More Information about HPV and its Dangers

Here is a great article given to me by my good bloggy friend Somewhere In between Im so excited that people seem to be open and interested in learning how to protect themselves and their children against this terrible virus! The more we know the stronger we become, right?!?

This is an article from MSNBC that talks about the links between HPV and 25,000 cancers in the last 5 years! This is scary stuff people. But, just because its scary doesn't mean we should run, we need to stand strong! We need to arm ourselves against HPV and Cervical Cancer and then fight like mad!

Please check this article out, share it and TALK TALK TALK!! When you gain powerful information you need to share it. Help me spread the word and save others from a difficult, scary endless journey that is Cervical Cancer!

If you haven't yet read my story here is a snid bit: Meaghan's Story

After reading that I hope you realize why this is an important article to read:

HPV Linked to 25,000 cancers in 5 years

Boys Should Be Vaccinated Against HPV Too!

First I should say that I am not an HPV expert, I am just a woman who lived through 3b Cervical Cancer. I am just a woman who wants to educate others about Cervical Cancer and how to avoid its devastation. I am not here to argue or debate just to put out information for you to read. If you disagree with an article or idea please feel free to leave a comment but seriously, don't be a jackass about it! This is an open forum and I appreciate all opinions but if people start being mean, aggressive or antagonize I won't stand for it! I don't think anyone has all the information regarding HPV and Cervical Cancer and if they did we wouldn't have young woman dying from it!

Here is an article about why Boys should be getting the HPV vaccine as well. If you are interested in learning more about why experts are saying your sons should get the vaccine as well please read the article:

Boys Need HPV Vaccine Too

26 Year old Told She is going to die of Cervical Cancer

This is an article from England so some of the information does not apply to my United States readers. In England you have to be 25 in order to get a PAP. This young woman wanted to get a PAP at an earlier age. She didn't have any symptoms but wanted to do what I tell so many to, advocate for herself and try to get early prevention if necessary. She was refused and now at age 26 has been diagnosed with terminal cervical cancer. AND, she is only 26 years old.

I put up these videos and articles because I want to stress to all the women and mothers out there that cervical cancer can not only happen to old AND YOUNG but it can devastate your life and even kill you. Cervical Cancer is something we need to be talking about and fighting against.

READ THE ARTICLE "BRIDE WHO WAS REFUSED SMEAR TEST GIVEN TWO YEARS TO LIVE"

Boy Do I Have Something Unique For You

Okay I'm not sure if you are going to love this or hate it. For sure you are going to think this is a little weird, I know I do. While driving to school yesterday I heard about it on NPR and thought, "how can I not share this with my friends"

Today at 4pm you can actually watch a hysterectomy being performed. Apparently there is this new Robot-Assisted Hysterectomy. This new way of performing a hysterectomy is minimally invasive and provides quicker recovery for patients. South Miami Baptist uses this procedure and has decided to allow the world watch.

I thought this was pretty appropriate for my site because many women who have cervical cancer get hysterectomies. I did not have a hysterectomy however many of the women I have met and talked with have. The hysterectomy is a very invasive surgery and recovery can be long and painful. This new procedure could dramatically change all that.

If you would like to read more about the Robot-Assisted Hysterectomy click: HERE

If you want to watch the recorded webcast of the procedure \click: HERE


I will be watching and would love to hear what others who watch think. If you think this is just too out there let me know, I'm still on the fence on that one but how can i not just take a peak ;)

Cervical Cancer Vaccine???

This is a very important article and I encourage you all to read it. In this article the recent Nobel Prize winner speaks about Cervical Cancer, HPV and the current vaccination. I am shocked at how misinformed women AND Gynecologists are about the vaccine.

I talk about cervical cancer to whoever will listen. Daily I am reminded that the majority of women are completely misinformed. Not only are every day women misinformed shockingly so are gynecologists. When I tell women that in fact the current vaccine will not work for them if they are sexually active I am met with resistance. "My gyno told me that as long as I'm under 26 the vaccine is good for me" -WRONG! If you are interested in becoming informed about the current vaccine read the article, share the article, talk about the article!!

