August Update

August Update 2011.

Dear All

Welcome to our new members and those new to the newsletter as well! Our thoughts are with all of you as we know there are some challenges happening at the moment!

Our next meeting is Wednesday September 7th at the Bays Hospital 7pm for 7.30. Gillian is going to have a chat about her experience at The Gawler Foundation, which will be fabulous.

A great night last month with Julie regan speaking about nutrition- I have attached her handout for your interest. Julie runs courses Food Fix at Morning Star Estate, Mt Eliza.

Jo and Deanne along with Kate Smith ( wig library) and Heather and Linda ( Peninsula Dragonflys) attended the BCNA National Member group Summit in August. It was a fabulous chance to catch up with old friends and meet new ones as well. We spent time with Jann Barkers friend Sue from up North. The days were long 7:30 start and 5: 30 finish! There were some inspiring speakers about women making a difference in society as well as helpful hints to rejuvenate us! We ventured out to Fitzroy Street and ended up at The Espy for a beer. The ‘farewell dinner for Lynne was at Powerhouse and Jo won a prize for the most uninhibited dancer (or as Dee said the daggiest dancer) no alcohol involved that night but flat shoes!!

Our day of healing is SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 10^th. It is a free day for you to come for all or part of the day 930-4.30 to experience some relaxation, massage, exercise, meditation, Reiki and perhaps some singing as well. The Yoga girls will bring lunch, if you could bring a plate of morning or afternoon treat to share that would be fantastic. Fruit platters, cheese as well as sweet treats. RSVP please but you can also come on the day or cancel if you are not well. Held at Eldon Park, Graydens Rd Tyabb. Phone/email Jo if any queries. You may like to share driving??

Linda Mills, Kate Smith and Jo attended Raelene Boyles happy 60^th with 1000 of her closest friends on July 1^st. It raised $430.00 for BCNA! We thought we may leave early as we were all a bit tired but managed to stay till 1:30am!!

October will be busy. Mornington Food and Wine festival is Sunday 16^th, the paperwork was submitted late so not sure if we have secured a place, will let you and the Peninsula Dragonflies know.

Cruden Farm Mini Field Morning Tea raising funds for the wig library is Friday 21^st we will run the BCNA table for them. Time is 10.30 and cost $15 (I think).

Breacan in October are offering:

Monday 10 October 11am–2pm

Ever wanted to write a journal, delve into prose or poetry or tell your story for posterity? This workshop will provide opportunities to try different creative writing exercises sure to help get your pen flowing across the page! It will be facilitated by Adele Hulse, former columnist with The Age, under the pseudonym Sharon Gray. Come prepared to write by hand, or bring a laptop if you prefer. Priority will be given to those women who have not participated in a Wordplay session before. Lunch will be provided, bookings essential.

Understanding a Naturopath’s Approach

Monday 17 October 12–1.30pm

“Natural” does not automatically make something safe. Naturopathy is a widely used complementary approach to dealing with fatigue, depression, anxiety and stress. Ann-Maree Bortoli and Sofie Mikosa, Naturopaths and Herbalists from Melbourne Holistic Health, will talk about these issues, as well as the symptoms of menopause, and discuss the new evidence on the role and safety of phyto-oestrogens in a very down to earth session. Bookings essential.

Meditation

Monday 31 October 12–1.30pm

You’ve probably heard about the benefits of meditation: clearer thinking, reduced stress, better health, relief from pain, deep relaxation and so on. Join Debbie Ling from the Melbourne Meditation Centre for an introductory session on “What Is Meditation?” so that you can learn how to effectively relax the body and calm the mind. Bookings essential.

Caring for Our Personal Energy

Thursday 27 October 4–6pm

Our energy is our greatest asset and resource. It is the gift of ourselves that we give to others and it is our gift to ourselves. When we are not energetically engaged we are going through the motions of life. At the point at which we run out of energy, we are no longer e_ective in our lives or able to take care of ourselves properly. Therefore it is important to have an understanding of how to manage our personal energy for our own wellbeing. Liz Crocker, an experienced psychologist, will present this session. Liz specialises in providing support to people dealing with cancer and assisting them to feel empowered in coping with their disease, its treatment and changes in their health.

