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Patients
The stories and experiences in this category are written by people currently going through treatments for cancer. Read these stories to find inspiration and know that you are not alone in your experience with cancer.
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Essence of a Man With Cancer
What is the definition of Adulting? If you break out and dust off the ‘ol Merriam-Webster webster dictionary it would say, “To become an adult”. Pretty vague and straight forward, right? Nope!
Read More...Not a Bucket List
They tell me to live like I’m dying. But I have four small children who still need their lunches packed and bedtime stories read.
Read More...Pack Over Lone Wolf: Community, Words, and Miles Through Cancer
When I was diagnosed with neuroendocrine carcinoma at 33, I thought “getting through” meant surviving treatment cycles and scan days. I imagined a finish line: make it through this surgery, this chemo, this radiation, this clinical trial, and then life would return to something like normal.
Read More...In Defense of Messy Emotions
I look out at a hundred faces of AYA patients, survivors, and their loved ones quietly sipping their coffee, tea, and water. Everyone here has taken time out of their Saturday to hear a panel of people like me explain how we’ve “made meaning” out of having cancer as a young adult.
Read More...A Simple Twist of Fate
I’ve always despised the trope of the patient who pulls through against all odds, despite all evidence to the contrary. Yes, diagnoses can shift and treatment plans evolve, but the ultimate trajectory rarely strays far from the original suspicion.
Read More...Dear Cancer, You’re the Queen of Giving and Taking Away
You’re the queen of giving and taking away. I look back now at how much I thought my life was ruined the day I opened a mychart notification with the word carcinoma in it.
Read More...The Life You Save May Be Your Own
In elementary school, my teachers always told us it was important to understand math because “you won’t always have a calculator in your pocket.” That sentiment hasn’t aged well, given that my iPhone and Alexa are always within reach.
Read More...The Give and Take of Cancer
I was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 39 – a time in my life when everything finally felt steady. Life had a rhythm, a sense of peace I had worked so hard to build. I had a stable job I genuinely enjoyed, daily routines that grounded me, and a grown, independent daughter who had become her own beautiful person.
Read More...Choosing Hope
Cancer has taken so much. It’s hard to think of what it’s given. But I suppose it has put me in the here and now – forced me to be in the present. Required that I think of life as a gift where tomorrow isn’t guaranteed.
Read More...Overcoming Health Anxiety
For as long as I can remember, getting cancer has been one of my biggest fears. When I was a child, my parents had a medical encyclopedia with a symptom checker section I used to pore over, with every symptom eventually leading to an “Emergency! Get help now!” or “This could be a life threatening disease like cancer, go to the doctor!” box.
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