Dana Reeve - R.I.P.

[Shapley]

Dana Reeve, Widow of Christopher Reeve, and advocate for paralysis research, died yesterday of lung cancer. She was 44.

May she rest in peace. She has certainly earned it.

[lliam]

In 1995, she was thrust into the role as a very public supporter and caretaker for her husband, Christopher, when he was paralyzed in a horse-riding accident. After his death on October 10, 2004, she assumed the role of chairperson of the Christopher Reeve Paralysis Foundation, which funds research on paralysis and works to improve the lives of the disabled.

What a wonderful person she must have been.

[BigJon@Work]

Yes, a tough life was the last year's of Mrs Reeve. Worst thing was, she was not a smoker.

[piqaboo]

Hearing this on the radio this am made for a sad morning. All I could think was "that sucks."

[barfle]

Piq, that was pretty much my reaction. To go through what she did, and to get rewarded with lung cancer, well, that just plain sucks. The lady clearly had guts, class, and everything else positive except health.

And I can only imagine what her son must be going through.

[Junebug]

This is so sad. I've never heard of a non'smoker getting lung cancer! Has this happened to anyone you know?
June

[Selma in Sandy Eggo]

Yes, June, I've known non-smokers who've had lung cancer. I've also known non-drinkers with liver failure, and one guy who had breast cancer. It's sad, but true, that being statistically less at-risk for a given disease is no individual guarantee of avoiding it.

That sucks! just about sums up my reaction, too.

[barfle]

Although it seems a bit flippant under the circumstances, I can assure you I felt considerable loss when my cat died of lung cancer three years ago, and had never been around a cigarette, lit or not, as far as I knew, and I knew her for 18 years.

So, yes, smoking is not the only cause of lung cancer.

[shostakovich]

I share the shock and the sentiments about Dana Reeve. I also share the sentiments of love for a four-legged family member. We lost 3 cats in a period of 2 years. It was very tough. One of them was a particular chum, and I will never get over that loss.

Shos

[DavidS]

Originally posted by barfle:


So, yes, smoking is not the only cause of lung cancer.

In some parts of the world air pollution is so high that everyone living in those areas inhales the equivalent of 40 cigarettes a day (without being a tobacco smoker).

[BigJon@Work]

I live over one of the strongest sources of radon in the country, (the Reading Prong (no that's not a dirty term (even though it sounds like one.))) High concentrations of airborne radon have been implicated in lung cancer for non-smokers.

Sheesh! Punctuation of parenthetical statements is hard, (not that I mind hard tasks, (not that its hard in relation to, say, giving birth, but hard like school is hard (not that I found school hard (in fact I pretty much skated through school until I hit college (my college was in PA, but thankfully not located over the Reading Prong.)))))

<small>[ 03-08-2006, 01:38 PM: Message edited by: BigJon@Work ]</small>

[Trumpetmaster]

If I got the timeline correct, Dana's mom past away from cancer a few months after Christopher past away.... Maybe there is something genetic as a few months later she found out about the Lung Cancer....

Very sad.....

[piqaboo]

Originally posted by BigJon@Work:
I live over one of the strongest sources of radon in the country,

I take it your house is very well ventilated?

[DavidS]

Isn't radon a heavier-than-air gas that accumulates in underground structures, basements etc?

[piqaboo]

yup. So it takes serious airpumps to move it up out and away.

[barfle]

For those of us who actually HAVE a basement, radon isn't all that hard to keep out. It usually seeps in through floor drains, and a one-way flapper or even a trap is considered adequate to keep it out of the house.

Radon test kits are just little cans you leave sitting open on the basement floor for a few days, then put the cap on and mail it in to a lab.

I don't believe my cat's lung cancer was caused by radon, because we've tested clean, she didn't spend a lot of time in the basement, and neither of the other cats has had a problem.

And I know my cat didn't smoke.

[Trumpetmaster]

Barfle,
Where do you pick up the Radon kits...
I have never seen them... We have a basement and I am interested in doing this test.

tks,
TM

[BigJon@Work]

Originally posted by piqaboo:

Originally posted by BigJon@Work:
[b] I live over one of the strongest sources of radon in the country,

I take it your house is very well ventilated? [/b]

The actual concentration of radon in a basement varies widely depending on the immediate geology under your house. In my area, it is often required that houses be tested for radon before sale. High levels require remediation (usually a strong fan and some 6 inch duct to the top of the roof) before a mortgage can go through. Some unscrupulous sellers have been known to leave a few basement windows and doors open on the days of the test to make sure that they don't incur remediation costs before sale.

http://www.epa.gov/radon/
Pennsylvania Radon Info

[analog]

Sooooo much cancer around these days.
I'd guess that a hundred years ago a lot of it went undiagnosed.

Still, I wonder if it's related to the omnipresence of insecticide. Anybody know of an old cropduster?

We oldest Baby Boomers were very young when DDT became prevalent. Generation X may be the first to have lived since conception with today's levels of bugspray.

:confused:

[barfle]

Originally posted by TrumpetMaster:
Barfle,
Where do you pick up the Radon kits...
I have never seen them... We have a basement and I am interested in doing this test.

tks,
TM

Here's a place to start.