Saying Goodbye to a Friend

 2020 can just stop.  It seems that every time we turn around more bad news piles up.

Devastating Wildfires scorching homes and hearts.

Destructive Volcanoes and Earthquakes rattling our peace.

Pandemics and Fear squeezing the breath right out of us.

Quarantines and Suffering continuing to haunt.

So many plans that were abruptly changed or cancelled... the weddings, the birthdays... the trips, the visits... and funerals that hung in limbo for much too long. 

The world stood still while our heartaches mounted.

Yesterday we were served yet again another dose of bad news.  Hard news.  News that we perhaps knew was coming, but nevertheless caught us off guard.

Alex Trebek lost his long battle with pancreatic cancer this weekend past.

And it made my heart falter a bit when I heard the news.

Alex Trebek felt like a friend.  We invited him into our home every evening after supper and he never failed to entertain...and educate us!

His charm and dry wit and kindness on the long-time set of Jeopardy has been a staple in our lives for decades, passed down from our parents... I can remember a sweet Mother-in-law who loved his show and could pose questions to his answers faster than we could look them up on google!

We have followed his pancreatic cancer journey with hope as he passed the dreaded 3-6 month prognosis and then a year, and 18 months... we dared to believe he would be one of the few who beat this cancer and could pave the way for others to find a treatment that worked.

Our hearts go out to his family and friends who loved him well.

He will be mssed by so many.

Mike Richards, the executive producer of Jeopardy, shared his thoughts in a touching tribute last night before Alex Trebek's final Jeopardy episode series began.

"He loved this show and everything it stood for.  In fact, he filmed his final episodes less than two weeks ago.  He will forever be an inspiration for his constant desire to learn, his kindness and for his love of his family."

And now, he will also be the face of hope to all those fighting this deadly disease.

He chose to meet his cancer head-on and through his transparent, honest updates, he has encouraged all of us to stand up and do something about this cancer.

Pancreatic Cancer research is one of the least funded cancers and the 5-year survival rate is dismally still in the single digits. That needs to change, and Alex was determined to use his platform to make a difference.

With his death, the torch has been passed to us.

We can and must make a difference for all those in the fight of their lives...

Pancreatic Cancer does not get the final say.

During an interview earlier this year, Alex Trebek said his final sign-off will be a significant moment for him, sharing these parting words,

"And until we meet again, God bless you and goodbye."

Waging Hope Together

If you've been hanging around here for very long, you'll know that we are Big Supporters of  The Pancreatic Cancer Action Network.  There are many great organizations out there... we have just been drawn to PanCan's mission statement over and over again.

They are passionate and dedicated about fighting this monstrous cancer and hit it on all fronts...

- Research
- Clinical Initiatives
- Patient Services
- Advocacy

Their ambitious goal is to double pancreatic cancer survival rates by the year 2020... Funds will be used to:

- develop early detection tools and better treatment options
- push for more federal funding for pancreatic cancer research
- increase funding for patient services, such as the Know Your Tumor program and options to join clinical trials targeted to match patients needs.
- focus attention on pancreatic cancer and help patients and their families Wage Hope and rewrite the future of pancreatic cancer survival.

And PanCan fund raises with a ferocious urgency to push forward the research that will take us to that cure.

The cure is so close!

Each year the PanCan Research Fund awards grants to scientists in an effort to advance the field and pursue breakthroughs in pancreatic cancer treatment.

This year's Grant Recipients for the PanCan Research Fund are:

Please join us in welcoming this year’s new grantees and sharing this announcement:

2018 Skip Viragh Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Catalyst Grant
Andrew Aguirre, MD, PhD
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Functional Genetic Discovery of Novel Targets in Pancreatic Cancer

2018 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Darren Carpizo, MD, PhD, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
Co-PI: Patrick Mehlen, PhD, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1
Investigating Netrin-1 as a New Therapeutic Target in Pancreatic Cancer

2018 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Catalyst Grant
Iok In Christine Chio, PhD
Columbia University Medical Center
Targeting Redox Status and mRNA translation in Pancreatic Cancer

2018 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Michael Curran, PhD
MD Anderson Cancer Center
Pro-Inflammatory Conversion of the PDAC Microenvironment

2018 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Sharon Gorski, PhD, British Columbia Cancer Agency Branch (BC Cancer)
Co-PI: Robert Young, PhD, MC, FRSC, Simon Fraser University
ATG4 Family Members as Therapeutic Targets for Pancreatic Cancer

2018 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Scott Lowe, PhD
Sloan-Kettering Institute for Cancer Research
Targeting p53 Mutations in Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma

2018 Skip Viragh Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Career Development Award
Karen Mann, PhD
Moffitt Cancer Center
RBFOX2-Mediated Alternative Splicing in Pancreatic Cancer Metastasis

2018 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
George Miller, MD
Co-PI: Shohei Koide, PhD
Perlmutter Cancer Center at NYU Langone
Central Role of TIM4 in Driving Immune Tolerance in Pancreatic Carcinoma

2018 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Translational Research Grant
Kenneth Shroyer, MD, PhD
Stony Brook University
Keratin 17 Is a Novel Actionable Target in Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma

Promoting the next level of treatments... Pushing towards the cure, a bit closer every day!

