Hi Family and Friends,

As many of you know, in March of 2005, I was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer and underwent surgery to remove a malignant tumor. It was a very shocking and unexpected turn of events which suddenly changed my life. Whenever one's life is changed by a medical condition, especially one that is usually terminal, a lot of time gets spent learning as much as possible about it to help get the best possible treatment. Part of that learning came from a well informed support group on the Internet called GIST Support International, for short GSI.

 Cancer is an awful diagnosis no matter what, but in a way I was luckier to get this rare disease called GIST as compared to some other cancers. GIST stands for gastrointestinal stromal tumor and usually starts in the stomach. Briefly, it differs from most cancers in that it affects the “clock” of a gland rather than the gland itself as in breast cancer and most others. The good news is that there was a very recent discovery of a drug called Gleevec. It was developed to help leukemia victims but was fount to help keep GIST somewhat at bay. And like most medical conditions, every person is different, that is, some it helps a lot and some it doesn't help at all. In my case it is too soon to tell.

I am thankful for that recent research and the discovery of Gleevec because before Gleevec the prognosis was only about one year. Now, the prognosis is uncertain but far more hopeful. There are a lot of people who have been through the clinical trials and have continued on Gleevec for more than five years.

Because GIST is rare, affecting only about 3% of all cancer victims there is little support from the mainline charities for research money. Everything in perspective though, there are 10's of thousands of GIST victims and the painful thing about GIST is that it knows no age limit. Babies, children, teens, young mothers and fathers and mature folks alike, for some unknown reason, fall victim to GIST.

Please consider sponsoring us by making a contribution to help put an end to this awful killer. If you do please take comfort in knowing that every penny donated goes directly to the research, there are no administrative costs. All the work is done by volunteers.

I have learned about and even met some of the top researchers in the GIST field and I feel strongly that with financial support a lot can be done by these dedicated professionals.

If you sponsor us with a check or cash you will get a receipt so that you can deduct it from your taxes.

Thank you,

Bill