Hello from the IADR

Hello Janet,

I am much relieved to learn that the chemo has started.

Many here at the IADR (Toronto) are checking in with me and the other PRC folk to send their best wishes and love your way. The meeting is going well, and there is lots of good discussion. The posters are reasonably informative but nowhere as nice as the ones you put together.

Keep up the good work and get stronger every day!
Clif

Hello Janet

Janet,

Just got back from vacation and am glad to hear that you are feeling better and back at home. You and the family are in my thoughts and prayers. Keep on fighting.

Jeff

Hi Janet,
Speaking of dancing. I ran across this photo the other day and wasn't sure if you ever saw it. It is a favorite picture of mine. We had an interesting and fun day.
Colleen

Very good news and ...

Happy In-deep-end Dance Day!
very gentle hug from S~

Relaxation response can influence expression of stress-related genes

Genomic study finds common biological basis for effects of mind/body practices

How could a single, nonpharmacological intervention help patients deal with disorders ranging from high blood pressure, to pain syndromes, to infertility, to rheumatoid arthritis? That question may have been answered by a study finding that eliciting the relaxation response – a physiologic state of deep rest – influences the activation patterns of genes associated with the body's response to stress. The collaborative investigation by members of the Benson-Henry Institute for Mind/Body Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and the Genomics Center at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) appears in the open-access journal PLoS One [Public Library of Science].

"For hundreds of years Western medicine has looked at mind and body as totally separate entities, to the point where saying something 'is all in your head' implied that it was imaginary," says Herbert Benson, MD, director emeritus of the Benson-Henry Institute and co-senior author of the PloS One report. "Now we've found how changing the activity of the mind can alter the way basic genetic instructions are implemented."

Towia Libermann, PhD, director of the BIDMC Genomics Center and the report's co-senior author, adds, "This is the first comprehensive study of how the mind can affect gene expression, linking what has been looked on as a 'soft' science with the 'hard' science of genomics. It is also important because of its focus on gene expression in healthy individuals, rather than in disease states."

More than 35 years ago Benson first described the relaxation response, which can be elicited by practices including meditation, deep breathing and prayer; and his team has pioneered the field of mind/body medicine. Over the years, studies in many peer-reviewed journals documented how the relaxation response not only alleviates symptoms of psychological disorders such as anxiety but also affects physiologic factors such as heart rate, blood pressure, oxygen consumption and brain activity. While it became evident that the relaxation response was the opposite of the well documented fight-or-flight response, the mechanism underlying these effects was still unknown.

The current study was designed to investigate if changes in gene expression – whether specific genes are activated or repressed – were behind the wide-ranging effects of the relaxation response. The first phase compared gene expression patterns of 19 long-term practitioners of different relaxation response techniques with those of 19 individuals who had never engaged in such practices. Those control participants then went through an 8-week training program to investigate whether initiating relaxation response practice would change gene expression over time.

Both phases of the study indicated that the relaxation response alters the expression of genes involved with processes such as inflammation, programmed cell death and how the body handles free radicals – molecules produced by normal metabolism that, if not appropriately neutralized, can damage cells and tissues. To validate those results, both phases were repeated in 6 different relaxation response practitioners and 5 non-practitioners, resulting in significantly similar changes in gene expression.

Jeffery Dusek, PhD, co-lead author of the study notes, "Changes in the activation of these same genes have previously been seen in conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder; but the relaxation-response-associated changes were the opposite of stress-associated changes and were much more pronounced in the long-term practitioners." Formerly with the Benson-Henry Institute, Dusek is now at Abbott Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis.

Benson explains, "People have been using these culturally determined mind/body techniques for millennia. We found that no matter which particular technique is used – different forms of meditation and yoga, breath focus, or repetitive prayer – the mechanism involved is the same. Now we need to see if similar changes occur in patients who use the relaxation response to help treat stress-related disorders, and those studies are underway now."

Libermann notes that the sensitive genomic analyses conducted in this study are at the cutting edge of efforts to unravel the genetic aspects of complex disorders. "There are a lot of differences in gene expression between one healthy person and another, so it is challenging to analyze the kinds of subtle changes we are seeing and identify what changes are significant and what are just background noise. Our approach uses the latest bioinformatics tools to identify potential gene functions, generating hypotheses that can then be tested in laboratory or clinical studies."

Better and better!

Hello Beautiful Supporters!

The new cancer drug I'm trying has some interesting side effects, such as a little dizziness and nausea. Also, some strange visions - like the little letters marching off my book pages, not the really cool kinds of visions you see depicted in movies. In spite of this, I'm pseudo-functional. If anyone wishes to drop by my home for a few minutes this Saturday afternoon, you are quite welcome.