Furthermore, the vaccine is much too expensive! This is a vaccine that can prevent CANCER! Its the first and only vaccine out there that can prevent cancer. Cancer effects the rich the middle class and the poor. It is completely unfair that only the wealthy are allowed to protect themselves against this cancer, ridiculous!

Also, for the men out there reading this blog. YOU CAN GET THE VACCINE TOO! Over 90% of men are hpv carriers. This means they too should get the vaccine and stop transmitting the hpv virus to women. Most people are unaware that men can also get the vaccine.

As always I appreciate all your support and willingness to learn ever day!

READ IMPORTANT ARTICLE

Nobel Prize In Medicine Goes To......

Dr. Harald zur Hausen for discovering the cervical cancer comes from HPV. I hope that this Nobel Prize award helps bring awareness to cervical cancer. Dr. Harald zur Hausen also won the award for his work related to HIV. Please take a minute to read the article and share your thoughts. If you are a women, have a loved one who is a women etc...this is something that affects you! HPV is extremely common and easily transmitted. The more you know the more you can protect yourself and loved ones.

CLICK HERE TO READ THE ARTICLE

GREAT NEWS!!!

I have had a lot of readers send me emails saying they are concerned about their sex drive after cervical cancer treatments. While this was a concern of mine I haven't felt it has been a big problem, yet. However, it is something that concerns me and I have very little idea what the future brings in this area. We, as cancer patients, are required to undergo extreme treatments. Doctors literally bring us to the brink of death in an effort to free us from cancers tight grip.

Well do I have some good news for both the ladies and men! I came across an article, Sexual satisfaction, not just about biology The article is based on a new study of cervical cancer survivors. The survivors all underwent surgical intervention and 80% of them reported to have a healthy and active sex life. I know this is an important topic and one that many people want to know more about. Read the article and let me know your thoughts!

Sexual satisfaction, not just about biology

STAND UP TO CANCER

So I'm here at home on a Friday night watching Stand Up To Cancer. This is probably one of the most touching important nights I have had in a long time. Its about time we do something like this. Not only does cancer end lives but it does so in such an ugly, painful heartbreaking way. It kills babies, children, teenagers, young adults, adults, elderly...everyone. It steels children, siblings, mothers, fathers, husbands, wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, friends, teachers, co-workers, the list goes on and on. Those of us who are lucky enough to survive must battle daily struggles due to the secondary effects that treatments leave us with. If there is a better, more successful or less damaging way to treat this horrible disease it should be available to EVERYONE! I just went onto CafePress and purchased a Stand up to Cancer T-shirt (the survivor one). I sent a coupon to some of my friends. I hope everyone participates and spreads the word.

LETS STAND UP TO CANCER EVERYDAY!

what is wrong with these doctors??????

I just came across this article and it enraged me!! Yet another doctor saying, "you are too young to have cervical cancer" How many women in their 20's need to die of cervical cancer before doctors realize that this cancer DOES NOT KNOW YOU ARE TOO YOUNG! While the doctors seem to think it is impossible for young women to get cervical cancer we all know they they are DEAD WRONG!! By the way, PUN intended!!

YOUNG MOTHERS FEARS OF CANCER

KNOWLEDGE IS POWER

I have posted a lot of links to great websites but I am not sure if people are taking advantage of them. Personally, if I went to a blog like mine and saw a huge list of web page links I would most likely be overwhelmed and not check them out. So, today I am going to write a short synopsis about some of the sites to encourage people to check out those sites that might be HUGELY helpful to them.

during my treatment and recovery I was so overwhelmed with all the information, charities and help being offered that I just pushed it all away. If one thing didn't apply to me I would get all pissy and respond, "that has nothing to do with it wont help" and then I would be turned off by the rest of the offerings. People have to understand that cancer fighters and survivors are MAD, no that's not the right word, we are ANGRY, FURIOUS, FLIPPED OUT, ya that's better ;). Now that I have been out of the woods for a little while and feeling sorta better I have been more open to help and I realized how wonderful it is. So I am encouraging everyone to look at the links I have provided and if you have any you think I should include, SHARE :)

