cancer and trumpet playing

[johannestrpt]

Hey there
Dont know if this is the right place to ask about this. But has anyone here gone through cancer treatment and played trumpet at the same time. How did it go and so on.

Sincerly Johannes

[CRoberts8]

Chemo and/or radiation effects everybody differently.

It would be a case-by case basis...depending on the person and the level of treatment.
_________________
Charles Russell Roberts
Trumpet, Gaudete Brass Quintet
www.gaudetebrass.com

[Dave and the Abstract Tru]

Every cancer treatment is different.

I just finished 12 weeks of chemotherapy to treat a germ cell tumor in my chest. First, I had a tumor the size of a grapefruit in my chest. It made it tough to breathe, so I had a tough time playing. Second, my particular protocol--Bleomycin, Etoposide, and Cisplatin--caused a lot of nausea and fatigue. Broken up over the course of 12 weeks, I was strong enough to play for about 2 weeks. Again, because of the size and location of the tumor, I still couldn't play. That was during treatment.

Now, I've been off for a while. In addition to the 12 weeks of treatment, I have been recovering for the last 4 weeks (total is up to 16), and I didn't play during the 4 weeks prior to treatment because of symptoms, hospital stays, and surgeries (final total is 20 weeks). As a reference, I have been playing for 13 years (I'm 23), and I graduated from college May 2005 with a degree in Music Education. I played a lot, and I was in good shape (or so I thought). I tried to play for the first time last night. It was ROUGH! I got lightheaded going through long tone exercises, my range was greatly diminished, and articulation was weak. I was just weak in general.

So, in short, I couldn't play at all during (though I've spoken with guys that continued to play professionally during treatment), and playing after is going to be tough too.

Again, the diagnosis, treatment, and recovery process is going to be different for everyone. There is no easy treatment process. Even the least difficult ones will still be tough.

By the way--
My health is much better now. Tomorrow I'll know more. My doctor and are going over C/T scans to see if there's any tumor left. There is a protein level that the doctors monitored that indicated how active my tumor was. I was told that that level should be under 8 (8 whats, I don't know--percent, parts per million, etc. No one told me). In March, my level was 208. As of last Wednesday, it was 6.35. I feel much stronger now than I have in 5 months.

I don't know if this is too much information that nobody asked for, but I've found out that if you're going to tell someone you have/had cancer, you have to include the fact that you're feeling better now or it sounds too dark.

Good luck. It won't be easy, but it will be worth it when you're healthy again.

[johannestrpt]

thanks for great reply guys never to long i guess. I have hodgkins type of a cancer i have been able to play fully with it although my endurance suffer alittle.

[Trumpeter58]

As a "comebacker" I've been playing regularly for over three years while taking hormone therapy for advanced prostate cancer that metastisized to my bladder and three places in my bones. Due to the advanced state at the time of discovery (Stage D on May 5, 2003) and the agressive nature of the cancer I couldn't have chemo or radiation because the amount necessary to be effective would have been certainly fatal. Barring discovery of a cure, even if I should be delcared as being in remission I'll have to take the 91-day interval hormone ablation injections for the rest of my life. Though I've grown somewhat used to it, the side effects of the drug still kinda knock my stamina and energy levels down to where a serious two-hour reherasal or a one-hour concert warrants a nap afterward. I count my blessings daily for the rather phenomenal response I've had to the hormone therapy, and that the closest the cancer spread to my respiratory system was into my lower right rib.
_________________
"Blowing" my retirement away.
"All that we know is infinitely less than that which we have yet to learn."

Blessing ML-1S
Olds Special NA 100ZU
Holton Collegiate cornet (circa 1953)
Olds NF13MRT Flugel
Monette STC1-B4S

[Bill Dishman]

The statement that the treatments affect each person differently is very true in my experience. I was diagnosed with lymphoma about two years ago. (Adnoids and tonsils) Surgery and a rigorous chemo series of 24/7 for 8 days and 20 days off for several months followed by radiation treatments twice a week for a few months.

I kept playing throughout and did not miss any performances but was definitely affected and I did not do any solo work. Played 2nd parts in orchestra and quintet and church work and fell into a support mode in band playing rather than solo and section leader situations. Did miss quite a few rehearsals as well.