From BCNA website :Do recurring cancers in women with breast cancer differ from their initial cancer?

Researchers from Fox Chase Cancer Centre in the United States have found that when a woman is diagnosed with a recurrence of breast cancer, their second tumour will vary from their initial tumour, and that health professionals should tailor the treatment to the second tumour not the first. The results highlighted that when researchers compared the first and second tumours, they found that the majority differed in key characteristics including whether the tumour will respond to hormone treatment. The results also highlighted that the amount of time being cancer free did not affect whether there were any differences between the first and second tumour. To read the abstract, visit Science Daily’s website. The research highlights the importance of pathology and how this can help to deliver a tailored regime to women diagnosed with breast cancer. To help you understand your pathology report, BCNA has developed a Pathology Fact Sheet as well as a Glossary of Pathology Terms.

Attitude - what is it?

Attitude is formed from your perception of the world.

Depending on how you perceive the world you will interpret and react differently to situations than someone who has a different view. Your attitude will affect how you think, how you feel and how you behave. Below is a quotation that you may like to reflect on to keep life in perspective and to keep you emotionally balanced. Enjoy!

Attitude, to me is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than success, than appearance, than giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company, a home, a relationship.

The remarkable thing is, we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day.

We cannot change our past. We cannot change the inevitable.

The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude.

I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me, and 90% how I react to it!

Author -unknown.

Stay Balanced

Joy Ball

Family Counsellor Mornington Peninsula PH: 0422 311 089 E: jbcs@live.com

W: ntpages.com.au/ familycounsellormornington

Nutrition

Recommendations from NSW Cancer Council

§ Maintain a healthy body weight

§ Be physically active for at least 30 minutes, most days of the week, including some vigorous activity

§ Aim for at least 2 serves of fruit and 5 serves of vegetables each day

§ Eat a variety of wholegrain, wholemeal and high-fibre foods such as cereals, breads, rice and pasta

§ Include dairy servings

§ Have moderate amounts of lean red meat and limit or avoid processed meat

§ Limit or avoid drinking alcohol

§ Choose foods low in salt, sugar and trans fats.

In summary:

Eat more

· Fruit, vegetables

· Whole grains - fibre – women: 25g, men 30g)

· Omega-3 fats

fish, walnuts, flax seeds & their oils, scallops, tofu, eggs, beans, (e.g. kidney beans) EVOO, krill oil

· Mono-unsaturated fats

olives, cold pressed olive oil, avocadoes/ oil, peanuts, its oil & butter, cashew nuts

· Some natural saturated fats

coconut oil, milk (and low fat), cream, butter, hard cheese (& low fat), sesame oil

Vital vitamins and nutrients

· Vitamin D3

· Calcium

· Folate

· Resveratrol – red grapes, green tea, nutmeg, garlic, all berries, tomato, kale, cherries, turmeric, parsley, artichokes

· Beta-carotene

· Selenium

Limit or eliminate

· processed and refined carbohydrates – especially sugar

· all hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils

· Industrially processed liquid oils such as soy, corn, safflower, cottonseed and canola

· Trans fats – fats & oils (especially vegetable oils) heated to high temperatures in processing and frying.

· Fatty processed meats – sausages, frankfurts, salami, bacon and ham. High in nitrates

· 65-100g cooked meat 3-4 times a week

· baked cereal-based foods such as cakes, pastries and biscuits

· salt

Healthy and/ or protective PP= probable protection PS=possible	Unhealthy and/ or increase risk PI= probable increased risk	Both/ questionable
Exercise	Overweight/ obesity
Fruit and vegetables
Fibre/ whole grains	Sugar, processed & refined foods
Calcium (dairy)	Limited, suggestive risk	Benefits outweigh unproven risks
Meat	Too much red meat, burnt meat	ü
Omega-3 fats	Saturated fats	Saturated fats – natural
Mono-unsaturated fats
Polyunsaturated fats	Polyunsaturated fats	Polyunsaturated fats
Soy – phyto-oestrogens * PS prostate & stomach	Soy – phyto-oestrogens	ü
Tea and green tea
Folate
Resveratrol
Beta-carotene
Selenium
Other antioxidants
Vitamin D – sun exposure	Too much sun
	Alcohol, smoking
	Salt (P - stomach cancer)

* Include: Isoflavonoids - found in legumes, with soy beans being the richest source.

