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Cancer Patient Patrick Swayze Is Smoking (Mad)

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thesciencegirl wields the truth like a mighty axe.
01/08/09

In reply to Cancer Patient Patrick Swayze Is Smoking (Mad)
I loved hearing about his love story with his wife; they seem like such a solid couple. When Barbara asked her how she would go on without him, I started to bawl.
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Brigit
01/08/09

@thesciencegirl: What? Who the fuck asks that? I'm seriously disappointed.
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Lirael
01/08/09

In reply to Cancer Patient Patrick Swayze Is Smoking (Mad)
The stress emotionally and physically from quitting smoking would not help him at all. His body is already in a weak state why ask it to try to deal with ciggie withdrawals when its just trying to remain running.

Although, I have worked in a doctors office before where we saw many lung cancer patients. These patients would come in REEKING of ciggie smoke and then turn around and say that they do not understand how they got lung cancer. Its unbelievable. At least Sawayze is aware of the consequences of his actions
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FourInchHeels
01/08/09

@Lirael: I don't know that smoking is a cause of pancreatic cancer (meaning I'm not sure if the cancer is a consequence of his actions) but I agree that it's frustrating to see people baffled about a clear, common, and direct consequence of an action.
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Jess A.
01/08/09

@FourInchHeels: In the special last night, they mentioned that smoking is known to be linked to pancreatic cancer. They had a doctor on, and Swayze himself acknowledged that he was aware of this (or at least made aware of it after his diagnosis).

Causes of cancer are complex, and it's not like his smoking habit -caused- the cancer. But yeah, there is a link there. You can develop more than just lung cancer from smoking.
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FourInchHeels
01/08/09

@Jess A.: Interesting! I knew smoking ruined a lot of things, but I wouldn't have guessed at the pancreas. Tricky little buggers, those cigarettes are.
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ellaesther
01/08/09

In reply to Cancer Patient Patrick Swayze Is Smoking (Mad)
A man I love very much -- father of my best friend -- was just told yesterday that his leukemia is in remission.

Hope is, in fact, a very fragile, very important thing. Mr. Swayze deserves (everyone deserves) much better treatment than he's been getting from those rags.
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Smitros
01/08/09

In reply to Cancer Patient Patrick Swayze Is Smoking (Mad)
Team Swayze.

Stage Four. As a line about this in The Sopranos went, there is no Stage Five.

I hope he has still has other pleasures as well.
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Brigit
01/08/09

In reply to Cancer Patient Patrick Swayze Is Smoking (Mad)
My heart goes to him and his family. He'll live as long as he'll live, they don't need people speculating on it. It's cruel, ruthless, and beyond bad taste.

My family is prone to certain types of cancer, and if anyone says something about the life expectancy of my currently_in_chemo_again_aunt I will seriously beat the person up. I'm non-violent as they come, but I adore that auntie of mine and she has fought cancer since her early 20's.
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brendastarlet is on it
01/08/09

@Brigit: the smartest docs do not give a prognosis. Every patient is different. The averages are only averages. Please give your aunt all the support you can, it makes a huge difference.
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MissPeacock
01/08/09

In reply to Cancer Patient Patrick Swayze Is Smoking (Mad)
I'd probably take UP smoking if I got that kind of diagnosis.
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Brigit
01/08/09

@MissPeacock: Seriously. If I'm going out is out with a bang! I'd have whiskey and a blunt for breakfast with the greasiest, fattiest, most delicious food I could get my hands on.
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rollergirl76
01/08/09

In reply to Cancer Patient Patrick Swayze Is Smoking (Mad)
And to all the people who are giving him shit about his smoking: Nobody puts Swayze in the corner.
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margareita metermaid
01/08/09

In reply to Cancer Patient Patrick Swayze Is Smoking (Mad)
That's pretty callous of her to rub that in. Not everyone (especially terminally ill patients) need to be PSA's. My respect for her has dropped considerably.

Well, i guess if i'd had any in the first place-- my hypothetical respect has dropped.
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Helen Skor
01/08/09

In reply to Cancer Patient Patrick Swayze Is Smoking (Mad)
I never heard the link between Pancreatic cancer and smoking before - that's interesting. And yet another reason to quit. My co-workers's mom just died from lung cancer (yes, she was a smoker), and he is on my case to quit. Is it bad that I just don't want to? I really enjoy smoking - a lot.
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brendastarlet is on it
01/08/09

@Helen Skor: please quit. Every cigarette is four minutes off your life. And, it also might affect mine, since I am deathy allergic to cigarettes. Back when there was smoking allowed on planes, I'd come home sick from every flight. So for both of us, please quite.
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Devonna
01/08/09

@Helen Skor: I hear you. I enjoy it too, just less than before. Nothing makes me want to smoke more than someone nagging about it, either.

I think it's just smoking in general increases one's risk of heart disease and ALL types of cancer. I have to quit by age 35, though, or my doc won't give me birth control pills.
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whynotshesaid
01/08/09

@Helen Skor: I really enjoyed it, too. Now, four years after I quit, when I do smoke an occasional cigarette, I have a hard time remembering why I liked it so much.
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katie.scarlett.o'hara
01/08/09

In reply to Cancer Patient Patrick Swayze Is Smoking (Mad)
Aw, I just noticed the tag for this! <3
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LindsayC: doctoral hilarity ensues
01/08/09

In reply to Cancer Patient Patrick Swayze Is Smoking (Mad)
He looks well- I hope he lives as long as he wants to. I also agree with him about not quitting- I tend to think that in the final days, one should do whatever gives them pleasure and if smoking does it, yay for you. I'll light you up myself.
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so5minutesago
01/08/09

In reply to Cancer Patient Patrick Swayze Is Smoking (Mad)
My grandma's doctor told her that cigarettes were going to kill her. Her response? "I'm 81!" Which is logic you can't really argue with!
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TheFormerJuneBronson
01/08/09

@so5minutesago: My grandfather had a mild heart attack two years ago, and his doctors immediately swarmed to get him to quit drinking (he has a couple of whiskeys every evening) and adopt a heart-healthy diet (he has eggs for breakfast every morning). The man's eighty-freaking-seven. He's eaten and drunk like that--and likely worse--since birth. He quit smoking at least thirty years ago, at least, but seriously. How much healthier could he get?

