Resources and support for families dealing with cancer and serious illness

Drew Nguyen47 said:Hi everyone. Sending hugs to all of you 😘 😘 you truly deserve them.
I want to offer my sincere condolences too; honestly, it's hard to find the right words. I'm sending you a warm hug 😘
I’ve been staying with my dad for the last few days, and it really is heartbreaking to see him fading away. But he isn't giving up 👍 his strength and his will to live actually reminded me of something today while I was waiting for the train... while I was standing there at the station, I noticed a tomato plant growing right on the tracks—and it had two big, green tomatoes on it 😍 I have no idea how they managed to survive and grow in a place like that. Just pure will to live.😛.

Anyway, your friend here found a remedy for cancer in folk medicine, and I’m going to prepare it for my dad (we really don't have anything left to lose right now).

Here is the recipe and a link regarding people who found this remedy effective:

300 grams of fresh aloe vera cactus leaves (the plant should be 3-5 years old)
7 dl of guaranteed pure black wine from unsprayed grapes
5 dl of pure 96% alcohol
400 grams of fresh spring flower honey from the comb
50 grams of chicory (like the kind you might find at a local farmers market)

Preparation: Grind the aloe vera leaves using a meat grinder, chop the honeycomb honey very finely and mix it with the cactus, then put everything into a glass carboy along with the dried chicory and the other ingredients. Give it a good shake and store it in a cool, dark place. It's best to shake the mixture every day.

After five days, strain a small amount (enough for the next 5 days of use), leaving the rest in the carboy. Or, you can let everything sit for two weeks before straining it all at once. Keep the remedy in a cool place.

Usage: For the first five days, take one teaspoon three times a day, exactly two hours before meals. After those five days, take one tablespoon three times a day, exactly one hour before meals, and continue this until the supply is gone.

This remedy treats: Pulmonary tuberculosis, stomach ulcers, internal inflammation, ulcer-related diseases. It is also used for the flu, tonsillitis (clearing it in 1-2 days), chronic illnesses that persist for years, cardiac asthma, pulmonary asthma, leukemia, persistent headaches, vasculitis, heart issues, kidney issues, female reproductive ailments, cancer, thrombosis, prostate issues, diabetes, myocardial infarction, angina pectoris, epilepsy, AIDS, amoebiasis, infertility, allergies, cystic diseases, various skin conditions, and impotence.

The treatment course lasts for two months out of the year. You shouldn't reuse the remedy until a full year has passed.

IMPORTANT: Once the remedy is taken, you must not rinse with water, nor can you consume any liquids or even a crumb of food for two hours afterward. The same applies when the interval is reduced to one hour, so the remedy can work its own magic on even the most severe illnesses. Always shake the bottle well before each use. Make sure to wash the cactus leaves before grinding them.

Sending my love to you all.😘

I have just one more question... does anyone happen to know what the best thing to feed a patient would be in cases involving cancer or liver metastases? My dad can still manage a few spoonfuls of soup here and there, though I was thinking of giving him some steamed broccoli broth with a little salt. What else should we try to give him to eat? Honestly, right now, he seems to only tolerate water.👎

I really don't have the time to scroll through endless pages, so I was wondering if you could tell mewhere I might actually go to buy or find all of these ingredients.

slyseal28 said:Tell me—would you be willing to go on the record with this for the press (even anonymously)?

Look, I know my fair share, but I’m not an official spokesperson here. Honestly, it’s not some big secret—this is just how things have operated for years. You really only need to walk through the halls at Mayo Clinic to see it for yourself. I have to admit—it’s actually the most efficient way to handle scheduling. They target patients based on their specific files, so they already know the exact imaging protocol needed before anyone walks in. It maximizes staff efficiency and keeps the machines running constantly. At Mayo, they can push through over 100 CT scans in a single 24-hour window. It's a rare place where you can just show up and say, "Hey, I need a follow-up by mid-December." You won't get an appointment right then and there—but rest assured, you'll get that call by late November or early December. There are patient lists prepared months in advance—sometimes three, four, even five months out—depending on when the follow-up is due.

As for Medicare, the whole system is set up so that those who want care can't get it, and those who don't need it shouldn't have to deal with it. Unfortunately, hospital institutes protect their budgets by dodging the high-cost scans. See, according to the federal guidelines in the US, the term MSCT isn't even officially recognized yet—so Medicare acts baffled about how it's possible to scan 230 slices in 15 seconds when the manual says it should take over two hours. Their solution? Just stretch everything out. If the billing doesn't match the manual perfectly, the invoice gets kicked back to the institute for "corrections" and they can't collect the payment. So, why bother doing the scan at all😕? The government loses either way...

unless....
take, for example, why would a place like Jordan
be operating at a profit? I'm genuinely curious if anyone here has a theory on that.🙂

Ronald Lopez56 said:except....
for instance, why on earth is Jordan operating at a profit?
I’m genuinely curious if anyone here actually has a clear vision of how that works.🙂

Why? 😕

Dear Ivanica, I am so incredibly sorry for your loss. 🙂

Dear Ivanica, I am so incredibly sorry
my deepest condolences 🙂

Angela Wright said:Well, this exhausting day is finally over.

