Wednesday, Manila Day 3, 7/24/13 Ateneo De Manila Lecture

We had the opportunity to speak to future physicians and future healthcare providers at Ateneo De Manila University.  We jumped at the prospect of meeting a few survivors and future healthcare providers in another part of the world!  This would be the first time we would be speaking to International Students about post-treatment thrivership.  We were graced by the presence of:  Norman Marquez, Jason Haw, Noel Cruz, Mia Chico, Patricia Nitura, Kyla Cabatit, Chin-Chin Santiago, and Alberto Antonio.  We were honored that Ma. Gia Sison MD joined us for the presentation at Ateneo.  Dr. Sison had recently completed chemotherapy for breast cancer literally days before the presentation.  We were truly honored by her presence and input to the lecture.  We had only talked once before the presentation, but we immediately bonded by a common disdain for all forms of tumors/cancer.  Although healthcare is different in different countries, we face similar battles fighting diseases, tumors, or cancer.

Health Insurance is private pay in the Philippines.  We learned that in the Philippines either you have money or you don’t.  This means that if you get diagnosed with cancer and you can’t afford the treatments or medications you are left to fend for yourself.   The priorities in terms of tumor/cancer survivorship are very different there!  The stigma of tumors/cancer as a “death sentence” is much more prevalent than that of “survivorship”.  Our strategy is to educate all future healthcare professionals so that they can provide appropriate resources for their future patients.  Educating the layman starts with the healthcare professional planting “seeds of treatment resources,” but ultimately the responsibility lies with the patient and their loved ones to seek and then apply the information they discover.  Culturally, this is a huge barrier because patient access to information varies in different regions of the world.  Essentially, ALL patients need to know that they do have options.  We think mAss Kickers Foundation can assist in providing resources. Healthcare professionals specifically physicians and nurses need to be aware of patient resources and disseminate that information to their patients. Education is the first step.

At Ateneo, we brought up a very controversial subject in the war on tumors/cancer: using clinical trials for patients who don’t have access to traditional life-saving tumor/cancer treatments!  I’m not sure if many people would be eligible subjects for clinical trials in third world countries, but the alternative for these patients is NO TREATMENT and ultimately a worse quality of life or even DEATH! People need treatment, and research studies need subjects... Of course clinical trials would need to be closely monitored by an Institutional Review Board (IRB) or some sort of ethics committee, but the potential for life saving treatments from this research could benefit A LOT of people and provide HOPE for the less fortunate patients that can’t afford traditional treatment!  Every patient deserves options!  This opens the door for an ethical debate, but clinical trials should at least be considered in this population.  This would require CLOSE MONITORING, but could significantly advance our knowledge and treatment of these diseases!  I'd really like to hear your thoughts on the ethics of this...

Pictures from the lecture.  Please share your pictures if you have more!

Anyways, the presentation went well based on the feedback we received from the attendees.   In the following days, we got to explore Makati a little more, visit San Pablo where my parents grew up, and visit the beautiful town of Tagaytay! Stay tuned for the next installments of the blog.  We have more plans to do international travel next year!  We would appreciate your feedback and ideas for future activities.

Tuesday, Manila Day 2, 7/23/13 Intramuros

We went to a historical site in Manila, Fort Santiago in Intramuros. the walled fort that protected the old Manila.  During WWII, Fort Santiago was used as a prison by the Japanese after American General Douglas MacArthur left the Philippines.  It is now a museum for that era.  As soon as we got out of the van, we were hounded by a number of street vendors trying to sell us stuff!  Pretty annoying... Years ago on my first trip to the Philippines, my parents constantly warned me about kidnappings and talking to people on the streets.  That always stuck with me, and has made me leery about meeting the locals in different countries.  Damian was all about experiencing the local culture.  We ventured outside Ft. Santiago and explored Intramuros.  We found that many of the side walks in Intramuros don’t have ramps for wheelchairs.  There were a few ramps, but the conditions on the street are not very friendly to wheelchairs with poorly labeled ramps or unsmooth sidewalks.  I grew tired of the conditions so I asked Damian if he wanted to just ride in the street.  I don’t recommend doing this unless there is unless you have a separate set of eyes watching the traffic for you!  The driving lanes in the Philippines are non existent, so you really need to be aware of EVERYTHING going on!  People try to squeeze their way through traffic, so you have to be aware if your surroundings.  Not the first time, we've done something crazy on our travels! Anyways, as we made our way through the barrio on the street and noticed A LOT of people staring at me in the mAss Kicker Mobile.

