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 ProtonPals Newsletter
Am I Cured? |
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Don't Forget
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The locations rotate among various restaurants in the Houston Medical Center area. Tell your ProtonPal friends about Joe's House to find housing in the Medical Center area. This link is also on the website and on MDACC website.
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Wednesday July 31, 2013, HOUSTON, TX
Greetings!
At times I fret about repeating myself in while writing here but then in a conversation with a new patient at dinner earlier in July I learned he had just discovered and finished reading Bob's book. I realize that not all of you have heard of Robert Marckini and his book, "You Can Beat Prostate Cancer: And You Don't Need Surgery to Do It"; and that I have to keep repeating some of the same important facts. Bob is one of the early advocates of proton therapy for prostate cancer as well as the "creator of a network of cancer treatment advocates." read on.
We like to broaden our contribution base and produce ProtonPals momentos and products for the things you love like custom tee shirts, cups and notes. The image in the header is our first pass.
Bob and I have a long distance relationship in that I've never met him personally but we regularly share information. Most times I'm leaning on him and his editor-daughter Debbie Hickey for some interesting facts and news and advice about the ProtonPals organization. We're "long distance" in that he's in Cape Cod and I'm close to Galveston Bay. Man! Could I could use some cooler weather.
In this month BobTales, the newsletter of the Brotherhood of the Balloons, he closes out the Mythbusters Series, with Myth #10.
Our newsletter is going out a little late because I was waiting for a shipment of custom ProtonPals tee shirts. They came in July 31, Wednesday around 5 pm and the letter is going out on Thursday.
Our first order from this vendor turned out well since I wanted to see what an extra large (XL) meant and how vivid the colors were on an ash gray shirt. According to my wife, the watercolor artist, they look great. So don't take my word for it take hers. I have a supply of XL shirt that will probably shrink into a L (large) once I wash it once.
We'd like to know what you think about contributing to the ProtonPals for regular operations or a special project. Maybe you've thought about it but were not asked. We run the operations with volunteers who covered their own expenses including mileage and parking. So if you're not a regular contributor, now I'm asking. Please take the survey and contribute if you are interested and able.
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| One of the Best Testimonials Comes from the Staff |
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Stephanie Bazille
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The Face of MD Anderson Proton Therapy Center
Shane Ikner and Stephanie Bazille Many of you have been in the care and were befriended by two proton radiation therapists who have been at the Center for 6 and 5 years respectively. Recently posted is a 2 minute video featuring both members of the MD Anderson Proton Therapy therapist staff in an interview in a YouTube video. Watch and hear the two therapists display the following qualities.
" She is part of a group who are competent, compassionate and embodies all the core values of M.D. Anderson which are caring, integrity and discovery."
Stephanie is a fellow Louisianian who came to Texas for the education and opportunities provided by the area. Calls to mind, "I wasn't born in Texas but I got here as soon as I could." Let's wish her and Shane the best in their lives and career. You can "like" them and comment on the video. If you'd like Shane and Stephanie's eMail address send me a note.
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Get a ProtonPals' Tee Shirts
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Anger Management
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"I Gave Cancer the Boot"
Over the years I've had suggestions and recommendations to print tee shirts for the ProtonPals and in the past two or three months it became possible to do this. I apologize to a specific group of Pals that it took so long to get a batch printed up. Here you see my trainer, Allen Mizell, and me at the 24 Hour Fitness Center. I've been working with Allen for several months. I'm making great progress on cardio, muscle mass but as you can see not that well on body fat. But that's another story. We're both wearing extra large tee shirts. Recent donations have made it possible to order an initial batch of shirts with our very own graphic image printed on the front. I've avoided the usual copyright issues we can get into with borrowing internet images and reprinting them on shirts by finding a model at the fitness center and taking my own photographs. On copyrights? You'd think we could use the UT long horns but no...the tee shirt vendors won't touch that one, even though MDACC is part of UT. On Getting A Shirt - Here the options if you'd like a shirt or two and or if you'd like to donate but don't want a memento. We'd like to cover the cost of producing and shipping the shirts, as well as gifts for the staff and therapists who are interested, and by paying forward we can keep the tee shirt business going. Here are your options: 1) You've donated regularly or a recent large amount in 2012 and 2013 and you'd like a "I Gave Cancer the Boot" tee shirt as part of your memento gift. If so please use this Form. 2) You'd like to have a "I Gave Cancer the Boot" tee shirt and would like to donate an amount over and above the cost of the shirt to support the ProtonPals operations and the web site update. If so please use this Form3) You'd like to donate to the support of the ProtonPals but not interested in receiving a shirt as a momento- please donate here.  If you'd like some other products with our image on them like caps, coffee cups, cards, posters please write to me.  | Joe "ProtonPal" Landry and Allen Mizell with their "We Gave Cancer the Boot" shirts.
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| Beam News Meetings will Resume in September | Summer Schedule
Many times the staff at the center in dosimetry, nursing, physics and nutrition has to do double duty to prepare and present at a Beam News meeting; and with summer  vacations for school children and staff, this makes it hard to find and schedule a speaker each week. So the meetings are held in abeyance for the summer of 2013 and will resume in September. We'll carry the notice on the pop up ad which appears when you go to the ProtonPals website. |
| Would You Like to Receive a Publication from MD Anderson? |
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Proton Therapy Center on Old Spanish Trail, Houston, Texas
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Latest News and Information
Did you miss a recent news release about MD Anderson on a specific medicine or wished you had heard of the massage/integrative medicine classes at the main center? MD Anderson has so many resources it's hard to keep track of what's happening. If you'd like to be kept informed read on. Subscribe to 17 Different Publications
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| U.K. Government Decides to Invest in Proton Therapy |  Sending a 100 Patients a Year to USYesterday's headline reported that the U.K. government has set aside $380 million to build two proton beam cancer therapy center in London and Manchester. "read on" . The centers will be completed and accepting patients by 2017 with a patient load of about 1500 per year. |
Dr. Myers Weighs in on Gene Testing & PCa
|  Two Issues as Objections to Gene Testing - You can't do anything with the information from the results.