Lignans - a constituent of dietary fibre, found mainly in nuts, seeds, legumes, cereals, vegetables, fruits.

Additives to Avoid

Artificial colours	Preservatives	Antioxidants	Flavour enhancers
102 tartrazine	200-203 sorbic acid and sorbates	310-312 gallates	620-625 Glutamates, MSG, HVP, HPP
104 quinoline yellow	210-213 benzoic acid & benzoates	319 TBHQ	627 Disodium guanylate
107 yellow 2G	220-228 sulphur dioxide & sulphites	320 BHA	631 Disodium inosinate
110 sunset yellow	249-252 nitrates, nitrites	321 BHT	635 Ribonucleotides
122 carmoisine	280-283 propionic acid & propionates
123 amaranth
124 ponceau
127 erythrosine
Natural colour
160b annatto

Julie Regan BAppSc (PE) GDipHumNut

0411245656 julie@foodfix.com.au www.foodfix.com.au

Peninsula Health Care Network (Frankston Hospital) will be offering a Living with Cancer Education Program this year. More information will follow when available. Several gals have been to these up in the city and have found them beneficial. There are sometimes separate sessions for when cancer has returned as well as an ‘early’ diagnosis.

Wig Library Recipe Book. We have received some great recipes and are still looking for more. If you would like to add a line about why it’s your favourite, or why it’s a wonderful idea for women to support other women through fundraising for the wig library we would like to hear from you. Sally Ann’s email to send them to is: mjrackham@dodo.com.au Sally Ann is our Pilates teacher who prints our brochure for free and will do the recipe book as well for free. This means all monies raised will go to the wig library!

Jo, Sue, Chris and your mates at Breast Intentions

June Update 2011

June Dear All

Our next meeting is Wednesday July 6^th at the Grand Hotel 7pm for dinner. Please RSVP jo.lovelock@bigpond.com. We have also booked the Seminar Room at The Bays from 2.30-4pm if any of you wonderful women who can’t make evenings would like to get together for a cuppa.

We hope this finds you managing the weather. There are quite a number of you undergoing treatment at the moment. Sue and Jo called in on Sonya and left some flowers at Monash as she has had further surgery. Please feel free to contact us or another group member or your buddy if you need to have a chat. Or bang off and email. Don’t forget 131120 Monday – Friday for the Cancer Council Helpline. The nurses are fabulous and they have a huge knowledge base to draw from!

Sue and Jos day at CCVic was about complementary and alternative therapy. No too much new info but their booklet is available call 131120 for a free copy.

Jo has registered for the BCNA National Member group Summit in August as there was no interest from the group. She is happy to attend as before and will come back full of enthusiasm (again!!) Dea is also attending as the ‘youngies’ representative so they hope to have some fun as well as roomies!!

Linda Mills, Kate Smith and Jo are attending Raelene Boyles happy 60^th with 1000 of her closest friends on July 1^st. It is a major fundraiser for BCNA and will report back afterwards!

October will be busy. Mornington Food and Wine festival is Sunday 16^th, Cruden Farm Morning Tea raising funds for the wig library is Friday 21^st,and the Pink Ribbon motorcycle ride is Sunday 23^rd. Jo is speaking to the boys in leather about the Indian experience, over at Point Cook so it could be fun....

Cancer Council Vic

Has an upcoming forum being run by Carers Victoria called Lasting the Distance.