Years ago I went to a family reunion on a cruise ship.  I was in a wheel chair at the time and my brother was wheeling me around.  People would not talk directly to me.  They would talk about me directly to my brother right in front of me!  I will never forget “the looks of shame” I got from people on that trip.  This time around, I couldn’t tell if the looks I was getting in the Philippines were looks of shame or curiosity.  I wanted to capture people’s reactions to seeing a guy in a mobility scooter.  Kinda mean, but I wanted people to know what it felt like to be constantly stared at. I asked Damian to follow a few steps behind me and snap a few pictures of people’s reactions to me in the mAss Kicker Mobile.  These looks were very common everywhere I went.  I have learned to ignore them, but seeing people's reactions after I passed by makes me feel uncomfortable.  Check out the link below.

 I like to think I've developed a new type of confidence.  I have a whole new respect for individuals that grow up in cultures where they are seen as "outcasts."  I do realize that people were probably not exposed to something like this, so it is OK to be curious.  I cannot imaging growing up in another part of the world with a physical disability and trying to develop self esteem and a sense of confidence.  People with disabilities are faced with breaking stigmas/ preconceived notions.  

Pictures from Manila Day 2, Intramuros

One thing I've learned on my travels is to be wary of local cooking for fear of GI issues.  We strolled by a bunch of local food stations that smelled AWESOME!  I had to keep myself in check, but the temptation was there!  It was kind of cool going around the streets of Intramuros, but in the back of my mind the wise words of caution from my parents echoed in my head.

We kept ourselves in check because the next day we would be speaking at Ateneo De Manila University on Wednesday.

Stay tuned for the next installment of the blog.  We have more plans to do more international travel next year to break the stigma that tumors/cancer are death sentences!  We would appreciate your feedback and ideas for future activities.  Please leave a comment below.  We want to unite the WORLD in the fight against these diseases!  

Monday, Manila Day 1, 7/22/13 Exploring Makati

After arriving late, we decided that we would spend the first day familiarizing ourselves with the area!  We stayed in Makati next to a huge set of stores, “SM” and the Greenbelt 6. We quickly discovered that the malls in Manila are enormous and they are always packed!  They are all connected by inter-building walkways on multiple levels.  The shopping malls in Makati are like it’s own separate city!  The huge networked mall system makes perfect sense to me now.   It gets WAY to hot and humid in Manila to congregate outside.  A climate controlled area where people can congregate and support local businesses makes sense, but you don’t get the authentic feel of walking down an actual street.  Although it felt like a walking in a mall in the United States with McDonalds or Subway on literally every corner, the stores and restaurants had a “Distinct Filipino Feel” to them.  As an American born Filipino-American I felt comfortable there, but using the mAss Kicker Mobile made me stick out!   We noticed that I was getting a lot of stares and strange looks from people in the Philippines.  I have learned to tune them out, but Damian picked up on this pretty quickly!  In Japan it is impolite to stare, but in the Philippines that is the furthest from the truth. We explored this later. ;P

We booked a room at the Dusit Thani Hotel, which is a Malaysian Hotel chain.  The staff was very courteous and eager to please. For me it was the first time staying with them. I am used to staying at American hotel franchises.  Initially we requested handicap accessible room, however the view from our room was of a construction sight and was very loud early in the morning.  We decided to upgrade to a junior suite on the other side of the hotel. One of the things we’ve learned on our brief travels is that we need ground transportation.  On our trip to Hawaii it was car rental.  In Tokyo, it was taxis, trains, and buses.  In Manila we hired a driver.  It was really convenient because he would take us wherever we wanted to go.   We asked he driver to take us to a breakfast place.  We found one really close to the hotel at greenway.  HAHAHA! We drove less than a block and went to a breakfast place at the mall.  We ate there and asked to take a quick tour of the sites close to the hotel.  We drove by Jose Rizal Park. Rizal is the National Hero of the Philippines. We also wanted to go to the beaches around Manila! We didn’t stop and get out.  Only drove by.  We found out that the public beaches in Manila are non existant.  You have to go outside the city to go to the real beaches.

