direction.</div> <div> What do people do to recapture their lives as they look for the new normal?  It's important to find ways to incorporate your experience of cancer into your life. You may need to adjust your aspirations, - to make new plans, - to balance the actual, the 'ought' and the ideal selves.  You may consider looking for new work, new competencies. You may have to make changes in close relationships (these, of course, have to be accepted) and to make new relationships as well. It helps to think of loss as change, without denying the loss. You need to find ways to discuss the problems without passing judgment.</div> <div> Finding the new normal is a process of adaptation. It requires compromise. It may take several tries, several years. This may be an ongoing process - you may be pleasantly surprised by the results.</div> <bR> <div> <B>3.    CORRECTION</B></div> <div> Regrettably, several errors occurred in reporting the content of last month's talk by Dr Michael Izard.  The following corrections are now made with sincere apologies to Dr Izard:   (The corrected version is available on the website.)</div> <div> 1     (p.2, line 23): 'In fact, 96% of heat is lost in the first 5 units of distance.'</div> <div> 2     p.2, lines 32-34): 'for a PSA less than 20 ng/ml, there is a less than 5% chance of escape; for a PSA greater than 100, there is a 95% chance of escape, and so you can see that the risk rises as the PSA rises.'</div> <div> 3    (p.3, lines 17-19):  'Seed implants will treat the Prostate Cancer that is confined to the prostate, and a small margin around it.  If the cancer is more than a few millimetres away from the edge of the gland, it will not be within the treated volume. If the placement of the seeds within the gland is less than ideal, there may be areas of the gland (which may contain some cancer cells) that may not receive an adequate dose.  Brachytherapy is no use as a treatment for cancer that has spread beyond the prostate capsule.'</div> <div> 4    (p.3, lines 21-22):  'If a man has normal erectile function prior to radiotherapy, then 50% of men (whose average age is greater than 65) will still have erections 2 years later, but about 10% per year will drop off after that.'</div> <bR> <div> <B>4.    'Movember'</B></div> <div> This is the latest national fundraiser for the Prostate Cancer Foundation.  Join the likes of surfer Luke Steadman and Manly Sea Eagles stars Sam Harris and Nathan Tutt to grow a moustache from scratch, beginning 1 Movember, to raise money for the PCFA and to 'compete in the State of Mo'rigin competition to be crowned Australian Man of Movember'.</div> <div> For more information, log onto: <A HREF="http://www.movember.com.au" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.movember.com.au"><U>www.movember.com.au</U></A></div> <bR> <div> <B>5.    Rotary and Lions Fundraising for Prostate Cancer</B></div> <div> The Rotary and Lions Clubs of Frenchs Forest are combining to conduct a raffle with the aim to raise $10 000 for Prostate Cancer and Autism. The Raffle begins on 29 October and ends on 8 December, with first prize of a trailer loaded with garden equipment (value about $1500) and second prize of dinner, a night¹s accommodation and breakfast for two at the Sydney Intercontinental. Tickets will be sold at various locations in the Frenchs Forest/Belrose area. If any Member would be prepared to help sell tickets at the following locations, please contact John on 9918 9358:</div> <div> Forestville Shopping Centre, Saturday 5 November,</div> <div> Bunnings Belrose, Saturday 5 November,</div> <div> Bunnings Belrose, Sunday 13 November.</div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B>6.   INFORMATION  UPDATE</B></div> <div> a.    Publicity Support For many months, Radio Northern Beaches has been a staunch supporter of the Northern Beaches Prostate Cancer Support Group by regularly publicising our activities. You can catch it and keep up with other local events by tuning to 88.7 on the FM band if you live in the north of the region, or to 90.3 in the south.  Good listening!</div> <div> b.    Websites</div> <div> Two websites worth a visit, one from Canada and one from the UK.  Both give comprehensive information about a range of issues associated with Prostate Cancer:</div> <div> <A HREF="http://www.prostatecentre.ca" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.prostatecentre.ca"><U>www.prostatecentre.ca</U></A></div> <div> and</div> <div> <A HREF="http://www.prostate-cancer.org.uk" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.prostate-cancer.org.uk"><U>www.prostate-cancer.org.uk</U></A></div> <div> c.    Resources</div> <div> i)    The Prostate Cancer Foundation has produced a Speakers Kit for use by Support Groups. It contains a power point CD and set of overhead transparencies entitled 'All you need to know about Prostate Cancer';  a DVD entitled 'Living with Prostate Cancer'; and a set of overhead transparencies entitled 'Finding the Answers Together'.</div> <div> These provide a valuable resource and are available for borrowing by any member of our Group who is intending to speak about Prostate Cancer at a public or private function.</div> <div> ii)   The foundation has also produced a group Leader's Kit.  This, too, is available to any member who wishes to borrow it.</div> <div> d.    Complementary Therapies All of a sudden, information on complementary therapies is on the increase.  Please note that this Support Group does not advocate or recommend any form of therapy, either medical or complementary. Several of our Members are interested in this matter. Two warnings and three therapies are described below.  Many bodies which publicise a new approach wisely give this advice: - before you embark on any program, discuss it with your GP.  If you do decide to go ahead, get your GP to monitor what you are doing.</div> <div> i)    'Cashing in on Cancer'  Earlier in the year, the British newspaper, The Daily Express, ran an article drawing attention to the presence of con men and con women playing on men's fear of Prostate Cancer, and men's embarrassment about discussing conditions such as incontinence and impotence with their GP. These symptoms may or may not be associated with Prostate Cancer, but men turn 'to unproven products, bought by mail order or via the internet' rather than consult their GP.  