Support resources for families dealing with cancer and other serious illnesses

I am seeking some advice. A few days ago, my mother received a diagnosis: breast cancer.
I was wondering if anyone with experience could share their thoughts on which hospitals in New York City have the best success rates for treatment. I am currently debating between MD Anderson Cancer Center and Mount Sinai...
Thank you all for your help.

boldmason25 said:I could really use some advice. My mom just got her diagnosis a few days ago: breast cancer.
Could anyone with experience or insight regarding hospitals in New York City let me know where they have the best success rates for treatment? I'm torn between MD Anderson Cancer Center and Mount Sinai...
Thanks for any help you can give.

www.healthinfo.com
There's a specific forum dedicated to breast cancer. You should also check out our top trending thread. We have a few women on here fighting this battle with incredible courage.

Reading through some old posts here, and honestly, I’ve got nothing but respect for you guys; seriously, the grit and willpower you all show is insane. My mom finally got her diagnosis, and it turns out she has NBA lymphoma. Her hematologist said it’s actually the best-case scenario since it’s slow-growing. But get this—right as they were pinning down the lymphoma, they also found papillary thyroid cancer. We’re all reeling. We were just starting to wrap our heads around the lymphoma, and then boom, this thyroid thing hits us out of nowhere. Like, what are the odds of one person getting slapped with two different cancers at once????
They operated on her thyroid, and she’s finally back home after a long stretch. Now that she's recovering from that, we're just waiting on the chemo to start.
Yesterday she caught a bladder infection, and I'm already starting to lose my mind. My mom is too. I keep wondering if she—and all of us—actually have the strength for when the chemo kicks in. If a simple bladder infection can piss us off this much, how are we going to handle the heavy stuff? I've been spiraling for days asking why it had to be her, and why she has to deal with two separate issues. It doesn't help one bit that the doctors keep saying both "growths" are the manageable kind.
I might have missed it in the thread, but does anyone know where you guys buy royal jelly?

Taylor Kelly9 said:I might have missed a few threads here, so I was wondering—where does everyone pick up their royal jelly?

I’ve been getting mine from my neighbor; she actually sells those kinds of supplements. If you’re interested, I can check with her to see if she has any left in stock.

Taylor Kelly9 said:I’ve been scrolling through the old posts, and honestly, I have so much respect for everyone here—mainly for the sheer grit and willpower you all show. My mom finally got her diagnosis, which turned out to be NBA lymphoma. Her hematologist said it’s actually the "best-case scenario" type because it grows slowly. But then—just when we thought we were processing that—they hit us with papillary thyroid cancer too. It came completely out of nowhere. We were all still reeling from the lymphoma news, just starting to wrap our heads around it, and then boom, this second thing pops up. What are the odds of one person dealing with two different cancers at once????
She had surgery on her thyroid, and they finally let her come home after a long stint. Now that she's recovering, we’re gearing up for chemo.
Yesterday she got a bladder infection, and I’m already starting to crack—and my mom is too. I can't help but wonder if she, or even all of us, will actually have the strength once the chemo kicks in. If a simple bladder infection can mess with our heads this much, how are we going to handle the heavy stuff? I've spent days asking myself why her, and why both at the same time. It doesn't do much to comfort us that the doctors called both "growths" favorable.
I haven't read everything—maybe I missed a thread—but where do you guys get royal jelly?

We buy freeze-dried royal jelly at the pharmacy; in Miami, there are four different spots that carry it, and they ship it in from San Diego within two days. You can find all the info at www.maticnamlijec.hr.

There are tons of royal jelly products out there. The one Mom is using is pricey—probably more expensive than most stuff you'd find on the US market—but it seems to be working for her, so we aren't changing anything.

In just four and a half months, Mom has gone through three surgeries under general anesthesia. She switched to macrobiotics, lost 10 pounds, and has kept it off. She feels good. She was doing imemune injections for a while, and she just got her second immunotherapy shot. Despite the heavy diagnosis, we're hoping for the best...

Oh, right—for anyone who hasn't scrolled through the entire history of this thread, Mom was also diagnosed with metastatic melanoma 😠, but we’re fighting and we aren't stopping!

