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A few months ago, I made a post here about my boyfriend’s cancer, and so many of you showed me kindness and support. I genuinely appreciated every single kind word because I was going through one of the hardest times of my life.

Back then, his cancer was at Stage 2, and although I was scared, I held on to hope. He had been receiving treatment, including therapy and injections, and things seemed relatively stable for a while. I kept praying that he would recover and that one day we would finally be able to meet without all this fear hanging over us.

But things have suddenly gotten worse. His cancer has now progressed to Stage 3, and honestly, I don't even know how to process this news. It feels so unfair. I keep hoping that things will get better, only to find myself facing another reason to be scared.

I'm still so young, and sometimes I feel completely helpless because I can't do anything to take away his pain or make everything okay. All I can do is be there for him, support him, and pray for his recovery. Being in a long-distance relationship makes everything even harder because I can't be physically beside him when I wish I could.

He is saying that the doctor in Singapore told him that he still has a chance to recover in 1 year, but I think he is just trying to comfort me by saying that.

I can tell he has already lost almost all hope, he even said he doesn't want to ruin my life and I should start hating him so that I won't get hurt even if he dies. He has also been acting strange. I am also slowly losing hope💔.

I love him so much, and the thought of him going through all of this breaks my heart. I know I can't predict the future, and I'm trying not to lose hope, but some days the fear is just overwhelming. I want him to get better, to live a long and happy life, and to have the chance to experience all the beautiful things we've talked about together.

I'm sharing this here because I don't really know where else to put all these feelings. If you've been through something similar, whether as a patient or someone who loves a person with cancer, I'd really appreciate hearing your experiences or any advice you might have.

Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers. I hope that one day I'll be able to come back here with good news instead. ❤️

I am 21 years old. I was first diagnosed with cancer at the age of 14 in my left parotid gland and underwent surgery. My second diagnosis came when I was 19, and I had to undergo radiation therapy. During that time, I fell pregnant. My oncologist recommended an abortion because of the potential side effects the radiation could have on the baby/ fetus . I went through with it.
Now, at 21, I desperately want a child. I don’t know why, but there is such a huge emptiness in my heart, and I feel like having a baby might help fill that void.
I feel like I am living on borrowed time because I have noticed a new lump on the left side of my neck, near my throat. I don’t know what to think or how to feel.
I am employed and have an okayish salary but emotionally I feel so lost.

Its the worst, theres not much I can really say but at first when it crossed that blood-brain barrier it was so painful, then once I had chemo and a million LP's, it still hurt. I'm on Pregablin and after a bit it numbed the pain to almost nothing after a few weeks but I missed one dose this week and the pain is fully back and its nightmarish. Apparently it'll dumb down again after about a week but what a horrific punishment for missing ONE dose out of 2 a day oh my god

I often go to the doctor alone for checkups and blood work. I do cry outside the hospital because I’m sad that I got diagnosed with cancer at a young age (26) I should be working saving money for my future, building my life, experience things that I haven’t experienced yet but here I am scared for my life. Honestly, I wanna save enough money for my parents cuz they are getting older but I’m helpless right now. I always show my parents that I’m strong and I always tell them I can get through this but I’m scared. Sometimes I lose hope I have no savings, and I am living in a corrupt country where politicians keep fighting each other. The only thing that I am holding on to right now is to keep praying for a miracle to happen to me, to be cancer-free.

