WE Have Cancer – Details, episodes & analysis

Welcome everyone to the final episode of the We Have Cancer podcast.  Glenn Hebert from the Horse Radio Network and Katie Krimitsos of the Women’s Meditation Network pay tribute to Lee Silverstein. For those of you that may not have heard, we lost Lee a few weeks ago and we wanted to do one final episode on the We Have Cancer podcast to honor what he meant to the cancer community and also to the podcast community.

Katie and I will talk a bit about our time with Lee and then we want to play for you one of the final interviews that Lee did with the Man up to Cancer podcast where he talked about dying, hospice and how he was at peace.  

Rest in Peace Lee, we all love you!

My buddy, Tim McDonald, joins me to share his story of dealing with stage 4 colon cancer and is journey to find a liver donor.

Please help spread Tim's message by sharing this link: http://timsliver.com/

Follow Tim here:

On Twitter: twitter.com/tamcdonald

On Instagram: instagram.com/timamcdonald 

On LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/timamcdonald

On this episode of WE Have Cancer, stage 4 throat cancer survivor Marc Julien shares with Lee the brutal truth of his experience with radiation therapy on his road to remission, and his newfound passion today for spreading awareness and fundraising for pediatric cancer research. He proudly says cancer is the best thing to ever happen to him, remission or not, because it’s given him the perspective, patience, and appreciation for life’s most priceless and precious moments. 

Marc Julien became a first-time father just three weeks before his stage 4 throat cancer diagnosis. His wife Cortney became a rockstar caretaker in more ways than one as Marc underwent 7 weeks of intense and “excruciating” radiation therapy to treat the metastatic squamous cell carcinoma in his left lymphoid and tonsil. Now in remission, he’s been training the last two and a half years as a cyclist to compete in the Race Across America with a team of 19 others who have also been impacted by cancer in their own way. Marc and his team have a fundraising goal of $500,000 for pediatric cancer research.

• Diagnosed with Stage 4 Cancer, 3 Weeks After Becoming a Father

A cancerous lump was found in Marc’s neck that had been growing for a few months, right before his daughter was born. She was born May 10th, and by June 5th Marc was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer in his left lymph node and left tonsil.

• How Did Mark's Wife React to his Diagnosis?

Right after the baby was born, Marc got a biopsy. It was a week’s wait for the results to come in. Marc says he and his wife shared feelings of disappointment and fear for the future, and all the uncertainty that lay ahead. 

• Was it Hard to Be "In the Moment" with His Newborn Daughter?

Marc says he "kind of blocked out" those early days, but that his wife and daughter came to support him at every single radiation therapy session. Everyone involved in his treatment also looked forward to seeing newborn Ella there to support her dad.

• Stage 4 Throat Cancer to Remission: What Did it Take?

When Marc met his first doctor in Miami, he was told he would go through two weeks of treatment and get back to his life. Marc didn’t want anything to be sugar coated, so he sought out a second opinion, just in case. He knew he needed to fire that first doctor from Miami when the second doctor told him the harsh reality that Marc was actually in for; it was not going to be a two week scenario. It was 7 weeks of extremely intense radiation therapy. 

• “Treatment was excruciating.”

Marc shares the harsh reality of weeks and weeks of radiation therapy for his throat cancer, and how the pain and side effects magnified week after week. The chemotherapy after the radiation was still tough, but Marc says the radiation was the hardest part of his treatment by far.

• How Did Having Cancer "Change" Him?

Marc shares, “The person I was before I was diagnosed isn’t someone I recognize anymore.” He says he’s much more patient now, and he’s more present and appreciative with his loved ones. He believes he’s a better father, husband, and friend...

I had the pleasure of meeting Dana at the 12th annual Call-on Congress. She became very involved in cancer advocacy efforts after losing her husband Jean to colon cancer on Mother’s Day, 2015. He was only 43-years-old. Her 7-year-old  son will need to begin screening at age 25. Also, her32-year-old brother recently had precancerous cells […]

The post Honoring Her Husband’s Memory Through Her Advocacy Work, With Dana Georges appeared first on The Colon Cancer Podcast.

This story of Gina’s journey appeared in the 2017 issue of On The Rise and was written by our late friend, Dr. Tom Marsilje. Gina Benedetti may be about the happiest and most hopeful person diagnosed with advanced colorectal cancer (CRC) that you have ever met – and her hope and happiness are infectious! This […]

The post Teaching Hope and Happiness in the Face of Cancer appeared first on The Colon Cancer Podcast.

Matt and Nikki Moore met while they were in college. They fell in love and were married a short time later. In late 2015, while pregnant with their first child, Matt was diagnosed with Stage IV Colon Cancer at the age of 32. Before his death, Matt wanted to inspire people to live life to […]

The post Honoring Her Husband’s Legacy With Nikki Moore of #LiveMoore appeared first on The Colon Cancer Podcast.

In this bonus episode Dr. Andrew Albert returns to the show for an informal conversation about colon cancer screening and awareness. He and I talked about embarrassment, stigmas, poop and more. How do we get young people, and their doctors, to recognize their symptoms and understand that there’s no such thing as “too young” for […]

The post Talking Colon Cancer Screening and Awareness With Dr. Andrew Albert appeared first on The Colon Cancer Podcast.

Paul Shadle was diagnosed with stage IV colorectal cancer in 2016 after noticing symptoms on a family vacation. He had dismissed prior feelings of fatigue and chalked it up to getting older. On vacation, he had bloating and cramping in his abdomen, later noticing blood in his stool. When Paul was diagnosed, the disease had […]

The post Getting Men To Discuss Their Colon Cancer Symptoms, With Paul Shadle appeared first on The Colon Cancer Podcast.

Tara (pronounced Tar-uh) Principali was diagnosed with Stage 2 rectal cancer five years ago at the age of 30. Though she once lived an unhealthy lifestyle, weighing as much as 270 lbs., she dedicated herself to fitness and healthy eating prior to her diagnosis and lost 130 lbs. In addition to the rectal cancer diagnosis Tara […]

The post Colon Cancer’s Tattooed Pinup Girl, Tara Principali appeared first on The Colon Cancer Podcast.