I’m rooting for everyone here to hang in there until you're all healthy again!

Best,

Susan Ruiz76 said:Lisa White54, please tell us what happened so suddenly. You said everything was fine back on August 25th when your husband's results looked good—so how did he end up crashing like this in a Small town in the Midwest? Did he have sudden coughing fits, a fever, or anything? My husband's tumor is showing up at the exact same size and in the exact same spot on his CT from last week; everything else seems okay, except he’s started coughing way more. I'm not sure if it's just some virus or a cold getting worse because of the underlying illness. Have you dealt with anything like this?

So here's the deal: we got the CT scan results from our local hospital, and they're showing a 20 x 13 mm tumor, plus pleural effusion and some weird pockets of air and gas. The doctors who looked at them told me everything looks fine. I actually compared them myself to an old CT from a Small town in the Midwest back in 2005, where there was a tumor in that exact same spot measuring 20 x 15 mm. I was totally convinced it was the same thing—that the tumor had just stayed the same size. I even took the CT scans and the report straight to my husband's doctor at the clinic in the Small town in the Midwest. He looked at them and told me it’s a brand new tumor. He claimed the old one was gone and this is something entirely different, and honestly, he couldn't explain where the fluid and gas in the lungs were coming from. My husband stayed in the hospital thinking it was just that old, dormant tumor, but I was freaking out. Once I got home, I realized there were two other CT scans between the 2005 one and this one. I checked them, and yeah, there was no tumor in those. So this is new. They did a bronchoscopy and tapped the pleural effusion. And now? The doctor tells me the bronchoscopy looks fine, no cancer cells found, and we're just waiting on the cytology from the fluid tap. He keeps saying everything is just like before. When I asked about this "new" tumor, he basically brushed it off, saying it might just be a lymph node... he even admitted he doesn't really trust the scans from our local hospital. I literally brought him the images so he could see for himself! Then he just discharged my husband. I have to call today to get the biopsy results. I bet they'll say everything is fine again. The tumor markers will probably come back normal too. But my husband isn't "fine." He's doing worse. His shoulder, arm, and back pain are getting intense. He's losing weight. I told the doctor, but he just shrugged and said it's fine. Everything is great.
I don't even know what to think anymore. Is the CT lying? Should I go find a second opinion somewhere else? I'm terrified the doctor is just trying to spare my feelings, or maybe they don't want to—or can't—treat my husband, so they won't tell us the truth. Honestly, I don't trust anyone anymore.

Lisa White54, I am so incredibly sorry you’re going through this right now. It honestly breaks my heart to hear how the doctors are acting regarding your husband's diagnosis. You have every right to know exactly what is going on with his health. I really think you should go in there, look that doctor straight in the eye, and demand the truth. No sugarcoating, no false hope, just the facts. Ask them clearly what can be done and where you can go for help. You’ve got to be firm—maybe even a little tough—to make them tell you the real story. They owe you that much. Sending you nothing but the best.

Man, I really wish everything was fine. I want to believe the doctor when he says things are looking good, but honestly? I’m shaken up. I’m scared. If he hadn't come at me with that heavy news about a new tumor, I might be handling this differently. But now... I’m just terrified. It hits harder because we’ve spent almost four years thinking we finally won this fight. If that tumor is back and things are shifting, I need to know. I have to face it so I can gear up for round two. Because if I have to go again, I'm going all in. I just need the truth first..

Susan Ruiz76 said:? My husband’s CT scan from last week shows the tumor hasn't moved an inch or changed size at all, everything else looks fine, but he’s started coughing way more than usual. I can't tell if it's just some random virus or a cold making things worse because of his underlying condition. Any idea? Have you dealt with this before?

