Everyone talks about cancer unless someone in the room has cancer and then the word becomes taboo. If a person has told you that they have cancer then it is okay to ask them about their illness, to show concern. Don’t be afraid you are bringing up an outlawed subject. You are not reminding the person they have cancer. Believe me, they are aware. Most cancer patients awaken each morning with that fact firmly planted in their thoughts. Few fall asleep at night without the same thought. That does not mean the person is morbid, preoccupied or afraid, it is simply there. It is not who they are, but it is a current part of their life that figures into their considerations and their decisions. So, say the word “Cancer” just as you might say ulcer, diabetes or pneumonia. It is okay.
“When you die, it does not mean that you lose to cancer. You beat cancer by how you live, why you live, and in the manner in which you live.” Stuart Scott
Crooked Creek by Sue Mattingly 
Still so difficult. This very morning a friend is having a mastectomy and in some ways, she is lucky. It went undetected at a May mammogram, but was discovered in an August lung scan she chose to have because she is a smoker. Had she not had that scan, it would have been next May before another mammogram, and might have been too late.A part of me feels positive that she will be okay because it was caught early. Another part is terrified of that word. There have been so many advances in technology and medicine which gives hope to people who may not have had hope 10, 20, 30 years ago, but that single word strikes fear into me and others. Maybe it’s the fact that we are mortal, maybe it’s because it makes us seem powerless over this stealthy invader. When I visited her yesterday, she was afraid, but shared thoughts about appearances not being important, which is true. I am sending positive thoughts to her and her family this morning, and await the call later that it is in the past. The struggle won’t be gone, but the healing will have begun. That is what I am going to focus on. Heal, yes!
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When I was diagnosed with prostate cancer, I told only my wife, because I didn’t want people to feel like they needed to act different.
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I hope you have done well.
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So far so good.
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Great to hear!
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That quote is so true. Everyone has been affected by cancer in one way or the other. Some think if they don’t say it, it’s not true. I coping mechanism for some I suspect.
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