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You'll worry needlessly about the information.
Does that sound familiar, like the issues with PSA screening and NSA monitoring? To me this gene testing has the potential of being usefully clinically in prostate cancer treatment as it does in breast cancer treatments. Dr. Myer goes through how results from his gene tests on himself and his family have helped. For example a) he learned he has the gene from his Irish ancestry that leads to hemochromatosis, an inherited disorder that leads his body to absorb too much iron. In turn if not treated or looked after it can lead to serious consequences including cirrhosis and heart problems. His wife shows an indication for early onset of adult diabetes which she's handling with diet and Metformin. They can do something about both conditions. This just a brief headline and you'll probably want to listen to the video Gene Testing and PCa if you want more in depth information. It turns out he uses the 23 and Me health and DNA service for his family and his patients. Remember information is the best medicine. |
More on Genomic Testing of PCa
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Matthew Cooperberg, MD, MPh
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Emerging Prostate Cancer Tests
Last month we wrote about Genomic Health's genetic test for prostate cancer, Prostate Oncotype DX and would like to call your attention to an interview on 7/8/2013 by Andrew Schorr of Patient Power with Dr. Matthew Cooperberg of UCSF about a paper he presented at the 2013 American Urological Association Meeting on genomic testing. The is a podcast and located here where you can listen or read the transcript. Read More
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Final Article in Myth Buster Series
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ProtonBob Marckini
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Ten Truths about Ten Myths
Myth #10
I can't afford to take the time away from work and family required for proton therapy. I can get my treatment locally in a much shorter time and expect the same results.
Click here to Learn the truthBob Marckini and Deborah Hickey have done a great job over the past ten BobTales newsletters shedding some light on the misinformation about proton therapy by writing articles about each myth. Each month they examined one of the myths and set the record straight; and now they are done. With Bob's permission I'll see if we could feature the list of links on the ProtonPals website for newly diagnosed patients or for Pals looking for answers to questions by their friends. While you're at the Brotherhood of the Balloon website please sign up as a Brother and for a subscription to the BOBTales, that is after you've signed up as a ProtonPal.
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Number of Centers Continue to Expand
| At Year's End 2012 Over 108,000 Patients Treated
According to the numbers reported to the Particle Therapy Cooperative Group (PT COG), the M.D. Anderson Proton Therapy Center had treated 3900 patients as of December 2012. World wide statistics are 78132 patients treated with protons in 38 centers. Of course the Center that's been treating prostate cancer patients for over 20 years with the most total patients treated is Loma Linda with 16884 starting in 1990. The four centers with the most graduates are Loma Linda, Mass General, Florida and MD Anderson who started accepting patients in 1990, 2001, 2006 and 2006 respectively. Read On. In the pediatrics area MD Anderson holds the record. |
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About the ProtonPals Organization
Thanks for subscribing to the newsletter and using the ProtonPals website. We won't sell or give your addresses to anyone. You'll receive one or at most two mailings a month from us. If you're a new subscriber you may want to note that the past newsletters are archived back to May 2009. Newsletter Archives
We're a group who chose proton beam therapy to cure our cancer and were treated at University of Texas M.D. Anderson Proton Therapy Center in Houston, Texas. The "Pals" formed a network in order to:
Stay up to date with treatment cure resultsProvide support to others and Center activitiesBe informed on any side- effectsPromote proton radiation since it's widely regarded to have a significant advantage over conventional x-rays.Attract and nurture more Pals who support our cause, patient-to-patient and friend-to-friend
Support ProtonPals by letting us know how you're doing. That is so important to newly diagnosed men and their wives and partners. As a former patient we'd all welcome your help in getting the word out about proton radiation and how you're doing. Please donate using the Donate Icon below or mail a check made out to ProtonPals, Ltd.(we're a tax deductible non-profit) at my home address. Read more about it on the website How to Help - Giving
Sincerely,
Joe Landry, Founder
ProtonPals, Ltd.
ProtonPals, Ltd. is a 501 (c) (3) public charity incorporated in Texas.
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DISCLAIMERS ProtonPals is an exclusively patient-sponsored organization with no official relationship with or support by The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center or the M.D. Anderson Proton Therapy Center. ProtonPals is simply an information sharing network of patients. ProtonPals hopes to inform, encourage and help patients through shared knowledge. Members are not doctors so more serious concerns should be directed directly to your doctor. ProtonPals also desires to promote the M. D. Anderson Proton Therapy Center as for virtually everyone it has been a very positive if not life saving experience. The ProtonPals web-site, commonly known as the ProtonPals.net weblog, will contain hypertext links to information created and maintained by other public and private organizations. These links are provided for your convenience. ProtonPals does not control or guarantee the accuracy, relevance, timeliness or completeness of this outside information. Further the inclusion of these links to particular items in hypertext are not intended to reflect their importance, nor is it intended to endorse any of these views expressed or products or services offered on these outside sites, or the organization sponsoring the sites.
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