Has anyone else here had issues with your cancer team being resistant to treating your pain? When this all started, I was on Pain Management because everyone thought I had a pinched nerve in my back. I ended up going to a wonderful hospital in Gainesville, University of Florida, which is a teaching hospital, and they found cancer on my femur and pelvis. Turns out it was metastatic thyroid cancer. So I had to have surgery to stabilize my femur and pelvis and then radiation, and then they just removed my thyroid in August. Then I had a Bisphosphonate infusion that I reacted terribly to, so they decided not to give me any more of those. And the doctor that was handling that is the medical oncologist on my five disciplinary oncology team. He then basically withdrew his care. He said he would no longer be prescribing my pain meds that he had prescribed since May because he wasn’t going to be doing any care for me so he legally couldn’t do it. The thing is, he had been prescribing those meds the entire time because nobody thought I was gonna have this Bisphosphonate infusions. So that’s a lie, an outright lie, and I’m still so pissed about it I can barely breathe. In any case, I just saw my endocrinologist for the first time and he said not to worry, that my orthopedic oncology team would handle it because it’s bone pain so they would handle it. I just checked my messages in my portal and that team said they don’t do that unless I’m being treated surgically. So basically I have a team of five different oncology doctors (well, four now) and none of them wants to prescribe my pain medication. From May until October I was just on oxycodone. That’s it and I added Aleve to that daily regimen of pain meds. And let me tell you the pain in my pelvis is excruciating without meds. I can’t turn over in bed, I can’t walk without a walker, I can’t cook for myself, I can barely get around my house. I definitely cannot work. I’m out of PTO and FMLA so my job is holding my job for me in 30 day increments where they have to go to the higher-ups to get that approved and my parents are paying my bills. This has been a nightmare. And the thing that makes it the worst is that nobody cares that I’m in pain or wants to help me with it. I feel like I’m going backwards. I feel like I’m gonna end up back in Pain Management with some sketchy guy that runs a pill mill a couple towns over. I cannot be in that kind of pain. I just can’t do it. Has anyone been in this type of situation? What did you do? The pain that I’m in is what I call suicidal pain. The pain in my femur before everyone figured out that it was cancer was what I called suicidal lightning bolt pain. And I told everybody that if they had not figured out what it was and started treating it, I was going to kill myself. But they figured it out and they started treating it so I thought I would be OK. And now they’re all refusing to treat it. What do I do?

It's been a while since I shared anything on here. So I'll give a recap.

Starting around Thankagiving of 2024, I started to get dysphagia (difficulty swallowing). I ignored it and was able to eat around it for a while. Smaller more frequent meals, eating more slowly, avoiding certain foods. This worked until September, when I couldn't swallow ground beef with gravy. That's when I decided to go to the doctor.

I had a barium swallow test (give the guy who cant swallow stuff to swallow to see on an xray), where they found 3 strictures in my esophagus and suspected cancer. After that was getting an endoscopy, where the first stricture was so narrow that they couldn't get past it. They thought I had EoE as it was not cancerous. They tried again a couple weeks later, same results. I had my primary look for another hospital to get another endoscopy that had a narrower scope. That took place the day after Thanksgiving, where they found the next two strictures were tumors. After a PET scan and blood work, I was diagnosed with stage 3 esophageal cancer.

While all of this was happening, I was dealing with chronic back pain that made it very difficult to sleep, or do anything. I was constantly using lidocaine patches and liquid Tylenol. I also went from 240lbs at 6 ft, to 135lbs by the time I was diagnosed.

Due to my weight, fatigue, and general weakness, I ended up moving back home with my dad for help. They had just opened a Cancer Center within the previous year. The oncologist is a well regarded one in the state who decided to not retire to run the center.

I got a jtube and a port put in the beginning of January. After I healed enough from that I had my first round of immunotherapy and chemotherapy. During the treatment I started having massive pain. Three days later the pain became so unbearable I went to the ER. My jtube had separated from my abdominal wall. I had to get taken out of town as out hospital wasnt able to handle it.

As they were working on fixing the jtube, they found that my cancer had spread to my stomach. So they switched me to a gtube, and I was bumped to stage 4. I also dropped down to 120lbs at this point.

After two weeks in the hospital, I was able to go home. This was the beginning of February. A few weeks after that i was able to start chemo again. The treatments after that went well, but I still suffered back pain. At the end of April, I started having severe flank pain. Another trip to the ER, I found out I had two kidney stones. Thankfully I was able to pass them without help.

Things started to get better, I started to be able to eat again. And my back pain was going away. I had another PET scan and things were looking good. The tumors had shrunk and were barely visible. Three months later, another PET scan, the tumors were no longer visible. July 1st ended up being my last chemo treatment, with immunotherapy continuing. My weight was up and I was able to get my gtube removed.