We call this SUCCESS of the best kind.  Thank you PanCan for all you do on our behalf.

And that is Good News for today,

Always,
        Jane

Pancreatic Cancer Call to Action!

Throughout the past few years on this blog and website, I have heard from family members who are struggling to walk out this journey with their loved ones.  It is heart-wrenching to know that pancreatic cancer is still devastating lives today.  We feel weak and impotent against the ravages of this disease.  We would give anything to escape the heartache, but are helpless to stem the relentless advances of this vicious cancer.  Many ask what can be done...  Where is a better treatment?  When will there be a cure?  How do we survive this?

Today you can take a small step and begin to fight back.

Today you can let pancreatic cancer know its days are numbered.

Today is the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network National Call-In Day 2014.

Let your voice be heard.  There must be an increase in funding for medical research to fight this deadly cancer.  We are the voice of our loved ones.  While they are in the trenches using antiquated treatments, struggling hard against the odds, we must give voice to the fight.

When mom passed away, she was being given the same treatment used 20 years ago for pancreatic cancer.  20 years ago.  That is ancient medicine in today's technology driven world.  We need that break-through.  And one way to get it is to increase the support and funding for medical research.

There is a cure.  It is not too late for those in the fight.

I spent about 10 minutes this morning placing calls to my Congressmen in Texas.  Sharing our heart on this subject is vital.  Our Senators and Representative need to hear from families that are going thru this struggle.  They need to know it's personal, it's our heartbeat, it's our loved ones...

The Pancreatic Cancer Action Network makes it easy to find your representatives.  Just click here to access your state's listings... Then make a short phone call...

Here are some easy Talking Points if you're not sure what to say when you call...

1)	Hello, my name is [FIRST] [LAST]. I am from [YOUR CITY & STATE] and am calling to support the nearly 500 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network volunteers who are on Capitol Hill today, June 17th.
2)	I'm calling to urge Senator [LAST NAME OF SENATOR] to support at least $5.26 billion in funding for the National Cancer Institute (NCI) in FY15.
3)	I also ask that the senator support the inclusion of pancreatic cancer in the Department of Defense's Peer-Reviewed Cancer Research Program (PRCRP), and to ensure that the program receives at least $25 million in funding as it did last year.
4)	Finally, I want to urge the senator to show his/her support for these issues by joining the new Congressional Caucus on Deadliest Cancers chaired by Representatives Anna Eshoo (D-CA) and Leonard Lance (R-NJ). Membership is open to both Senators and Representatives.
5)	You can learn more about this new caucus and the growing threat of deadly cancers like pancreatic cancer at a congressional lunch briefing this Thursday, June 19th at 12:00 noon in the Rayburn Office Building (Room 2218). I urge you and your health staff to attend.
6)	Please deliver my message to the senator. Thank you very much for your time.

To be honest, you don't need to use any of the talking points.  Just tell your story.  Share your fight.  Let them know this is so very, very personal... It's a small step in the journey, but can have profound long-reaching significance. 

Walking this Journey together... Graced to Fight alongside each and every one of you...

My Love,
            Jane

His name is Jack...

Ok... I don't normally get carried away by teen-agers and science fairs.

But this... this is simply amazing.

If you have been touched by pancreatic cancer, you must watch this video...

His name is Jack.  He just won the top honor at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair for discovering an early detection test for pancreatic cancer.

His reaction is beyond touching.  But did you hear what he won it for?  Yes?!!!

An. Early. Detection. Test. For. Pancreatic. Cancer....

A test that is simple, costs only pennies, and is almost completely accurate in detecting pancreatic cancer BEFORE it becomes invasive.

Did I mention that he is only 15?  And his reaction cracks your heart into happy just a little?  Ok... be sure to watch the video until the end.  After all the "fun" of accepting his award, Jack shares his story and why it was so important for him to develop this test...

Jack's test for pancreatic cancer is a simple paper strip test (think diabetic test strip).  Using blood or urine, it tests for the presence or level of mesothelin, a pancreatic cancer biomarker.  The test takes only about 5 minutes to run, and currently is about 90% accurate in detecting the mesothelin.  According to Jack, the test is also 168 times faster than current tests, 400 times more sensitive, and 26,000 times less expensive.

