The right attitude during and after cancer - Bloggers speak up
“A bad attitude is like a flat tire. If you don’t change it you’ll never go anywhere.” Some patients have gotten this 100% right, and they apply this principle both during and after their treatments. And if you like quotes, here’s one to write down: “Fear isn’t real, it’s all in your head”.
Feeling fortunate with cancer?
Rachel’s attitude is unique: despite her bouts with cancer, she feels fortunate – to the constant amazement of others, as she says! And this attitude drives her constantly: doing exercises to help concentration, taking lessons at Healing Art class and working at Carol Bradshaw’s class are just some of the things that kept her busy. But in my opinion, the most amazing thing was that her second grandson was born earlier this month! A new person is one of the greatest things in the world! Welcome to the world little boy!
Chasing after those side effects from Tamoxifen
Margaret is 75 years old, but she feels 95! She blames Tamoxifen, a medicine which helps her tackle cancer but seems to be affecting her quality of life. She is also worried that there may be more causes for that, like a vitamin deficiency or issues in her blood vessels. Whatever the causes are, she is convinced that doctors don’t know enough about Tamoxifen… so she has to find out on her own.
“Fear isn’t real, it’s all in your head”
“Fear isn’t real, it’s all in your head”. These are the words that Joe’s father taught him. Joe is a 12-year-old boy with medulloblastoma, a fast-growing brain tumor. To help Joe’s family to fund his medical care two friends of his mother created an online campaign. What’s amazing about this campaign is that Hollywood actor Chris Bratt tweeted a message to promote it, and the results were incredible: 300 shirts were sold in two days only, and by the end of the campaign it had raised $90000, selling more than 3200 shirts! Read more about Joe and his way of fighting brain cancer here.
A clinical trial leading to a breakthrough for non-small cell lung cancer
A drug for treating patients with ROS1-positive non-small cell lung cancer received US FDA “breakthrough” designation. This means that it is on the fast track for FDA approval. And Janet has every reason to celebrate, because she was one of the lucky ones to be on the clinical trial that made this designation a reality.
Exercising after cancer? Take it easy…
Carly is finally cancer-free, and celebrated her 40th day with her family. As part of her plan to going back to a normal, cancer-free life, she decided to start exercising in a swimming pool. Aquafit has been one of her favorite ways to work out, so she was very excited to go back. However it didn’t turn out as she hoped for: about 10 minutes in, she wasn’t feeling very well, so she slowed down. She understood that her body didn’t react in the same way it used to, so she decided to start another exercise, like yoga or weights. We wish her luck in her new start and hope that she will soon go back to Aquafit. Read her experience here.
Anxiety after cancer
This article is probably one of the most inspiring we have ever read. Stephanie, a 4-time survivor, wrote about how things are going after beating cancer. As she says, cancer changes you not only outside but also inside. It affects the way you think, the way you take decisions. Dealing with this condition is so difficult - but if you win the fight, you have a lot to gain: you strength will grow, your faith will be reborn. Your life will never be the same after cancer - it is just going to be new!
Don’t sugar-coat cancer
Finally, Nancy offers a review about the documentary called “Cancer: The Emperor of All Maladies”. Although she thinks that it isn’t perfect, she suggests watching it because you will learn things about cancer that you could never have imagined. Starting with cancer’s history, all the way to the recent research, this documentary does not sugar-coat cancer – and it’s always important to be realistic while fighting it (as a researcher or as a patient). We love her last sentence:
It seems fitting to end my review the same way the documentary ended, with a quote by Siddhartha Mukherjee (the author of the original book): “The cancer cell is evolving, and we are evolving with it.” Let’s hope we can evolve faster.
"A can-do attitude is all one needs. It acts like a bridge between success and failure."
(Yes, we are into quotes today!)
Every patient, every caregiver, has a story to tell. These stories are personal and intimate, and they reflect how they deal with their every single day. Each and every one of them are full of attitude, charisma and personality. Can cancer deal with that?