The forum is for Carers of people with Cancer and will discuss strategies to help them manage the stress of caring. Date: Thursday 21 July Time: 6.00 - 8.00 pm

Venue: Austin Hospital, 145 Studley Street Heidelberg

Peaks and Valleys Emotions and Cancer

Live web chat for people affected by cancer

Date/Time: 4th August 2011 6.00pm-7.30pm

www.cancerconnections.com.au to register

Helpful hints from Cancer Council Vic

Cancer in the family: 10 ways to help your kids cope

Often in support groups, I am asked questions about how to talk to children about cancer, which approach is best, and how much is too much information. The tips below have been taken from the booklet “Talking to kids about cancer”. Please call the Helpline on 13 11 20 if you would like a full copy of the full booklet for your group.

1. Open the door

For many people, cancer is a long and uncertain journey. At diagnosis you may know little about your cancer, so it’s difficult to know what to tell your children. This means that telling your children about cancer is not a one-off event. It is an unfolding story, and your children will need regular updates as you find out more information. When you first break the news, let your children know they can come to you at any time with questions or concerns. Children often won’t say they are worried, so they need lots of chances to talk and for you to draw out those concerns. So it’s a case of opening the door to talk about cancer and trying to leave that door open throughout your cancer experience.

2. Don’t expect to be perfect

Talking to your kids about cancer can be confronting and upsetting. Sometimes it can be tricky to talk to them, and you may make a bit of a mess of it. Don’t panic. If things don’t work out the way you planned, take time to work out what you will do differently next time. Kids will cope if a conversation doesn’t go exactly as planned. And a setback can be a great chance for growth for both you and your kids. Give yourself a break – you weren’t a perfect parent before cancer and you won’t be a perfect parent after the diagnosis.

3. Let your kids ask questions

Try not to overload children with too much information at once. One way to avoid this is to give them small amounts of information, wait and then ask them if they have any questions. If they don’t, leave it at that. They may come back a day or two later to ask you a question. Answer their questions as accurately as possible, considering their age and experience of cancer in the family. If your kids know they can ask you anything at any time and you’ll do your best to answer, this opens the door for continued communication. It can help to show you appreciate their questions by saying something like: “You have such great questions.” Often children’s questions have a hidden meaning, so try to tease out the real meaning with responses like: “That’s interesting. What got you thinking about that?” You don’t have to immediately answer questions. If you don’t know the answer or want to think about it first, say you’ll come back with an answer. You could say something like: “That’s a really good question and I want to talk to dad/mum/the doctor. I’ll let you know what they say.” This shows that you welcome all questions.

4. Take every opportunity to communicate

Most parents know the times and situations when their kids are more likely to open up. For one child it may be bath or bedtime, for another it may be the walk or drive to school. Try to tap into those times and be creative in finding ways to talk to your children and find out how they are feeling. You don’t have to sit down and have a heart to heart, which children may find threatening. Sometimes the best conversations are in the car or while you’re doing the washing up. Tune into how your kids like to play, because games can often reveal a lot about what they are thinking and feeling. From sandpit play and journal writing to playing with toys or kicking a soccer ball, there are many ways to gently find out how your children are feeling. Art is also a great way to get kids talking. For younger children, you can ask them to draw a house, and draw each of the family members, so you start to get the picture of how they

see the family. All through your cancer journey there are ways to communicate with your kids that don’t involve talking. One of the best ways to communicate is to simply spend time with them.

5. Be honest and maintain trust

You can’t protect your children by avoiding the truth. Once you’ve established good communication about cancer, keep it going by being as open as you can, even if the news isn’t good.

6. Ask them what they know

Encourage your children to tell you what other people have said about your cancer. This gives you the chance to clear up any misunderstandings and, if they hear anything that upsets them, they know they don’t have to worry alone.

7. Set them straight

Children often worry that they caused a parent’s cancer. Make it clear that nothing they have done caused your cancer and nothing they do can affect the course of the cancer.