He's only 15.  His excitement is contagious.  Sometimes it just doesn't take billions of dollars or teams of brilliant scientists.  Just one boy, a passion and a purpose...

Is this the medical break-through that Pancreatic Cancer patients have been waiting for?  Maybe.  Perhaps.  But before we can lay claim to this tantilizing hope, his discovery must go through much, much more testing... His mentors at John Hopkins warn that it may take years for his Early Detection Test to arrive on the market.

That feels just too, too long!

Even so, there is no denying that Hope is hovering on the Horizon...

Thank you Jack Andraka for putting a smile in my heart today!

The Hope of our Hearts

This month Hope has come calling for Pancreatic Cancer patients everywhere... It is Hope for a medical break-through.  Hope for early testing and detection.  Hope for more effective treatments.

Hope for a Cure...

     ...in the form of the Recalcitrant Cancer Research Act which was signed into Law on January 3, 2013.

It is Hope that not one more family struggles with this vicious disease; not one more wife, mother, husband, brother, daughter, grandpa or grandma faces the cruel bite of pancreatic cancer.

Will it happen tomorrow?  No...Research takes time.  But I believe with all my heart that it will happen.  For research also takes money and scientists and laboratories.  And the Recalcitrant Cancer Research Act offers the resources to make it so.  More money to fund the scientists and clinical trials, more time in the labs to crack the grip of this deadly cancer.   Mom would have given a war whoop of approval.  It is the first step in the right direction.  It is strength garnered from the many, the gathering up of the forces, the circling of the brilliant...in this fight it will take all to make a difference.  And it is coming...

The Hope of our Hearts...

Paul knew that kind of Hope.  In Ephesians he pressed the saints to hold on to it.  In the midst of the mess, the hurt, the broken...Paul painted in words the Hope that we are all called to...

I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you,

He has called us to Hope even as we walk the cancer road, the painful road, the grieved and broken road...

Where is Hope here?  In the dark places, the hurting places...

Can Hope be found?

Yes, even here.  Hope calls us, entreats us to look beyond the now into...

 ...the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe.
           ~ Ephesians 1:18-19

His power is great, His Hope is the catalyst for mending the broken.  And I am chief among the broken.  Hope blooms fresh in Faith, bridging the gap between our now and the eternal...

A Glorious Inheritance... Unspeakable.  Unimagineable.  Beauty and Rest and Purpose and Wholeness that we can barely conceive...

When we weary in the journey, His Hope, this Glorious Hope, whispers to aching hearts.  Look up, look around, I am here, I have always been... You are not alone.  My Love stretched out arms wide for you.  To give you Hope.  Right where you are.

It is the Hope of our Hearts...May you be lifted up above the brokenness of life's circumstances and find His Love immeasureably able to carry you through...

Graced in Hope this day, 
                    Love Always, Jane 

Purple Stride...Boston Style!

Michele, this Shout-Out is for you!!

One of the most surprising blessings of mom's journey has been the chance to meet so many wonderful, courageous and giving people.  When we were in the trenches fighting desperately for healing and strength and sanity, this village of beauty simply rose up and wrapped their love around us.  How many times did mom just lean back and smile as a neighbor popped in with a meal, or an email arrived to cheer the day, or a cyber friend "knocked" on the door for an update... And many of these cyber friends knew all too well the struggle we faced, for they were right there in the trenches with us. 

And that's how we met Michele.  Compassionate, daring and generous...She is the daughter of a mom who has fought pancreatic cancer.  She knows a little about the battle...And without hesitation, she decided to do something about it.  Michele will be participating in PurpleStride Boston on August 26, 2012 to raise awareness and funds for this most deadly of diseases.

Michele shares her mom's story on her fundraising page and it is the kind of inspiration that we need to hear.  In a follow-up email this weekend, Michele said,

"I am willing to do whatever it takes to help with the fight against Pancreatic Cancer. My mom went to the Cancer Center yesterday and had a PET/CAT scan.  Everything is still clear and her tumor markers are at 19.  YEAH!!!  Let's pray that this stays like it is.  I am so thankful for The Cancer Treatment Centers of America.  Please, if you would...mention that they are remarkable.  They treat all cancers but, at least there is still HOPE for the Pancreatic patients if there is none where they live."

There is HOPE.  I hear it loud and clear.  Michele's mom has been given that second chance.  And with each day, each dollar dedicated to research, each person tuning in to the need, there will be many more second chances.

Not everyone will be able to participate in a PurpleStride event.  That's Ok.  Not everyone will be able to give for research.  That's Ok. 

But...everyone can spread the HOPE.  In your own way, in your own time, in your own place...

Be the HOPE that someone desperately needs today.