After getting acquainted with the area around the hotel, we decided to go to Fort Santiago in Intramurous, the old fortified Manila.  There are lots of historical sites there, but how would the mAss Kicker Mobile hold up/manuever in there?  (That was interesting.)

Manila Day 1 photos

Stay tuned for the next installment of the blog.  We have more plans to do more international travel next year to break the stigma that tumors/cancer are death sentences!  We would appreciate your feedback and ideas for future activities.  Please leave a comment below.  We want to unite the WORLD in the fight against these diseases!  

Sunday, Japan Day 6, 7/21/13 Brazilian Festival in Tokyo

We tried to squeeze so much into our last day in Tokyo.  Damian found out about a Brazilian Festival at Yoyogi Park.  We decided to meet up with more Japanese survivors.  I got a kick out of the fact that we were meeting up with:  Cancer survivors in Japan at a Brazilian Festival,  Random words that normally don’t go together!  We met a young Japanese Lymphoma survivor, a 30-year American born Lymphoma survivor residing in Tokyo, LiveSTRONG leaders:  Binzee with his son, and Anne from the Netherlands.  The Brazilian festival was A LOT of fun! There is something about the beating of drums.  It really connects the soul with something primal because it is so similar to a heartbeat.  Every culture uses drums.  To name a few: Native American culture, African culture, Asian culture, even the Hip Hop and Rock n’ Roll cultures uses drums! There is something about rhythmic thumping that penetrates my soul and makes me reflexively bob my head/sway my hips.  Brazilian music stirs that in me, but once I found out that capoeira is based on a martial art, I was intrigued.   It was so cool seeing Japanese people celebrating Brazilian culture.  In undergrad at the University of Michigan, some of my friends watched some movie with capoeira.  We use to chant “Far and Away” when we would pretend fight each other on the dance floors at local bars/clubs.  So funny!  We didn’t care what other people thought of us!  (That still hasn't changed!  ;) )

Before we stopped by the Brazilian festival, we dropped of our luggage at a hotel- pickup stop for the airport limo bus!  Our plan was to meet up with everyone at the festival for a couple hours then catch the bus to the airport. Of course we had to make things exciting.  We stayed a little longer than we expected, but we were still in time to get to the airport early.  I need to get to airports early because traveling with the mAss Kicker Mobile complicates things.  We lost track of time and missed the noon bus.  With new airlines, traveling becomes exciting because many of the airline front-counter-people don’t know how to check it in a person in a power chair/scooter.  Travel time for me is usually longer with security checks and mAss Kicker Mobile on-board plane storage/gate check.  I always try to get there early, a trait I picked up from my dad!  Punctuality is underrated in my book!  Punctuality always impresses me… especially in the land of “Filipino/Asian/California time”,  I digress. Damian was hungry, so he went off for a sandwich outside the hotel.  I deferred for a quick snack from the 7-11 in the hotel station.  I tried reconnecting with Damian, so I figured I’d go back to the luggage drop off and wait for him there!  Bags were being taken down as I waited patiently.  Poor Damian was stressing out outside waiting for me to come down.  He was out of breath and dripping with sweat from running around!  I felt horrible being the cause of his stress.  Once we were both safely on the bus, we both exhaled a huge sigh of relief.  The whole misunderstanding could have been avoided if we had walkie talkies or cell phones.  I think it would be fun to run around a foreign city with walkie talkies and "thriver call-signs" like in Top Gun.  That is something to think about for the next trip because there is potentially a larger group going.  Well, we got to Manila on a late flight arriving at 2230 and my nephew, Paolo and niece, Gela were waiting for us outside the terminal at Nino Aquino International Airport.  It was raining so it added moisture to the already thick and humid air.  I remembered the thick air from the last time I was in Manila.  We were exhausted!  We needed a good day of rest to explore the area around the hotel.