I come from freakishly long-lived people. My other grandfather drank himself to death, but it took him until he was 78, and then only because he hit his head and got pneumonia in the hospital. His widow, my grandmother, is nearly 88 and still in excellent health. His mother lived to be 98. His sister, my great-aunt Eva, is 102. I worry about a rash of funerals in the next five years or so, but not so much about my cholesterol.
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ellaesther
01/08/09

@so5minutesago: I have a friend who figures she'll try heroin when she's 75.
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jakesprincess
01/08/09

In reply to Cancer Patient Patrick Swayze Is Smoking (Mad)
I used to work with a woman who smoked heavily, as did her mother, who also worked at the same company we did. The woman became pregnant and ocntinued to smoke, saying that she was not about to give up ler lifestyle. I heard from a friend that when the baby was delivered the placenta was grey and shriveled as a result.

Then the woman's mother was diagnosed with breast cancer, and she continued to smoke as well. The doctor reasoned it would be more stressful for her to quit smoking while undergoing treatment. However, after the treatment concluded she continued to smoke.

I just can't help but think that both of these women were doing themselves and their families a disservice. And, on some level, our company and our health insurance premiums.
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LindsayC: doctoral hilarity ensues
01/08/09

@jakesprincess: Eh- my mom smoked through all of her pregnancies but mine and all three of us turned out fine and dandy. I'm not saying you should, but, you know, there was a time when everyone did it. Jeebus, I sound like my mom. HALP!
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EdnasEdibles
01/08/09

@jakesprincess: Man. That's rough. When you're only hurting yourself, that's one thing but when your smoking affects someone else--and not just with secondhand smoke--just freakin' quit. I've done it, it's not THAT hard.
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bluebears
01/08/09

@jakesprincess: yeah but there are so many unhealthy people out there who drive up health insurance premiums just as much if not more than smokers.
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katie.scarlett.o'hara
01/08/09

In reply to Cancer Patient Patrick Swayze Is Smoking (Mad)
He looks so old and sick. Sad.
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BabyJane
01/08/09

In reply to Cancer Patient Patrick Swayze Is Smoking (Mad)
I was a 2 pack-a day smoker for more years than I like to think about. (I quit cold turkey almost 2 years ago.) I totally see where he's coming from. If I were him, I'd probably keep smoking too.
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katie.scarlett.o'hara
01/08/09

@BabyJane (Suffered an identity crisis but is better now): That was my dad for more than 20 years, plus he has other lung and heart problems. He quit when I was 3 or 4, but I still worry about the consequences every day. It's been nearly 20 years since he quit, and he still has trouble breathing sometimes.
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sarah.of.a.lesser.god (aka Mrs. BrutallyHonestHobbit)
01/08/09

@BabyJane (Suffered an identity crisis but is better now): Serious congrats for quitting. I watched my dad and stepmom struggle to quit for fifteen years before they got it right.
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NefariousNewt
01/08/09

@sarah.of.a.lesser.god (2009: a space ovumlord): My mom quit when she got pregnant with me. My dad has never been able to successfully shake the habit, though he did go through a couple of long periods without smoking.
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BabyJane
01/08/09

@NefariousNewt: It's so hard. I tried for years before it finally took. I had to wrap my brain around the fact that I could live happily without cigarettes. Believe it or not, that's a tough concept to grasp.
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mfnher
01/08/09

@BabyJane (Suffered an identity crisis but is better now): That's how I feel. I only smoke when I drink, but I can't imagine just having a drink without the smoke. Unless I have a cigarette, I feel like I'm never having as much "fun" as I could be be having. Fun isn't really the right word. Smoking makes me feel like I'm doing something. It's very frustrating. It's not a pack a day habit, because I don't drink every day. I feel like the "I only smoke when I drink" excuse has made it harder to lay off.
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BabyJane
01/08/09

@mfnher: I was like that too. It's funny beacuse now I don't even care. I don't even mind when other people are smoking around me.@shivery: That is so true! I was fortunate that most of the people around me never bitched too much about my smoking. If they had it wouldn't have done any good, in fact it probably would have had the opposite effect. You have to be ready and want to do it in your own head.
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brendastarlet is on it
01/08/09

@BabyJane (Suffered an identity crisis but is better now): congrats for quitting. You can reverse a lot of the damage, according to what the docs think now.
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BabyJane
01/08/09

@brendastarlet is on it: Thanks. I've heard the real milestone is 5 years without smoking. I can't wait. The funny thing is, now that I've quit I worry about the damage that I've done to my health. When I was a smoker I wouldn't let myself think about the risks.
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brendastarlet is on it
01/08/09

@BabyJane (Suffered an identity crisis but is better now): stay hydrated, breathe lots of clean air, and stay out of smoky places. I'm proud of you.

@mfnher: quit now, and your lungs will thank you by the time you have to do your Lamaze exercises.
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