Mesothelioma Help Cancer News
Support Mesothelioma Charities on #givingtuesday
Each year, the Tuesday after Thanksgiving is the Global Day of Giving. This year, that day falls on November 28. It is a beautiful endeavor inspiring people and businesses to give to a charity or cause of their choice during the holiday season (and before the end of the year).
This year on “#GivingTuesday” consider joining in with countless others and make a donation to something that matters to you. The Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation is a worthy recipient of your gift and would really appreciate your help.
This organization has been a Godsend to my family and the families of others going through life faced with a mesothelioma diagnosis. They promote advocacy and research, as well as provide much needed support to the mesothelioma community, one that is all too often forgotten.
Enjoy this Thanksgiving with your loved ones, and encourage them to take part in this wonderful event with you. May God bless you and yours during this time of charity, hope, and love.
Mesothelioma Patients Can Be Thankful for Enjoying the Comforts of Home on Thanksgiving
Dealing with mesothelioma anytime during the year is challenging, but some patients find managing their illness during the holidays even more stressful. If you have been diagnosed with mesothelioma and you are able to be home during the holidays, you may find that simply sitting back and enjoying your own decor and your Thanksgiving Day traditions with friends and family can ease your stress.
The support and joy of family on Thanksgiving “fortifies the spirit” and helps someone battling a serious illness feel less isolated, according to an article from Assisted Home Care, Inc. Having friends and family members stop by for a visit or a meal allows the mesothelioma patient to participate in the festivities along with everyone else.
Other reasons for staying in your own home on Thanksgiving when dealing with cancer include:
- You Get A Break: Taking a break when in your own home is easy. If you are visiting someone else, you could feel like a burden if you have to leave early to rest. At home, however, you can slip away, take a nap, and return to the festivities.
- You Can Educate the Family: The holidays may be the only time of the year you see some of your family members. Instead of trying to hide your illness, use the time as a way to educate them about mesothelioma and the demands it can take on you. This can help everyone better understand your daily struggles and let them better understand how to support you.
- Take the Fear Away from the Youngsters: “Younger family members gain meaningful insight and learn new ways to adjust their own perspective when visiting an ill loved one during the holidays,” according to Assisted Home Care. By visiting you in your home, children will be less afraid of the situation, and can learn about your illness right along with the adults. Seeing how their loved ones are affected by sickness “can inspire compassion and empathy” in the children.
If you are in a mesothelioma treatment program, take advantage of the support services and counseling services offered to help you cope with the holidays. They can give you a healthy perspective on your feelings.
Even if you, or your loved one, are in the hospital over Thanksgiving, taking the time to think of something to be grateful for can lighten the mood. Make sure you let your family members know if you are up for guests. Taking care of yourself is important and knowing when to say “no” is critical to your health and well-being.
Warm wishes for an enjoyable Thanksgiving from all of us at MesotheliomaHelp.
Mesothelioma Nurse Thanks U.S. Veterans For Their Service
Veterans Day, November 11, 2017, is now in the books. This was the 64th time we have taken the day to honor U.S. Veterans who served our country. Some honored our veterans with memorial services and parades. Businesses and restaurants offered free meals, movies, or other services to show thanks. Countless Americans took the time to say thank you to the people they know for their service.
What many people don’t know is that of the 3,000 Americans who are diagnosed each year with mesothelioma, an asbestos-caused cancer, approximately 33% of them are veterans. Many were exposed to asbestos while serving our country. It can take decades after exposure to asbestos for mesothelioma to develop.
As a country, we owe a debt of gratitude to these fellow citizens who answered the call. We need to reach out to these men and women and listen to their stories. For some, the experience of war and the trauma they experienced was compounded by illnesses developed years later.
How can we help? Listen. The art of listening can be challenging for a lot of people. Active listening involves listening and responding in a way that improves understanding. Day to day we are all busy and we only half listen, distracted, while waiting for our turn to talk. A true listener takes the time to listen and then repeats what he thinks the other person said in their own words. The speaker then is able to understand that they have been heard.
In addition to “thank-you for your service,” maybe this year we could follow up with, “how about a cup of coffee, would like to hear about your service experience, if you would like to talk about it.”
Thank-you to all who have served, and the families that have supported them and sacrificed for all of us.