Fallout from the treatments definitely affected me but as playing the horn was the only "normal" thing I could do I held onto it vigorously!

The radiation affected my saliva glands to the extent that everything was very dry all the time and I had to deal with this. Fatigue (bodily) was a big concern. A two hour rehearsal was more of a marathon for me.

18 months after finishing treatments and being clear, things are getting back to normal. Saliva glands are still a little malfunctional but improving.
Stamina (both physical and chop wise) are improving.

So keep in mind "This too shall pass!"

Bill Dishman
Gainesville, Florida

[_dcstep]

May God bless all those going through this type of treatment. Have courage and let your trumpeting be one of your motivating forces toward complete recovery.

Dave

[Trumpeter58]

After going back and re-reading the other posts I feel that I should add that within 7 weeks following initiation of hormone therapy my PSA reading plunged from 549.7 to 6.4! My doctor was not only rather amazed, he acknowledged that there is a power at work here that is far greater than anything modern medicine can offer. Even so he cautioned us that though the hormone therapy has a history of working very well for periods ranging from a few weeks to many years, in my case he did not think "years" was a realistic consideration. That was over three years ago, in June 2003. By August 2003 my PSA had dropped well into normal range (0.0 to 4.0). The inoperable tumor attached to the bottom of my bladder had "shrunk dramatically" and was no longer compressing the ducts connecting my kidneys to my bladder, so the stints that were installed in May 2003 to allow my kidneys to drain were removed instead of being replaced with new ones. My case was labeled as highly atypical and prognosis was changed from terminal within one year to that barring discovery of a cure I will most likely die with cancer, but am at least as likely to die from some other cause. A bone scan peformed Feb. 14th of this year showed that the cancer in the bone of my right thigh, right hip and lower right rib detected by three previous scans is gone. I undergo a new C/T scan July 30th to get a new view to see if the tumor is still there. I anticipate good news, as I believe God has a purpose for me and my trumpet and/or flugel that I have yet to realize. He'll let me know according to His timetable.

For anyone who might take exception to the last two sentences...I know what I know.
_________________
"Blowing" my retirement away.
"All that we know is infinitely less than that which we have yet to learn."

Blessing ML-1S
Olds Special NA 100ZU
Holton Collegiate cornet (circa 1953)
Olds NF13MRT Flugel
Monette STC1-B4S

[Tuningbell]

Hello Everyone-
I know with Wayne Bergeron's diagnosis and the passing of Ryan Anthony cancer is in our community as it is in all communities. I know there are some cancer experts on this site and was hoping for some insight into something that just made me burst into tears. I was diagnosed with Ann Arbor Stage 3 NHL in my abdomen and groin. With suspicion of co-occurring DLCBL and CD 10 Follicular Lymphoma. The Follicular is confirmed by biopsy the DLCBL is suspected by PET scan SUV values. Anyway, I tried to play today and my lips are numb! Could barely feel a buzz. Honked out a few notes but couldn’t really play and felt disconnected to the horn. Is RChop neuropathy only hands and legs or could I experience it in my lips? I no longer play as a pro for a living but was hoping to be able to nourish my soul and spirits by playing Christmas carols, hymns and the blues ( for obvious reasons) I’m not experiencing any other neurological issues and actually feel pretty good after my first treatment. 5 more to go. Any insight on this would be helpful. I’ll be discussing this with my Haematologist as well. Cheers - john

[Vin DiBona]

I consider myself lucky. The cancer I had was encapsulated in my left kidney.
The surgeon intended to remove the small tumor, but the MRI was not accurate and the tumor was too deep to remove cleanly, so he had to remove the kidney.
No other treatment was required.
R. Tomasek

[Andy Del]

As has been mentioned, a trip down cancer lane is very personal, and these days, treatment is likewise very targeted for each patient.

I was rather lucky in 2013 to have a squamous cell carcinoma on the base of my tongue that genetically speaking would respond well to treatment (HPV markers if you are curious). That treatment was some 10 weeks of weekly chemo and 5 days/week of radiotherapy.