Pictures from Tokyo Day 6

Stay tuned for more updates.  Please consider a donation tohelp us spread our message of post treatment “thrivership”.  And show people that you can still enjoy life after an intimidating tumor/cancer diagnosis! “Tumor/cancer thrivers” have the unique opportunity to step up and be the leaders in post treatment thrivership! Click here to support this mission and stay tuned for the next update.

Saturday, Japan Day 5, 7/20/13

After a good night's rest, I got up early again and headed down for breakfast.  This time I didn't have anyone to assist me.  I don't mind eating alone.  It's actually kinda peaceful. Anyways, this cool guy from Taiwan was there with his family and helped me grab a plate of breakfast. That was so cool! Stuff like that restores my faith in humanity.  Having a meal alone gives me time to organize my thoughts for the day and explore new ideas... That morning, I realized that in many Asian cultures, breakfast and lunch are the most important meals of the day.  Americans put a lot of emphasis on breakfast and dinner.  I try to eat an energizing breakfast and a small lunch, and a health dinner.  Dinner for me has been getting later and later.  This could pose a problem with weight gain from empty calories.  A late workout can justify a late meal. Empty calories late at night equals putting on the pounds!  On days there is no workout, it makes sense to eat a bigger lunch and a smaller dinner.  After eating in Tokyo, I've noticed that the meal portion sizes are A LOT smaller than American meals, but still enough to leave you satisfied.  I've watched news reports on TV that discuss the obesity epidemic in America, but to witness the life style in another culture was very humbling.  More than one-third of U.S. adults (35.7%) are obese. We can probably attribute this to a sedentary lifestyle and an abundance of fast food and junk food!  Anyways, I met up with another old friend from college for lunch.  Lynh has lived in Tokyo for over 10 years!  It was cool catching up with him, cause he'll always "tell me how it is"... I respect that.  We grabbed lunch at some tempura place at a mall.  I finally got the tempura I'd been craving the whole trip!  I was not disappointed! I decided to "crutch it" at the mall without the mAss Kicker Mobile because it wouldn't be a long walk.  The garage at the mall was so cool!  There was a mechanical conveyer belt that transports your car to a parking spot.  You just had to leave it with an attendant.  This song popped in my head!  People were so friendly!  I was very impressed by the hospitality in Tokyo.  I told Lynh that I wanted to check out the famous cross walk intersection in Shibuya.  Resident Evil: Afterlife sparked my interest in this site.  I got to view it from the car, but I don't think you can fully appreciate it from ground level.   So anyways, Lynh took me to the Imperial Palace. Unfortunately, you can't go in, but you can walk around the walls of the perimeter.  I didn't realize our hotel was so close to EVERYTHING!   We went back to the hotel and picked up the mAss Kicker Mobile!  There were a lot of groups running/training around the palace walls.  It was kinda cool to see fitness prevalent in another culture!  Out of all the big cities I've visited, Tokyo has been the cleanest and friendliest.  So much history here, but it manages to stay clean and modern.  I appreciate that.
When I got back to the room I found Damian crashed out on his bed.  He was saying that he had a really difficult time with the altitude and vowed to return to Mt. Fuji and finish his climb to the summit.  After a power siesta, we would head out to eat some ramen.  We found this little hole in the wall not too far from the hotel.  I think Damian found it online.  I played it safe with ramen and vegetables.  I was determined not to have gastro-intestinal issues in Tokyo!  So far, so good!  We walked around a little but we were both pretty popped, so we called it a night.  The following morning we would be going to a Brazilian Festival, meeting more Japanese survivors, then going back to the airport to start a new adventure in Manila, Philippines!

JAPAN DAY 5 PICTURES

Stay tuned for more updates.  Please consider a donation to help us spread our message of post treatment “thrivership”.  We want to show people that you can still enjoy life after an intimidating tumor/cancer diagnosis! “Tumor/cancer thrivers” have the unique opportunity to step up and be the leaders in post treatment thrivership! Click here to support this mission and stay tuned for the next update.