My husband used to get those intense coughing fits pretty often. He usually takes some old-school lichen syrup—it helps thin out the mucus so he can actually clear his chest. Honestly, even a tiny little cold can trigger a massive coughing spell for him. If he starts running a fever, though, he definitely needs to go grab some antibiotics.

silentfalcon52 said:First off, I just want to wish everyone here the best of luck with their treatment—whether it’s for yourselves or your loved ones. I lost a relative to cancer not too long ago, so I get it. But honestly, the reason I’m even posting is because of something else entirely.
I’ve noticed a lot of skepticism here, almost like people have this built-in grudge against alternative therapies. I don't really get it. Some folks claim nobody ever actually gets cured using those methods without standard medicine stepping in. How can you be so sure? I was flipping through a magazine the other day about this stuff (not trying to run an ad or anything), and there were plenty of people sharing their stories. Even if they didn't get a full cure, they talked about stopping the progression. Look, even if only 5% of those stories are true, that’s still a huge deal.
I think most people just have a skewed perception of what "alternative" means. I read a news article recently about lung cancer treatments where they mentioned one specific drug that completely cures 5% of patients, stops the growth in 20%, and does absolutely nothing for the rest. That just proves that every patient deals with their own unique version of cancer and a body that reacts differently. Should the people who didn't respond to that drug call it useless or a waste of money? Of course not. It's the exact same thing with alternative options. It works for some, it doesn't work for others. It comes down to the individual—their mindset, their willpower, all that stuff. So, saying someone is just getting rich or famous by curing someone this way is kind of misplaced... it just happens that for some people, the alternative works, and for others, it doesn't, just like any "standard" medicine.

I’m not some alternative healer or anything, and I’m definitely not pitching anyone.

I just want the best for everyone. Ideally, one day we won't need this subforum anymore, but in a good way.

Take care, everyone.

Then why on earth do they charge so much for their "help"? If I truly had a gift from God to help people, wouldn't it be wrong to profit off someone else's suffering? When my husband got sick, it was wild how people would track me down from everywhere, claiming they had the magic cure for him. I always wanted to know the science behind what they were doing—what was actually in their concoctions—but they kept it all top secret. Since I'm naturally a skeptic and prefer to play it safe, the whole thing felt shady to me, so I turned them down. Instead, I stuck to buying expensive supplements to boost his immune system from brands like Golden, Herbalife, or things like aloe, noni, and Swedish bitters... Basically, I needed to see the ingredients list to make sure I wasn't causing more harm than good.
Everyone has their own take on alternative stuff. People should choose whatever they feel is right. As for me, this is where I stand.

Lisa White54 said:I truly wish everything were alright, that things were actually as positive as the doctor claims. But I feel shaken, and quite frankly, I am afraid. Had the doctor not been so blunt when delivering the news about a new tumor, I might be processing this differently. As it stands, I am simply terrified. It feels even more overwhelming because I have spent nearly four years living under the impression that we had finally won this battle. If the tumor has returned, and if the situation is changing, I need to face that reality so I can prepare for another fight... Because I will fight with everything I have left. I just need to know the truth...

😢 I have read through everything you have shared thus far... It is hardly surprising that you are feeling this way; to have your convictions overturned so abruptly is a heavy burden to carry. There really is no other path but to confront it all head-on—the doctors, the diagnosis, and the unfortunate necessity of beginning a new struggle... Knowledge is power, yet it is an incredibly difficult thing to grasp when one is unwell, and while I would offer more help, I find myself at a loss for how to do so... Please, stay strong and remain courageous; for your own sake, and for your husband’s, you must demand nothing but the very best. It wouldn't be out of line at all to seek a second opinion...👍