Cancer Symptoms-info. for understanding Cancer Symptoms: This is a good site for those of us who have had or still have cancer. Its a site that explains different symptoms that you may be facing. It has several sections. The Learn Section of each symptom tab provides information about causes and effects of the different cancer treatments. Then the Manage section of each symptom gives helpful advice on how to control or minimize the effects of that cancer treatment related symptom. There is also a tab for Ask an Oncology Nurse that puts you in touch with an actual oncology nurse. I found this site super helpful because I am always experiencing new strange things and instead of calling my doctor every day I can check this site.

TheSAMFund: This group is amazing for young adults. People who have been diagnosed after the cut off date for most aid. They offer scholarships for everything, rent, medical bills, last year the woman who introduced me to this link won a scholarship to see her psychologist. I know I will be looking into this more because my insurance dropped me, I live in FL and I can only get medical care in Massachusetts. I haven't been able to see a psychologist but I think I should ;)

Bald Is Beautiful: LOVE this one. This site was created an Sharon Blynn, an ovarian cancer survivor who decided to use her experience and healing choices to help others learn to flip the script cancer! There are some really great things on this site and I encourage you to visit it, check it out and share it. Sharon will be writing a guest post this month for my blog so keep a look out for her ;)

Young Adults with Cancer: This is a great site as well. They have a lot of links and you are sure to find one that fits what you are looking for. Personally, I use this site a lot and I recommend you take a look to see if it has anything that might be useful for you.

Jack and Jill Late Stage Cancer Foundation: This foundation treats families to "WOW" experiences. The foundation provides a fun family experience for children who will soon lose their mom or dad to cancer. I recommend you take advantage of this site foundation if it is something that applies to you. Its a great idea to give the family that one last journey together and leave the children with fond memories during a very sad time.

I Give: This is pretty cool. You can shop online at over 700 brand name stores, Gap, Best Buy, Staples, Home Depot, Nordstrom etc...and a portion of each purchase is donated to your favorite cause. I know most of us shop at at least a couple of these stores so why not go through this site and give some much needed $ to charity!

OBAMA ON HEALTH CARE-HE GETS US!!

47 MILLION PEOPLE WITHOUT HEALTH INSURANCE!! His mom died of ovarian cancer at age 53! Her concerns were very similar to mine, how to pay for her health care. My insurance company dropped me and so I deal with numerous calls a day from creditors looking for money. I can't work because of what happened to me, I have no insurance but I need medical care, prescriptions etc..."OUR COUNTRY IS BETTER THAN THIS"

WHATS UP WITH ALL THE LINKS???

You may have noticed that I have added a bunch of website links to my blog. You should really take a few minutes and look through them. I only add websites that I find helpful, inspirational or educational.

It has been a year since I stopped treatment. Unfortunately I didn't reach out to anyone until just recently. I knew about the American Cancer Society, National Cervical Cancer Coalition and other various support groups but I chose not to participate, BIG MISTAKE. Just the other day another fighter told me about all sorts of charitable organizations that could really help me out. I have surgery every three months and have to fly from FL to Mass., this adds up. To my surprise there are a bunch of charities that will help pay for my tickets, O-M-G how great is that! So, today I called the ACS and got an ID number and started signing myself up for all sorts of charitable organizations. Flights, places to stay, excursions, magazines, WOW there is so much out there!!

So I strongly suggest to those of you who have been going it alone, give in and take some help!! Please take a minute to look through the websites I have linked, who knows you may really enjoy them and they could help make your life a little easier.

If there are websites you think I should add just let me know, I would be happy to include them. Also, the sites are not dedicated to any specific cancer. Please check em out and let me know what you think.

xoxo
Meaghan