8. Show your love and emotion

As always, take every opportunity to tell your children that you love them. Assure them they will be looked after throughout your cancer treatment, even if you can’t always do it yourself. And don’t be afraid to show your emotions in front of your children. This shows them that it’s okay for everyone to show their feelings, and that you don’t always know what to do or say. It’s also important to show your children that you love them, with lots of hugs and spending special time together.

9. Preserve family time and change their routine as little as possible

Continue with your normal routines as much as possible. If you can, during treatment try to set aside time for the whole family as well as for each of your kids. Depending on your family, there may be many people coming to your house to help. This is great, but it is important to make sure that helpers don’t take over and visit too much. Sometimes it can be useful to let helpers know that a particular day or afternoon is family or quiet time. Tell your kids it’s okay to go about their life as usual – to see friends, play sport, do after-school activities and have fun. Welcome their efforts to help out at home but don’t take it for granted.

10. Be prepared to listen

When you’re talking about the cancer and treatment, remember to stop and listen to your children. Sometimes parents are so intent on talking about the medical information they don’t hear how their kids really feel.

On Wednesday 15 June, Cancer Council Victoria will launch a new Cancer Support Group for parents who have been diagnosed with cancer. The group, to be held in Hampton, will allow parents to discuss the challenges of parenting school aged children during and after a cancer diagnosis with others that have been through a similar experience

Registration is essential as places are limited. Contact 9635 5396 to register your interest today.

For more information, please contact Melissa Davis on (03) 9635 5549 or

Melissa.Davis@cancervic.org.au

Breast Reconstruction

There has been a lot of discussion about breast reconstructions. There was an article in the Verve magazine about different types of procedures. We know many doctors favour one type over another as their expertise lies in one area. The message was that there is no such thing as a best technique for any one patient. The method used must be tailored to the individual patient. It depends on the breast size, shape, and personal preferences. The gals that have had recos are willing to chat either face to face or online to those waiting.

Breacan are offering an information session on reconstruction and I recommend anyone interested to go along. If you are unable to attend they usually tape their sessions and then they are available via the library there.

When:Thursday, 14/07/2011 - 10:30am - 12:00pm

Where:Ground Floor, 210 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne, VIC, 3000, Australia

As a plastic surgeon, Dr. Hamish Farrow, consults with many women about breast reconstruction. In this session he will cover the factors women need to consider in deciding what is right for them, the different types of reconstruction available and new developments in reconstructive surgery.

Booking is essential.Phone 1300 781 500 or email breacan@breacan.org.au.

If you are not on the public waiting list please get on it!! You can always cancel and someone else move up the list. Whether you have health insurance or not, an option for no/less out of pocket expenses is to have surgery in a public hospital. The waiting list is supposed to be no more than 2 years although we know some gals have been waiting up to 7. BCNA are doing some research on this at the moment.

Other Brecan sessions coming up include

Clinical Trials 12.00-1.30 pm Wednesday 29 June

Anxiety 12.00-1.30pm Wednesday 20 July

Treatment for advanced cancer options and opportunities 12.00-1.30pm Thursday 28July

Coffee cupcakes and connections for women living with advanced breast or gynaecological cancer

10.30-12.00pm Monday 12 September
Visit http://breacan.org.au/ or telephone 1300781500

Peninsula Health Care Network (Frankston Hospital) will be offering a Living with Cancer Education Program this year. More information will follow when available. Several gals have been to these up in the city and have found them beneficial. There are sometimes separate sessions for when cancer has returned as well as an ‘early’ diagnosis.

We are hoping that Julie Regan a nutritionist will visit at the August meeting. If anyone has specific questions they would like answered could you email them to Jo and then we will have a reply!

Wig Library Recipe Book. We have received some great recipes and are still looking for more. If you would like to add a line about why it’s your favourite, or why it’s a wonderful idea for women to support other women through fundraising for the wig library we would like to hear from you. Sally Ann’s email to send them to is: mjrackham@dodo.com.au Sally Ann is our Pilates teacher who prints our brochure for free and will do the recipe book as well for free. This means all monies raised will go to the wig library!

Jo, Sue, Chris and your mates at Breast Intentions