Lisa White54 said:It’s about this: we got the CT scan results back from our local hospital, and it shows a tumor measuring 20 x 13 mm, along with pleural effusion and some collections of air and gas. The doctors who reviewed the scans told us everything looks fine. I compared them myself to a CT scan from Jordan back in 2005, where there was a tumor in the exact same spot measuring 20 x 15 mm. I was convinced it was that same tumor—that it had stayed essentially the same size. I took the CT scan and the actual images to my husband's doctor at Jordan. He told me it's a new tumor; he said my husband hasn't had a tumor for a long time, that the old one disappeared, and that this is something entirely new. He claimed he didn't understand why there was fluid, gas, and air in the lungs. My husband stayed in the hospital thinking the CT showed his old, dormant tumor. I was in shock. Once I got home, I remembered there were two other CT scans between the 2005 one and this one. Looking at those, there really wasn't any tumor present. So, this is new. They performed a bronchoscopy on my husband and tapped the pleural effusion. And now... the doctor told me the bronchoscopy looked okay, no cancer cells found, and we’re just waiting on the cytology from the pleural fluid; he insists everything is just like before. When I asked him about the new tumor, he brushed it off, saying it’s nothing, maybe just a lymph node. He actually said he doesn't even trust the CT from our local hospital, and I even brought the images so they could read them themselves! He discharged my husband. I have to call today to hear the puncture results. I'm sure they'll say that's normal too. The tumor markers will probably come back fine as well. It's just that my husband isn't fine. He's doing worse. He's having increasingly severe pain in his shoulder, arm, and spine. He’s started losing weight. I mentioned it to the doctor, but again, he said everything is fine. Everything is "good."
I don't know what to think anymore. Is the CT lying? Should I seek a second opinion elsewhere? Where? I'm terrified the doctor is just trying to spare me the truth, or that they don't want to—or can't—treat my husband, so they won't tell us. Honestly, I don't trust anyone anymore.

Dear Lisa White54, thank you for responding. We just got back from the hospital—we were there from 7:00 AM this morning until 11:30 AM waiting for our oncologist, and basically, here is the situation: even though we read ourselves that it represents a minor progression of the tumor (which is massive in its own right) and one suspicious lymph node, and even though they said the lungs are clear with no secondary issues... the doctor described it exactly like that. But when we insisted on questioning that "enlarged lymph node" which wasn't on the last CT, he very patiently told us to just get a new CT at our local hospital in about fifteen days. He wrote a referral for it and even suggested that, if possible, the reading be done by a specific specialist—who, by the way, is the Chief of Radiology. Given the coughing and fevers he’s been running, the doctor thinks it’s a false enlargement due to inflammation. Since the coughing caused him to vomit and lose weight, we stopped by our local hospital on the way home, and they gave him an IV immediately, recommending he come back tomorrow (without needing referrals or anything).
Maybe this sounds a bit confusing; we're both exhausted (thank God, he ate well and is resting now), but I just don't understand why they won't be straight with you at Jordan. Try reaching out to the head of the Jedro association; they operate out of Jordan and bring together lung cancer patients. One of the main head nurses there is named Sanda Karabatić. I have never spoken to anyone kinder than her. Whatever I ask, she explains it to me. She doesn't have a direct line, so just call the Jordan main switchboard and ask for Nurse Sanda; they'll put you through immediately. Pour your heart out to her. Good luck!

briskskipper71 said:Rose, I am so incredibly sorry you're going through this, especially with how the doctors are handling your husband's diagnosis. You have every right to know exactly what is happening with his health. My advice? Sit down face-to-face with the doctor and demand clarity. Don't let them dance around the subject or give you false hope—ask them straight up what can be done and where you can turn for help. Be firm and assertive; they owe you the truth. Sending you all my best wishes.

Honestly, everyone, I just can't believe what I'm reading here. What century are we living in? Nowadays, transparency is the standard. While they might not share every single detail with the patient depending on the situation, the family should always be kept in the loop—especially when dealing with a serious illness. The family deserves to know everything, provided they are willing to listen and understand. If people struggle to grasp medical information, that's one thing, but you don't have the right to constantly lash out at the medical staff or spread misinformation.

I don't think anyone's really been tearing people down in this thread—honestly, if you can't offer any actual help, maybe just stay quiet? I mean, just pray you never find yourself needing to dig through topics like this for your own sake or for the people you love most.

briskskipper71 said:I don't think anyone on this thread has been attacking anyone—honestly, if you can't offer helpful advice, it's better to stay quiet and hope you never find yourself needing to look into topics like this for your own sake or for those you love most.