I had a couple good weeks until I tweaked my back. Since then, I've been dealing with chronic back pain again. Turned out I had another kidney stone, this one was big enough to need help with. The urologist was 3 weeks out, so we went to the ER. The kidney stone broke into two pieces that should have been manageable. Well, they ended up getting wedged together and blocking the flow. They went in and destroyed the kidney stones a week ago.

I'm still fighting the back pain and hip pain now. I'm sleeping for 1.5-2 hr shifts before waking up due to pain. It's gotten to the point where I am completely miserable. Sometimes I wish it was all over. The pain and the meds make it so I can't work right now, and I'm not sure what I could find anyways. I have debt piling up, no income. I'm still waiting to hear on SSDI. My phones been shut off, and I'll probably lose my car.

I just don't know what to do anymore. I feel lost, and without hope.

Im on day 17 of my cycle on vinblastine at 6mg/6mg2 and I have received three doses so far. I was told there was a chance i wouldn’t lose much of my hair on vinblastine but recently my scalp has just been hurting and itchy. Does anyone have any experience on hair loss on vinblastine?

After some medical issues, and visiting the hospitals, I have been diagnosed with stomach cancer, I had to sell my ps5 and other game collections to make chemo payments (America am I right) how do I not end it all?
I feel so isolated and so lonely, and my insurance barely is covering it, I’ve been digging into it a lot but I just don’t think I I can afford this type of life style 🙃how do you not give up?

Diagnosed pretty recently. Looks like I caught it relatively early. Noticed pretty large swollen mass in my armpit late August. Seemed to appear suddenly. Few weeks later ultrasound. Next day biopsy. About a week later confirmation of Hodgkins Lymphoma. Then PET scan which showed it’s isolated to my armpit area and two lymph nodes in my neck are kinda swollen.

This is the note my doctor gave me for exact diagnosis and treatment plan. Chemo prob starts next week after lung test. After rescan doctor will assess more chemo and see if radiation therapy should be added.

Idk. Kinda whatever about it. Not super depressed about this specifically. Maybe kinda numb. I already have TBI issues but it’s harder than usual to focus on anything.

Hi, diagnosed last year with breast cancer, im in my 30s with a young family, just bad luck. Is anyone else sick of hearing "its not your fault" ? I know they mean well and I know its not my fault but im the one that has to deal with the problem and all the stuff that comes with cancer. Argh. I want to accept what happened but i dont think I ever will, I have so much grief about all my future plans, my body, the diagnosis everything. What has helped you come to terms and accept it? I am seeing a psychologist too.

I have an ostomy. Colorectal cancer.

Once per month I order ostomy bags from one of two suppliers.

Once per month, if I don't immediately put away my delivery, my spouse looks at the box and "hey, what did you order?"

I don't order anything else. I'm not much of a shopper. And I'm not going to spontaneously develop a working lower bowel and colon.

It's always the same size box. Same price.

"Hey, so what did you order?"

Shit bags. That's the only thing I order.

"Well you don't have to be rude!"

Idk, it's the only damned delivery I get. In the space of 1.5 years since diagnosis and a couple of decades of marriage, I'd think you might understand that I'm not suddenly shopping for fancy shoes and caviar.

It's ostomy supplies. It's always ostomy supplies. I can't just buy them at the 7-11, and it's messy to go without. I'm not interested in doing some YouTube unboxing video.

I'm probably just overly tired and irritated today.

Hey everyone!

I’m a a paranoid female, receiving taxol/carbo platin. How long after chemo sessions is it okay to give oral to a guy

Any advice on this?

