Posted on 09/13/2007 8:21:01 PM PDT by Rennes Templar
WASHINGTON -- Republican presidential candidate Fred Thompson has a rare type of cancer that specialists say is incurable but not life-threatening over the short term.
Although the 65-year-old former senator and actor says his disease is in remission, studies of other cases indicate that it's likely to return within the next two to five years.
But cancer experts say his malignancy -- a slow-growing disruption of the immune system known as non-Hodgkin's lymphoma -- can be well managed with drugs and needn't interfere with normal activities.
They say Thompson has an excellent chance of survival for at least five to 10 years, based on the experiences of other patients reported in medical journals.
"My understanding is you can expect to live a normal life expectancy," Thompson said Sunday on his campaign bus. But he acknowledged that "it's something that is always potentially there."
Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma is a type of cancer that begins in the cells of the lymph system, a complex network of specialized cells whose task is to detect and destroy invading microbes.
For unknown reasons, some lymph cells occasionally run amok, traveling through the body and forming cancerous lumps that interfere with the immune system.
Sometimes these unruly cells grow rapidly, causing an "aggressive" non-Hodgkin's lymphoma that's often fatal. Sometimes the growth is slow, leading to a case of "indolent," or painless, lymphoma. This is the kind that Thompson has.
-snip-
Thanks to improvements in treatment, patients are surviving longer than they used to. The five-year expected survival rate of 63 percent is up from 48 percent 30 years ago.
Thompson's cancer was detected in 2004, as a lump in his neck. It later spread to other areas. His doctor prescribed a new drug, Rituxan, which drove the disease into remission.
(Excerpt) Read more at sacbee.com ...
....which is exactly what they want you to conclude from this hit piece.
I am a cancer survivor. Fred is doing very well and this is nothing more than someone trying to make Fred look weak. They did the same thing to Cheney.
Fred will be fine. Fred is a survivor. He would not have put himself in the race if he believed otherwise.
Also remember, Rudy had cancer too. Rudy is a survivor. Now enough with this attempt to make Fred look weak.
FRED THOMPSON 2008
No to some it robs one of the joy of life because you cannot keep up with your peers in energy even if the mind is willing the body can not always meet the goals!
I think the Serenity Prayer works in this situation of health!
Five to one, baby, one in five.
No one here gets out alive, now.
You get yours, baby, I’ll get mine.
Gonna make it, baby, if we try.
Jim Morrison
Just want to clarify that this is not my belief, I was being sarcastic over the tone of the article. ( /sarc is the general saying for ‘sarcasm off’)
This is a shameless piece that pretends it cares, but it’s intent. is to kindly destroy Fred Thompson.
D’oh. It was widely reported that Fred had been dieting and working out more in preparation for going on the road campaigning. He’s not ‘sickly’ looking—he’s HEALTHY looking.
This reminds me of all those people who are ready to put Tony Snow in the ground as well. Cancer is NOT the death sentence it once was years ago. THANK GOD.
Amen
Earlier on, way before Fred announced, experts said that there was no reason that Fred’s illness should keep him from running. This piece is a pretty lame, weak, and too late to have an impact.
folks please stop using the healthy fred for your photoshops. It is what it is. The fred of his senator years was a real vibrant and attractive candidate. I am not so sure if that’s the case today.
That was one good looking man until the drugs got him.
This is absolute crap and if you are not a doctor and fully informed, don’t post it!
I am a doctor and please copy and paste all non-factual statements in the article here.
Claiming to have personal knowledge about a specific individual’s medical condition and then publishing it is HIGHLY unethical.
I assume you have no direct knowledge of Fred Thompson’s medical status or you are in beach of medical confidentiality and should be subject to sanction.
ping for your reading.
You forgot the sarcasm tag, Bill.
Interesting and potentially disturbing.
I hope that Thompson can continue to prevail against this.
On the other hand, the MSM is so bad (this paper included) that I am very skeptical of anything that they say.
Good news. But like other people who lose weight, like Star Jones, it takes a while to get used to looking at them that way.
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