I am deeply, truly sorry.

I started reading through your posts tonight and I guess I can see things from your perspective now. My father (52) was diagnosed with glioblastoma multiforme.

Reading what you write, I think I know what’s coming...

I feel for you; for you, your mother, yourself, and your father.

Just wanted to follow up on that whole ordeal regarding scheduling the CT scan.

I mentioned previously that I called Diagnostics 2000 yesterday—they're a private facility that accepts Medicare referrals—and the woman on the line basically snapped at me, telling me to just call back next Monday.

Well, I gave them another ring today, and this time I spoke with a different woman who was actually kind and genuinely helpful. We managed to secure an appointment for December 4th. Of course, if I were paying out of pocket, I’d probably have been slotted in within three days.

Anyway, that’s the situation with CT scans. The hospitals are a total mess; they’re either completely backed up or they aren't even taking new orders until December of next year.

p.s. Jane Doe, I'm thinking of you—sending you all my strength to get through today.

Grace Fowler said:Dear Ivanica!!
....I just got back from the clinic in Germany, so I’m a little behind on everything...Grace

Grace, how are you holding up after the treatment? Any actual improvement yet?

Angela Wright said:And finally:
Today I found out that a close friend of mine—someone who beat Hodgins and was told she’d never be able to have children—is actually pregnant. She’s my mother's goddaughter, and I can't help but feel like my mom somehow traded her own life to make this pregnancy possible.
Life is beautiful and strange

People spend their whole lives telling me, "That gave me goosebumps"... but honestly, I never truly understood what they meant.
When I read that paragraph, I felt it. For the first time in my life. It was a visceral mix of sorrow, joy, and pure hope.

Hey everyone! Just wanted to give you all a quick update on how things went with the treatment I did over in Germany... after finishing up my sixth round of chemo here in the States, I decided to head over to New York City to try a three-week immunotherapy course combined with some galvanic therapy... As for whether it actually worked? I won't know for sure until Tuesday when I get my next CT scan, but honestly—the fact remains that in the 8.5 years I've been battling this thing, I haven't seen blood work look this good... which is huge for me. Plus, my appetite is finally back (so, I guess I’m feeling a little lucky for once...). I'll keep you guys posted on everything... please keep your fingers crossed for me, because even with all my willpower, sometimes life just wears you down... like it's doing to me right now...
That's all from me, Jane Doe

Grace Fowler said:Hi everyone! I wanted to give you all a quick update regarding the treatment I underwent in Germany... after finishing my sixth round of chemo here in the States, I headed over to New York City to undergo three weeks of immunotherapy combined with galvanotherapy. As for the definitive results, I’ll know for certain this Tuesday when I have my follow-up CT scan. However, the reality is that in the eight and a half years I've been battling this illness, I haven't seen blood work this promising. On top of that—and this is vital to me—my appetite has finally returned (so I can eat like a lucky person again). I will keep you all posted. Please keep your fingers crossed for me; despite my intense will to live, even a person can feel worn down sometimes... just as I am feeling right now.
That's all from me, Grace

Hang in there, dear. We are all standing right there with you. I was actually thinking about you the other day wondering why you hadn't checked in. I am truly happy for you, and also for everyone else whose test results are steady or improving. I'm so glad to hear about Nancy Hernandez43's mom too—that's wonderful news. Wishing you nothing but the best.

Dear Ivanica, 🙂

I honestly don't even know what to say...

Grace Fowler said:... and honestly, it’s such a huge deal to me because my sense of taste finally came back too (I guess I'm just one of those lucky people...)

Way to go, Grace! You've got this. Hang in there and keep pushing forward! 🙂

Dear Ivanica

I am so incredibly sorry for your loss. I’ve actually found myself thinking about you quite a bit lately, and then I just happened to stumble back onto this forum today and realized I had to say something.😢 We didn't always see eye to eye—we definitely bumped heads on a few things—but honestly, I have so much respect for you. It takes a lot to actually impress me, but somehow, you managed to do it.

@Katarina, did you totally forget about those folks from Chicago? I'm asking specifically regarding the CT results.
Man, you should've just given me a ring!

Angela Wright said:My mom passed away peacefully this morning.
I just wanted to thank you all for being such a huge support during this incredibly difficult chapter of my life.
Love you guys! May God bless you in your own struggles—keep pushing forward.