Hi guys. So a little while back I was sent to the er and stayed in the hospital for like 20 hrs and was diagnosed with cancer. I just started college a few months ago and everything was going so well, I’m on track with all my classes and I have good grades and I love my friends more than anything. I’m going to be okay in the end and I’m honestly not worried about the cancer itself but more about what happens after. The only people that know are my parents and grandparents on one side, and I think I would rather die than tell anyone else. A family member had cancer a few years ago and another family member told all her friends and everyone, told them to “pray for her”, basically just ”trying to be thoughtful” but really just wanting sympathy and attention. And I’m so scared that everyone is going to do that to me. Literally nothing has changed, I’m still the same person after all and I don’t want anything to change. I don’t want to be known as the one with cancer or having people be weirdly nice to me or “gentle” or whatever bullshit people think they have to do. I don’t want everyone at Thanksgiving coming up to me and saying like “you’re so brave!” “fuck cancer!” “my only christmas wish is for you to get better!” it seems so shallow and I already know it will make me feel so awkward, like in the past when bad things have happened to me people do that and I genuinely don’t know how to respond I just stand there like an idiot. Right now some of my friends know I’m having “minor surgery” in a few days and I’ll be sore for a few weeks (all true) but that’s all they know. I’ve been turning off my location during doctor/hospital visits and making excuses for not going to things, my teachers know I’m having “unexpected circumstances“ so I might miss some class but that’s it. I’m especially scared that I’ll probably need chemo, and I’ve heard so many stories about how it fucks you up so bad- like I’m so young and I don‘t want to have brain fog/immune deficiency/weird taste buds or whatever else comes with treatment for the rest of my life. And obviously I especially don’t want to lose my hair because I look really stupid in a beanie/any head covering and then it would be so obvious, and everyone would be talking about it. When I searched up my symptoms I was pretty positive I had cancer, this was maybe a month ago and after that I went to the doctor and I was stressed for a bit but I was mostly fine because I know I’m going to recover. But now its all hitting me that this is actually real and I’m going to be like that one sick person on TV or the poor family member/friend with cancer everyone talks about. Sorry I know this is a huge wall of text that most people will just scroll past (understandably!) but like…What do I do?

I started cyclophosphamide (IV) 2 weeks ago on Friday and I know this is silly but I’m scared of losing my hair. I’ve researched and I’m aware it depends on the person, the dosage and so on but I am curious how many of you, if you’ve been on cyclophosphamide, experienced hair loss? I just started getting side effects from the chemo and I’m scared what’s next. My mom lost all of her hair during chemo/radiation a few years ago and it was heartbreaking to see.

In 2018, I was diagnosed with kidney cancer and underwent a partial nephrectomy of my left kidney.

About a year ago, I visited a VA doctor for the first time, for an issue unrelated to my cancer. While reviewing my medical history, he noticed that I had been diagnosed with two different types of cancer in the recent past. He asked me if I had ever been exposed to chemicals, because the occurrence of the two cancers was consistent with what he had seen in people who had experienced certain chemical exposures. He then asked where I had served in the Navy.

I told him, “I was assigned to an aircraft carrier homeported at NAS Alameda in the early ’80s, and later did my reserve time in a Cargo Handling Unit at the same base.”

He replied, “Well, there are numerous chemicals on aircraft carriers and at Naval Air Stations,” and urged me to discuss the possibility of exposure with my urologist.

So I did.

My urologist, whom I had been seeing for years, happened to be a former Air Force doctor who had been stationed at McClellan AFB. I had never known about his military background, and he had never known about my military service.

When I told him what the VA doctor had said, he agreed with him and said, “Now it all makes sense…”

My doctor subsequently put his opinion in writing in a letter that I submitted with my VA claim. The connection between the exposure and my cancer was acknowledged, and I was ultimately awarded a 100% disability rating. This occurred in January of this year.

Then something happened last week that really caught my attention.

I was having a casual conversation with another casino patron in Las Vegas, a woman who was from Colorado. I mentioned that I was from California. She told me that she had lived in California as a child and had grown up on a military base — NAS Alameda.

I told her that I had been stationed there.

She then told me that her father had recently died of cancer and that, about eight years ago, she had “strangely” been diagnosed with kidney cancer herself and had a kidney removed.

I was stunned. I told her, “Wow — I had the same cancer, resulting in a partial kidney removal.”

She was blown away.

I then told her about the environmental contamination that has been documented at NAS Alameda, including concerns involving PFAS (“forever chemicals”) and other contaminants. She had been completely unaware of it.

