The Courage of a Cancer Patient

Good Morning Cancer Patients and Caregivers;
When you are diagnosed with cancer you don't realize at first the journey you are taking and the battle your body will be in. Most cancer patients receive the diagnosis, listen to the prescribed treatment regime and start the process of cancer treatment with their oncologist and cancer treatment team or surgeon. Every cancer patient has a choice when first diagnosed with cancer: to start treatment of some kind or to not start treatment. Either decision requires courage, the courage to start and go through treatment or the courage to not receive treatment. I think courage is a moral value that sustains our decision regarding treatment. It allows us to stand strong during the brutal abuse treatment causes us and the caregiver, and provides the positive attitude, this too will pass, and the cancer will be eliminated. Surviving cancer or living with cancer forces you to live your life for a new reason and that takes courage. Courage gives you the strength to endure: the treatment process and debilitating side effects; surgery if required; and, recovery from the treatment and surgery.

With every cancer patient and caregiver you know and meet you should recognize their courage and encourage them to stay strong and not give up. Commend them for their courage which they will not have recognized. Encourage them to not give up the fight and cancer is not worth dieing for.

Every cancer patient decides how they will respond to the challenges of cancer. How they deal with their cancer and the treatment journey, is their decision. It takes courage. As a cancer survivor I support their decision and admire their courage.

Stay strong, keep your sense of humor and never give up.