A nurse from the cancer information charity, CancerBACUP was quoted as saying:  'Alarm bells should ring if a therapist tells you that you should not seek conventional treatment or advice.  People should be suspicious of anyone talking in terms of a definite cure for cancer.  And they should question anything that involves expensive remedies, or that smacks of a marketing exercise.'</div> <div> CancerBACUP has an excellent website, well worth a visit: <A HREF="http://www.cancerbacup.org.au" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.cancerbacup.org.au"><U>www.cancerbacup.org.au</U></A></div> <div> ii)    Complementary Therapies in Cancer Care:  Informing Choice A conference on complementary therapies for cancer, organised by the Cancer Council NSW and Cancer Voices, was held at the Garvan Institute on Friday, 21 October. The keynote speaker, Dr Barrie R Cassileth, from the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) in the USA, was supported by many other outstanding speakers.</div> <div> Dr Andrew Penman, CEO of the Cancer Council NSW, spoke briefly about the importance of psycho-social care, as well as conventional medical care, but noted that the extent to which people access such care depends very highly on the understanding of it, and support for it, by their GPs.  He noted that studies show that the majority of cancer patients use complementary treatments, but very few tell their GPs or specialists. This is potentially a serious problem for them, and it prevents the medicos finding out just how widely the general public support complementary treatments.</div> <div> Dr Barrie Cassileth specializes in Integrative Oncology, which blends conventional medicine and complementary treatments, including massage, reflexology, acupuncture, mind-body approaches, and counselling.  She said that at MSKCC they do not like herbs to be used at the same time as conventional medicines, as herbs can be described as 'unprocessed pharmaceuticals', which can seriously interfere with other treatments, and even threaten the advent of serious problems.  She gave details of a very helpful website:</div> <div> <A HREF="http://www.mskcc.org/aboutherbs" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.mskcc.org/aboutherbs"><U>www.mskcc.org/aboutherbs</U></A> which lists a vast number of herbs, with their active constituents, and mode of action.  She warned that great care should be taken with testimonials to complementary treatment methods that are produced by people who sell such treatments. She listed a variety of such treatments that have been vigorously promoted over the years, and which have been proven to be useless, if not actually dangerous.</div> <div> Petrea King, of the Quest for Life Centre in the Southern Highlands, spoke about the many complementary approaches that can bring quality of life and peace of mind to anxious patients and their carers.</div> <div> Other speakers provided further information about the range of treatments possible.  For us, in this Prostate Cancer Support Group, there was little or no reference to treatments specifically directed to us, although the general advice to eat well, exercise, keep one's weight down, and to make a point of 'fluffing up' oneself and doing enjoyable things, is as important to us as it is to every other cancer survivor or patient. (Mark Tweeddale)</div> <div> iii)    David Archibald from Summa Development Ltd, Western Australia has produced a paper describing the nature, function and results of non-clinical studies of a compound administered to cancer patients which is a combination of sulforaphane and capsaicin. This compound has been developed from work done by Drs D.J. and D.M. Morre of Purdue University. David is currently organising trials in Australia, apparently with the authorisation of the Therapeutic Goods Administration of the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing. Anyone interested can borrow the document from the Group's Lending Library.</div> <div> iv)    Photodynamic Therapy is a treatment emanating from Next Generation PDT (A'asia)P/L, Victoria. It is based on the ingestion of a photosynthesizer which is activated by red and infrared light and interacts with oxygen to create free radicals to cause tumour destruction. Again, there are several papers which may be borrowed from our Lending Library describing the nature and function of the treatment, and anecdotal reports of its effectiveness.</div> <div> v)    Avemar is a 'product of industrial fermentation of wheat germ'. It is claimed to have unique cancer fighting characteristics. It is claimed that, taken orally, it 'can inhibit metastatic tumour dissemination and proliferation during and after chemotherapy, surgery, or radiation'. A paper describing Avemar and published by the Annals New York Academy of Sciences is available in our Library.</div> <bR> <div> <B>YOUR CONTACT NUMBERS</B></div> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="664" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 116 WIDTH="357"><div> <U>Program Co-ordinator</U> </div> <bR> <div> Dr Peter Moore </div> <div> Northern Beaches Palliative Care<FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" > </FONT></div> <div> 9997 3555 </div> </tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP WIDTH="296"><div> <U>Group Leader</U></div> <bR> <div> John Conroy<FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" > </FONT></div> <div> 9918 9358<FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" > </FONT></div> <div> <A HREF="mailto:conroyjs@bigpond.com" TARGET="_top" TITLE="mailto:conroyjs@bigpond.com"><U><U>conroyjs@bigpond.com</U></U></A></div> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 89 ><NOBR><div> <U>NSW Cancer Council Cancer Support Helpline</U></div> <bR> <div> 13 11 20<FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" > </FONT></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <U>Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia</U></div> <bR> <div> 1800 220 099</div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>