We are still tweaking meds, and developing protocols.

Tomorrow I hopefully get my right side closed completely!

After that, it can't be too long until I dance again, right?

Janet/Aliya

Hi Janet!

Dear Janet,

I have to share with you how truly inspiring you are. You see, whenever I log onto your website for an update, I see pictures of you smiling – despite everything you're going through, you're still smiling, and I think that's just so awe-inspiring and wonderful! It's a constant reminder that no matter what we're all going through physically, it's so important to stay positive mentally.

One of the ways I try to do that is through taking pictures. I've always enjoyed photography (or at least my own version of it). I've taken a couple of short solo-drives recently, and gotten some good shots. Of course, it's sometimes difficult to take pictures going 65mph down I-95, so it's more re-energizing my 'mental camera' than anything else. But a few weeks ago, I was at the Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes at Mount St. Mary's University. I don't know if you've ever visited there, but it's a very beautiful area, aside from the legends of the waters 'healing properties'. I have no evidence on that theory, but I did find the creek and the grounds to be quite peaceful – that in itself can be quite healing, I think.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this picture… I had to take it with my cell phone (long story), so you'll have to visit The Grotto real-time to form your own impression. I hope you like it.

Take care, and please know I'm thinking of you…

Gretchen

Thinking of You

Hi Janet,

I have been keeping track of you through the blogs. I just wanted you to know that you are in my thoughts and prayers.

All the best,

Marlene

Hello from GW,
If anyone else wants to post to the blog, here's the invitation link.

Also, here are a couple of pictures courtesy of Carol Handwerker.




-GW

My first cancer drug starts today!

Hello Beautiful Supporters!

Yes, I am still very tired and exhausted, mostly from all the meds and being on my back for so long. So much has happened - After desperate attempts to stabilize my condition, I was released from Holy Cross Hospital, with a few unpleasant surprises requiring a few more hospital and clinic trips. But finally things have really started to improve.

No, I'm not ready to party, but can shuffle and talk, but not too much, because the main tumors are in my upper lungs and thorax. No one can do much about the cancer until the rest of my body functions adequately, and I am excited to be finally turning this corner.

Most importantly, we have a solid protocol in place. I am being treated under the guidance of Dr. Ettinger of Johns Hopkins and his student, Leon Hwang from Kaiser.

So, today, I have taken my first anti-cancer drug, Tarceva! In about two weeks, several other drugs will be added, but we have to wait until the open sore in my side clears up for those. This is where a hose drained fluid from my right lung, and on Thursday, the side stitches closing this little gap will hopefully be removed. The thoracic surgeon was very aggressive in treating this lung with 4 pluerodeses altogether, but it seems to have worked. If it did not work, I would not be elegible for many cancer fighting regimes.

So now it is a matter of adjusting my meds to keep the pain tolerable, and seeing how well my body responds to the therapies.

We are convinced we have a nice solid approach to fighting this cancer for the present time, and I wish to thank you all so much for guiding us along. The doctors and therapies have all been multiply mentioned by so many of you independently! All your emails have been read carefully and many have proven very useful, even though you may not have heard from us yet.

Now that my immediate treatment plan is in place, everyone here can enjoy life more. Please, no need to send any more medical lit or suggestions, but I'll contact you all soon about having some sort of visiting hours or something in a few weeks. Please be just a little more patient.

Love,
Janet/Aliya

Go easy on her please!

Hello dear friends.
I hope Janet's message below will be a pleasant surprise. Yes, she is recovering her strength after a terrible weekend. I do not wish to get into details, but on Saturday and Sunday, we had to go to an urgent care center twice and to the emergency room at Holy Cross once. It was a rollar coaster ride. That is behind us now, and she has new medications that are better adjusted to her condition.
She had a good day at home on Monday and is recovering and eating better.

She is NOT well enough to receive visitors though. Do NOT call the house. She is still resting and recovering. Today she had about 10 telephone calls from doctors and nurses. Answering the phone is stressful in such circumstances and we want to keep the line free too.

Let us hope she can add some more to the blog tomorrow.
Tomorrow we meet the senior Kaiser onoclogist and talk about her prospects and what we can expect. We hope to start with a special treatment ideal for her condition. It will start with an orally taken pill for once a day I believe. More involved chemo will probably start later when she is more recovered from this past weekend.
We do not know how she will react, so your thoughts and prayers are still very valuable to us.

I'd also like to say thanks to Glen. And it was good to hear from you Liselotte. We are different persons now.

goodnight all
george, sr.