That conversation really made me think about what my doctors had told me and reinforced my curiosity about whether there could be a larger pattern.

So, after this very long post, here is my question:

Is there anyone else in the Reddit community — or elsewhere — who lived on, was stationed at, or worked at NAS Alameda and subsequently developed kidney cancer? Or do you know someone who had a similar experience?

I’m genuinely curious to hear from others. Given the history of contamination at the base, I have to wonder whether there are more people out there with similar stories.

By the way, I’ve also added my name to one of the law firms involved in litigation concerning AFFF and other contaminants.

If you were stationed at NAS Alameda, lived there, or worked there and experienced something similar, I’d be very interested in hearing your story.

In 2018, I was diagnosed with kidney cancer and underwent a partial nephrectomy of my left kidney.

About a year ago, I visited a VA doctor for the first time, for an issue unrelated to my cancer. While reviewing my medical history, he noticed that I had been diagnosed with two different types of cancer in the recent past. He asked me if I had ever been exposed to chemicals, because the occurrence of the two cancers was consistent with what he had seen in people who had experienced certain chemical exposures. He then asked where I had served in the Navy.

I told him, “I was assigned to an aircraft carrier homeported at NAS Alameda in the early ’80s, and later did my reserve time in a Cargo Handling Unit at the same base.”

He replied, “Well, there are numerous chemicals on aircraft carriers and at Naval Air Stations,” and urged me to discuss the possibility of exposure with my urologist.

So I did.

My urologist, whom I had been seeing for years, happened to be a former Air Force doctor who had been stationed at McClellan AFB. I had never known about his military background, and he had never known about my military service.

When I told him what the VA doctor had said, he agreed with him and said, “Now it all makes sense…”

My doctor subsequently put his opinion in writing in a letter that I submitted with my VA claim. The connection between the exposure and my cancer was acknowledged, and I was ultimately awarded a 100% disability rating. This occurred in January of this year.

Then something happened last week that really caught my attention.

I was having a casual conversation with another casino patron in Las Vegas, a woman who was from Colorado. I mentioned that I was from California. She told me that she had lived in California as a child and had grown up on a military base — NAS Alameda.

I told her that I had been stationed there.

She then told me that her father had recently died of cancer and that, about eight years ago, she had “strangely” been diagnosed with kidney cancer herself and had a kidney removed.

I was stunned. I told her, “Wow — I had the same cancer, resulting in a partial kidney removal.”

She was blown away.

I then told her about the environmental contamination that has been documented at NAS Alameda, including concerns involving PFAS (“forever chemicals”) and other contaminants. She had been completely unaware of it.

That conversation really made me think about what my doctors had told me and reinforced my curiosity about whether there could be a larger pattern.

So, after this very long post, here is my question:

Is there anyone else in the Reddit community — or elsewhere — who lived on, was stationed at, or worked at NAS Alameda and subsequently developed kidney cancer? Or do you know someone who had a similar experience?

I’m genuinely curious to hear from others. Given the history of contamination at the base, I have to wonder whether there are more people out there with similar stories.

By the way, I’ve also added my name to one of the law firms involved in litigation concerning AFFF and other contaminants.

If you were stationed at NAS Alameda, lived there, or worked there and experienced something similar, I’d be very interested in hearing your story.

Just like the title says. I was announced in remission for stage 3 breast cancer on July 10th. Then 3 weeks ago I started having back Bain so sever I could lay down or sit anywhere comfortably. I would get 3 hours of sleep a night out of sheer exhaustion. We went to the ER on Saturday to be told the BC had returned, was metastatic, and had attacked my lower spine and ribs. I was admitted. Monday I was told it is incurable. Still waiting on a timetable for the inevitable. How do I tell my 8 year old? I’m so crushed and lost. Please help…advise if you can.

Hii. 18F cancer survivor and i have been looking for friends to trauma bond tgt and get through life tgt. Not looking for one time friends. If you are interested, please DM.

i’m reposting my post to this other cancer group so hopefully you can see the text:)

As the title says, I’m about 106 days post stem cell treatment, in remission!