Dearest friend,
you have been such an inspiration to me more times than I can count. 🙂 😘
Please accept my deepest, most sincere condolences.
Sending you so much love—stay strong. Just remember that your wonderful mother is in a much better place now, finally at peace and free from all pain.

Grace Fowler said:Hi everyone! I just wanted to give you all a brief update regarding the results of the treatment I underwent in Germany... after finishing my sixth round of chemo here in the States, I headed over to New York City where I completed three weeks of immunotherapy combined with galvanotherapy... As for the actual results, I should know for certain this coming Tuesday when I undergo my fifth CT scan, but the reality is that in the last 8.5 years of battling this illness, I haven't seen blood work this good... which is incredibly important to me, and my appetite has finally returned (so I can eat like a lucky worker for once)... I will keep you all posted on everything... please keep me in your thoughts, because despite my immense will to live, there are moments when a person just gets so tired... as I am right now...
That's all from me, Grace

I am truly glad to hear that your blood work is better than ever, that your appetite has returned, and that you still possess such a strong will to live—because all your hard work will certainly pay off eventually... My mother is feeling equally well. We spent the morning out for a walk, during which I asked her a few questions. She even took me to see the doctor so that I could have some tests done myself. The doctor informed me that, alongside the PCOS (which I already knew about), there is a high probability that I also have diabetes. Yet, none of this unsettled me, especially seeing the sheer strength with which my mother's fragile body carries itself...

We keep fighting, Grace... stay strong! kiss

Dear Ivanica, please take my condolences

Angela Wright said:So, this exhausting day is finally over. I’m just sitting here trying to get some thoughts down before I crash, and I really wanted to say thanks again to everyone for the kind words. Some of your posts—man, they really hit home.

The morning kicked off at 5:30 AM with my dad panicking because Mom choked on some grits and couldn't breathe. I was doing CPR on her for a good 15 minutes—she managed two gasping breaths, threw up once, then she lost her pulse. I was massaging her heart, we called 911, and the paramedics arrived immediately. They gave her adrenaline, cleared her airways, tried everything to resuscitate her... but nothing worked.
Even though I knew the end was coming, the speed of it all still shocked me. It felt like things had been moving so slowly lately, I honestly thought she’d just gradually fade away one day, like she'd just stop breathing.
Maybe this was better for everyone. It was fast—almost instantaneous—and she took her last breath in my arms. I was terrified she wouldn't go peacefully in her sleep; I really wanted to be there.
I was also surprised by how numb I felt while I was performing CPR—just staring at her blue lips and those fixed pupils... just total numbness and disbelief, like I was watching a movie.
That numbness has stuck with me all day. I only really broke down when dear friends stopped by and started talking about who she was before she got sick.
Maybe I'm just numb because I mourned her a long time ago. Even while she was still alive, I used to get hit by these terrible waves of grief just knowing she wasn't here, and knowing I couldn't say anything to her, ask her questions, or just talk to her like normal.
I think the hardest part will be when I'm alone in this house and feel that true emptiness. The toughest transition will probably be moving from this "new normal"—where the last two years were almost entirely dedicated to her—back to a daily life where I actually have to focus on myself.
I’m just putting my faith in God’s providence to light the way again.

And one last thing:
I found out today that a friend of mine—someone who beat Hodgins and was told she’d never be able to have kids—is actually pregnant. She's my mom's godmother, and somehow, it feels like my mom traded her life for this pregnancy.
Life is beautiful and strange.

Dear Ivanica, the kind of courage and selflessness you showed is something you rarely see even on TV, let alone in real life. You are an incredible person; you touched my heart deeply and showed me how to handle the heaviest things life can throw at you.
I had a breast ultrasound a few days ago and was scared to death because it was so painful, but they only found some cysts, so I can breathe a little easier now. Just hoping the other results come back fine too. And hearing about your friend's pregnancy gave me hope, because I want to be a mother again, too, even though doctors are split on whether it's possible—most are against it. Maybe I'll make it happen... Please, stay brave and really try to focus on yourself now. Your mother would want to see you happy, and you truly deserve that... Sending you so many hugs, take care!🙂

Charles Edwards8 said:.

@Katarina, I think you overlooked those folks from Cleveland? I’m asking specifically regarding the CT scan results.
You could have at least given me a ring on the phone, you know?

Oh, I haven't forgotten any of you... if anything, I think about you all much more often than you realize. 🙂

My father closed his eyes for the last time on November 8th at 8:30 in the morning. The battle was lost—but I truly believe God always knows best and is orchestrating something greater—so he must be in a much more beautiful place now...

Ivankovic, please accept my deepest, most heartfelt condolences.

I want to thank everyone who stood by our side during these past ten months.