Make your Cancer Count

I have been enjoying the show, "Extreme Makeover". On one of the episodes, the story line was about building a home and wellness center for people receiving cancer treatments. One of the hosts of the show had stage 3 breast cancer. She endured 5 months of chemo followed by radiation. At the end of her treatments, she made the decision that she was going to "Make her Cancer Count". 

When I worked at the University, I was often assigned to an active surgical unit. It was very common to care for patients that had their cancer surgically removed. This was such a scary time for those patients and their families. During their recovery, we witnessed their sense of relief, not only because the surgery was over, but the mass was gone. They felt they had been given a fighting chance to beat their cancer.   

When I was not on the surgical ward I was on the Palliative ward. It was at that time I had the honor and privilege of visiting the chemo and radiation departments. Cancer Care in Brandon is basically new, bright, calm and extremely organized. The staff is so skilled and just so knowledgeable. This brings comfort to those receiving treatments. Cancer Care is clearly a place of hope.   

At one time, it seemed the treatment plan for cancer was surgery, followed by chemo and/or radiation. Thankfully, things have changed, and the plans are varied and individual. Some patients start with chemo and/or radiation then surgery, some don't have surgery at all. It is now a possibility for a treatment plan to include "Immunotherapy".  

As I have shared many times, I paddle with the "Waves of Hope" Dragon Boat team. The team is made up of breast cancer survivors and supporters. They strive to promote awareness and early detection of Breast Cancer. Dragon boat paddling was started by Dr. Don McKenzie in 1996. He developed a program to determine the impact of exercise on breast cancer survivors. He felt that the strenuous, repetitive upper body exercise required to do dragon boat paddling would prevent lymph edema following a mastectomy. There are now over 200 dragon boat teams all over the world. Dr. Don continues to research the effects of exercise on cancer growth before, during and after treatment. Every time the women put their paddle in the water they make their breast cancer count. 

One of my friends from the gym, came to work out twice a week throughout most of her cancer recovery journey. She did miss a few weeks during chemo, but other than that she was there. Was her work out modified, it sure was. But what an inspiration she was to each of us. How could you not work harder when you were next to a person in cancer treatments. Today, her hair has grown back, she is working harder than before, and she looks healthy. She admits she will never be like she was before, but she has accepted that. She flashes her big smile and if you didn't know her story, you would never guess what she has been through. Unknown to my friend, she has made her cancer count in ways she is unaware of. For those of us that watched her, we realize how important exercise and community is during treatments. 

How do you walk away from all of that and say, "I want to make my cancer count". Some people just move forward and live their lives. Others, decide they are going to dedicate time and effort to give back. Not many end up with a television show, but who knows anything is possible. 

How can someone make their Cancer count? Looking in from the outside, I would say, "tell your story". Cancer stories are inspirational. I would also say, "mentor" someone. If you bring peace to just one other person, you have made your cancer count.