Dear Cancer, Why do you do the things you do?

Ten down, two more to go.  What have I learned the past few weeks? Well, quite a bit. I have seen so many commercials about cancer and cancer awareness.  I have seen sitcoms joking about cancer. When you hear the word cancer, what's the first thing you think of?  "Damn, you are going to die" or "Damn, that sucks, now lets beat it!" Yes, cancer kills. Yes, it is a bitch. And yes I am lucky that I got the best cancer to have because of the outcomes and promising success rate. But I cant help the fact that I get mad about some of these negative connotations associated with cancer. It's not always like what you see on TV or hear about so and so. Cancer doesn't discriminate.  It can happen to any of us.  We can choose to fight and be positive or we can choose to let it take over our lives.  We can listen to our bodies and make sure our doctors are listening to what we are saying. Every cancer is different, every person is different, and every person responds to their treatment differently. And that does affect the mind and spirit. No doubt, I  have had my ups and downs. But the one thing that has kept me strong and going is that I surround myself with positive and supportive people. I am a member of this new cancer world, my family and friends are part of this cancer world as caregivers and supporters. I have coworkers, friends, family that are currently fighting, waiting for that one day to hear "You are cancer free".  One of my coworkers had a scare last week.  Her doctors thought they saw cancer activity on her liver.  She is a breast cancer survivor.  All week, her world was turned upside down.  And then she hears "it's not cancer". My friend's nodule in his lung grew 1mm. 1 freaking mm!  Now they are discussing how much chemo he should get.  This is the third time down that road for him. Another coworker, had a "weird biopsy".  And is still going through this wait and see game.  And finally, a friend has her BIG SCAN tomorrow.  I am praying for good news because I really hate cancer.

Earlier this month, we lost Steve Jobs.  Earlier this week we learned Guiliana Rancic has early stages of breast cancer.  She got an early mammogram because her fertility doctor asked her to.  She was kicking and screaming because she felt she didn't need it. So I flash back. About 2 years ago I was at an Imerman Angels benefit.  I vividly remembering a survivor speak out and saying she had Hodgkin's Lymphoma.  Not knowing what kind of cancer that was I researched it later that week. And a year ago I was going about doing my thing, not knowing cancer had invaded my body.  I traveled, went to New York and Vegas living life.  I was telling my coworker "Suck it Cancer" as she ran past me in the Chicago Marathon last year. And I had cancer! It's crazy to me.  But then things started to change with my body and I noticed.  And I kept telling my doctor my symptoms.  I was reminded that I had said jokingly that I had cancer when I started to notice all the red bumps on my shin.  Did I think that was really going to happen?!  Absolutely not.  Like I said this disease does not discriminate.  It can happen to any of us anytime.  And that's why it's so important to get physicals and see your doctor on a regular basis.   I am lucky that I am in the healthcare profession and act as an advocate for many athletes so I know what to look for, but one thing people in my profession forget to do is take care of their own aches and pains.   And if I had never said to my doctor can you check for Rheumatoid Arthritis, I don't know how long it would have been till I found out that I had cancer.  By me saying, "Listen, my body doesn't feel right, can you just check for RA", we found elevated numbers in my blood which then I was referred to a specialist who had found my cancer.  It scares me sometimes.  What if I wasn't as persistent, where would I be now?  But I was persistent.  And it's 5 months later and I am almost done!  My round about point to this post is that Cancer is scary.  But it doesn't have to be.  Because we need to educate, be proactive, see your doctor on a regular basis, donate to cancer research and start associating cancer with a positive. Cancer has taught me several things and yes it has taken parts of my life that I once had.  But now I look forward to starting a new life with of all these lessons I have learned.  And I can't wait to live the life I WANT with the ENERGY that I once had and all the KNOWLEDGE that I have now gained.

Here are some videos of chemo day...See it's not that scary!

And....

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