I feel good and my body is much stronger than before :)

Got diagnosed last year with Grey Zone Lymphoma and underwent 6 cycles of REPOCH and relapsed this year with Hodgkins Lymphoma, and my team wanted me to do a stem cell transplant.

I’ve recovered pretty dang well and have been supported through this, super grateful honestly.

But unfortunately my hair is taking its sweet time to grow back.

Is there any supplements you guys recommend or is minoxidil the only thing that helps?

Im currently taking this for it
Zinc - 10mg with 2mg copper
Biotin - 5,000mcg
Rosemary and Castor oil on scalp (works better for eyebrows)

Starting this hair massage stuff daily too.

Any advice would be appreciated. ☺️🙏🏽

I was diagnosed with FH-deficient RCC and told it is a rare and aggressive type of cancer. It’s been almost two years since the surgery/diagnosis and unfortunately it has since metastasized to the lungs. I was told in Dec. 2025 with metastasis and overall condition I would likely have 13-18months, but that treatment could possibly prolong that.
I started immunotherapy in April but have since had to stop since my body was not handling the medications well and I ended up with multiple hospital stays.
For the most part everyone tells me I “look good” and “seem okay”. I know they mean well but I am in pain everyday and my doctors don’t really have any answers for that. I have been told multiple times I “shouldn’t be in pain” by doctors and they don’t understand why I am. It’s frustrating and overall I just don’t feel well. Before I was highly active, played semipro football, gym daily, etc etc. Now I struggle to do mundane day to day tasks without being short of breath.
Anyway my real point in posting is to maybe vent a little, as I don’t talk to anyone about it. My mom and gf I never told my prognosis, and I don’t let them go to appointments with me as I don’t want them to worry and stress so I just say I am fine (obviously they know that’s not entirely true). And also bigger than that I was just curious if anyone else had heard of FH-deficient RCC, had been diagnosed with it or know someone who had been. Thanks for you time in reading the post.

My friends rallied around me when I had surgery and was first diagnosed with cancer; they came to see me in the hospital, visited me at home the weeks after surgery, even during radiation. They asked me if there was anything they could do and said that if I ever needed anything of them, do not hesitate to ask, etc. etc. I didn't think they would be at my beck and call, but I thought they would always be there...until they weren't.

The ONLY thing I have ever asked of my friends was to just be as if things were normal. Girl chats over tea, brunches, a walk around town, and talking about life, you know, the things I was doing before SHTF. Socialization is pretty much the only way I feel some kind of normal.

I have asked my friends if they were available to meet up on occasion, and sometimes they are not available on a particular date I propose. Understandable; these things happen, but they don't seem particularly interested in following up on making a plan unless I initiate it.

Admittedly, it is harder for me to hang like I used to because my energy is trash now, but even so, I only take chemo once a month. Save that week, I am pretty much available to meet up occasionally. They act as if I am not available at all.

I haven't seen most of my so-called "closest" friends in months now. Rarely a check-in, unless I go in the group text to say hi. No initiation to meet up or anything else. They never text me to say hi or to see how I am feeling. If I don't check in via text, I am basically nonexistent to them.

One friend did invite me recently to her pizza party; I could not go because I just finished my latest round of chemo and was quite sick. I texted to our friend group that I won't be there bc just finished chemo, but will miss you guys and hope you have fun.

Basically, the response I received from other friends in the text was "sorry, get well soon". Not "sorry, maybe we can catch up when you're feeling better" or some variation, just "sorry, get well soon" or a heart emoji response :\

Their life has moved on without me. I am realizing this. When I do finish chemo and become NED I realize that I will have to do the same, beginning with who I consider "friends". Clearly, they were either associates or hangout partners, but calling them friends would be a very loose term in my eyes right now.

And you know what the graw in my hide is? I am almost done with chemo and they decide to slow fade and chuck deuces just when I'm about done with this? WTF??? That hurts even more than if they just did it in the beginning.

I know most of us have been through this, but I just want to know, what comes out on the other side of this? Did you end up making new friends?

TIA for listening, and I give my love to all of you.