Oddly enough, chemo was a breeze. Being pumped full of anti-emetics for a couple of hours each treatment may well have helped as Carboplatin isn't the nicest of drugs. Radiotherapy was far tougher, resulting in deep burns to neck tissue, trashed saliva glands, no sense of taste and dental damage. And a PEG tube to eat drink my coffee from. I took 5 weeks off work and returned for 2 days a week before summer break, and by the start of the new school year was in a reasonable place.

Returning to playing after 8 weeks off was tough, but with a 6 week deadline to recover for a Christmas Oratorio, it helped focus my intent and see a huge recovery there as well.

It took 5 years before I could say I had recovered as much as I was going to. That includes:

Relearning to taste - it seems normal now
Saliva returning - can eat with out constant sips of water
Neuropathy in spine and neck gone - just the odd cramp now and then
All clear on scopes and PET scans

Playing-wise, there are things I can do now I couldn't before, and some things have become harder... such is getting old and creaky. Range and piccolo is up. Agility from extremes, especially moving into low register is down, flexibility is up, intonation is up, sound quality... not too sure. Natural trumpet is WAY up, flugel has become a SOB...

Bottom line is mental approach. Mine was to go with the flow, not to question and go down the 'why me?' path and treat it as a journey.

And now to step off my zimmer framed soap box...

cheers

Andy
_________________
so many horns, so few good notes...

[Brad361]

I’ve had some email communication with Wayne Bergeron (I ordered one of GR Studio mouthpieces from his website). In the course of discussion, I asked him about his cancer situation, he mentioned that he had received good news, a recent scan was clean.

Good news for both Mr. Bergeron and the trumpet world!

Brad
_________________
When asked if he always sounds great:
"I always try, but not always, because the horn is merciless, unpredictable and traitorous." - Arturo Sandoval

[Tuningbell]

I am now 10 days past my first treatment and my chops feel much better. I’m playing better and although endurance is less the sensation in my face and chops is normal. My Dr. Said that as long as any numbness anywhere in the body resolved in a few days that it was OK to continue this treatment course.

[FatherCharles]

[Basmundi66]

I had tonsil cancer in 2018. I went through radical 6 week treatment . I could not play for a while cos my throat was very sore. I went back to playing about three months after. I get a lot of pain still in my neck and front of my throat. It's been 5 years now and if I blow for more than 2 hours I'm in a lot of pain. The problem is radiation therapy causes long lasting issues that get worse not better. It's quite scary when you read up what it can cause . It's not putting me off playing though . Hope this helped
Barry the trumpet man Johnson
_________________
Barry Johnson

[Eli’s Coming]

I went through radiation treatments last year. Never missed a beat with respect to practicing and playing but fatigue was a factor. I don’t think I could have performed back to back to back gigs. Fortunately I only had a couple of gigs during treatment.

[peanuts56]

I was diagnosed with melanoma on my forehead just above my left eye in 2011. I had a large patch of skin removed as well as a small part of my eyebrow. I was unable to play otherwise the incision would have split open due to having so much skin removed. The recovery was complicated by the incision becoming infected. I will say this, it was the most painful surgery I've ever gone through. I had double hernia surgery that was a cakewalk compared to the melanoma surgery.
Eventually things healed and outside of vertical scar over my eye it looks fine. I tell people I got the scar in a knife fight but the other guy looked worse! I wear glasses so the small part of my eyebrow that was removed isn't an issue.
I get checked every 6 months and never go without sunscreen. Sometimes there's a tendency to overlook skin cancer/melanoma as a serious threat. I personally knew 3 people who died from it. One was 54 and another was 47!

[Basmundi66]

Wow that is scary . I had a radical treatment that last 30 days . I had the tumor taken out underneath my tonsil. I was in agony. Then the 30 day radical treatment I was as sick as a dog. The way I try look at things now is there's always somebody going through worse. Thanks for sharing your experience with this horrible disease
_________________
Barry Johnson

[scott@95603]

If a cancer has invaded the lymph nodes in the neck and jaw area, the lips will probably swell significantly, preventing the player from playing... much worse than playing when you first get up in the morning.
_________________
Schilke B3 '78
Olds Special '56
Kanstul Chicago flugelhorn
English Besson cornet 1893
Kanstul 1530 cornet

[Andy Del]