It’s true that there is constant bashing directed at doctors and medical professionals here. It isn't just happening now, either; it has happened many times before. People throw out harsh falsehoods, call for "confrontations" with physicians, and exhibit really uncivil behavior. That is absolutely not okay. And yet, you are advising this lady to be aggressive toward them.
The lady you're addressing mentioned that when she had her initial CT scan, she was told the tumor wasn't showing growth. However, she didn't provide the two subsequent CT scans that actually showed regression. Instead, the current CT is being compared back to that very first one. So, who is actually at fault here—the patient who isn't providing her full medical records, or the radiologist? She also noted that the bronchoscopy went well, thank God, and she's just waiting on the cytology results from the pleural effusion. What more was the doctor supposed to say? He provided everything clearly, without rushing the information, and in a perfectly professional manner. Once the cytology results come in, she will have that information too. No one is going to hide anything from her, unless the patient specifically requests that certain details not be shared with their family, which is something we have to respect.
My impression was that this forum was created to serve as a form of psychological support for patients and their families, rather than a place to "show off" medical knowledge or find ways to smear the professionals who are trying to help you in any capacity.

One more thing, and this is really important. As a patient, you have the right to choose your own doctor. You also have the freedom to seek treatment anywhere in the United States. I truly believe the foundation of successful medical care is the trust between a patient and their physician; without that connection, you just end up with frustration on both sides and a whole lot of unnecessary stress. If you aren't feeling that bond, it’s better to find a new doctor or even move to a different city for care. Just please, try not to dismiss professionals who have spent years building their expertise and are doing their absolute best to take care of you.

granotoc says:
I’ve been scrolling through some older posts here, and honestly, I am just in awe of you all—especially the sheer strength and willpower you guys show. My mom finally got her official diagnosis, and apparently, according to her hematologist, it’s the "best-case scenario" type of NHL because it's slow-growing. But—and this is a huge but—right while they were finalizing that diagnosis, they also stumbled upon papillary thyroid cancer. We are all just reeling from the news; we were already trying to wrap our heads around the NHL, and then out of nowhere, this thyroid thing hits us. I mean, seriously, what are the odds of one person getting hit with two different types of cancer at once????
They operated on her thyroid, and she’s finally been discharged after being in the hospital for so long. Now that she’s recovering, we’re just bracing ourselves for the chemotherapy rounds.

Oh honey, I am so sorry, but unfortunately, it isn't actually that rare. For me, after fighting ovarian cancer (adenocarcinoma) for four years, I ended up with bladder cancer (microinvasive transitional cell)... it was such a surreal, painful thing to deal with—having 35 years on your shoulders and basically facing a death sentence twice. But the most important thing? Once you process the news, you just have to grit your teeth and keep moving. In my case, it’s been one thing after another... but I’m going to be the one who wins this. My fight has been going on for ten years now. It hasn't always been pretty, but I'm still here and I fully intend to stay. So, I want you to HANG IN THERE and stand strong by your mom's side, because you guys are TOUGH and you’re going to wipe the floor with these bastards...
Sending love to all the fighters, Grace Fowler

Maria Jones40 said:And one more thing—this is huge. Patients have the right to choose their own doctor. You have the right to seek treatment wherever you want in the United States. Honestly, the whole foundation of successful treatment is trust. If you don't trust your doctor, you end up with frustration on both sides and a massive headache of problems. So, look—it might be better to just switch doctors, or even move to a different city for care, rather than belittling people who have spent years building their expertise and are doing their absolute best to take care of you.

With all due respect—and I mean this to those few wonderful people out there actually doing their jobs professionally and responsibly—I personally have had some very, very bad experiences. Maybe it seems easy to you... to just swap doctors... or change hospitals... or move to another city... but in the real world, it’s just not that simple.

Maria Jones40 said:Yeah, there’s just this constant bashing of doctors and medical staff everywhere you look. It isn't even a new thing, honestly. People have been spreading these really harsh lies and calling for these big confrontations with doctors, and half the time it’s just plain rude behavior. That’s just not right. And now you're actually telling this lady she should be sharp with them too.

I mean, being direct doesn't have to mean being rude, ill-mannered, or aggressive.

Being sharp in practice means exactly what you all are pointing out, but that isn't just localized to this one area. The whole country is set up this way—it feels like money, arrogance, and sheer audacity are the only things that get rewarded, while actual expertise, hard work, and genuine effort aren't even considered desirable anymore.