Make Thanksgiving Special In Honor of Your Loved Ones Lost to Mesothelioma
The holidays are a time to be with those you love. A time to laugh, reminisce about old memories, and create new ones that will be added to the collection. My family continues to do this, but with the realization that the group present has changed drastically over the past few years.
Now, there are empty seats at our table; not only my Dad’s, but also those of both of my Grandmothers. We lost all three of them in the last four years. Adjusting to their loss has been challenging on both sides of my family, who are intensely close. There is no division, only one group united in love.
Looking at a Thanksgiving turkey or a beautifully decorated Christmas tree still brings me joy, but it also makes me a bit sad knowing that some loved ones who would always play a hand in them aren’t here to make their usual contributions. There are songs and customs that lack something… someone.
It is never easy to lose a person that you love, someone who has played a pivotal part in your family, and therefore, a vital part in holiday traditions. Even as you carry on, it’s important to honor their memory by doing just that. Continue those things that they introduced you to; what a beautiful way to make their legacy last! Even though the framework may look a bit different at times, the meaning remains the same.
Do them with the same love and fervor that you did together. It will pass on to the next generation as well. Most of all, enjoy this special time with those you love; don’t forget those who are no longer there, but remember them with a grateful, joyful heart.
Alan Reinstein Ban Asbestos Now Act of 2017 Introduced in Senate
Linda Reinstein, co-founder and President/CEO of the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization, scored a victory in her fight for an asbestos ban when a group of senators introduced the Alan Reinstein Ban Asbestos Now Act (ARBAN) of 2017 early this month. Named for Reinstein’s husband who lost his life in 2006 to mesothelioma, an asbestos-caused cancer, the bill aims to have asbestos “taken off the market once and for all.”
Asbestos is a human carcinogen and exposure to the mineral is known to cause mesothelioma, asbestosis and lung cancer. Mesothelioma is a cancer caused by inhaling or swallowing asbestos fibers. There is as yet no known cure and researchers are seeking more effective treatments to manage the disease. Approximately 2,500 to 3,000 people in the United States are diagnosed with mesothelioma each year.
“It’s outrageous that in the year 2017, asbestos is still allowed in the United States,” said Senator Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), one of the sponsors. “It’s time for us to catch up to the rest of the developed world, and ban this dangerous public health threat once and for all.”
Many people erroneously believe asbestos use has been banned in the U.S., but a ruling in 1989 by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was overruled. Initially, the EPA issued a final rule included in Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) banning most asbestos-containing products. However, in 1991, most of the original ban on the manufacture, importation, processing, or distribution in commerce for the majority of the asbestos-containing products originally covered in the 1989 rule was overturned, according to the EPA.
Expert Insight
Linda Reinstein, ADAO
“It’s time to make asbestos a thing of the past in this nation once and for all.”
“ADAO is extremely thankful to Senator Merkley for championing the Alan Reinstein Ban Asbestos Now Act (ARBAN) of 2017,” said Reinstein in the Nov. 2 press release from Senator Diane Feinstein announcing the bill.
Reinstein has been a tireless advocate for the mesothelioma community, spending countless hours talking to government officials pleading for changes to the antiquated asbestos laws in the U.S. The Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization is a non-profit organization dedicated to education, advocacy, and community, with an end goal of banning asbestos in the U.S. ADAO is the largest independent organization dedicated to preventing asbestos-related diseases.
See a PSA video about the hazards of asbestos released by ADAO earlier this year.
According to the press release, the highlights of ARBAN include:
- Amend TSCA to require the EPA to identify and assess known uses of, and exposures to all forms of asbestos.
- Require that, within 18 months of enactment, the EPA must impose restrictions on the use of asbestos necessary to eliminate human or environmental exposure to all forms of asbestos.
- Within one year, disallow the manufacturing, processing, use or distribution of commerce asbestos other than described in EPA’s rule.
“We can no longer afford to wait, Congress must ban asbestos now,” said Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.)
Visit the ADAO website for more information and to find out how you can support the effort to ban asbestos.
Sources:
- EPA
http://www2.epa.gov/asbestos - ADAO website
http://www.asbestosdiseaseawareness.org/archives/19485 - Senator Diane Feinstein
https://www.feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=A3B14AFF-7679-4CAA-84EE-D5B26914E956
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