Saturday, April 14, 2018

I'll Never Get to Ring the Bell

Patients with cancer are often asked when they’ll be done with chemotherapy or treatment. Those of us with blood cancers and bone marrow type of cancers such as aplastic anemia, myelodysplastic syndrome, lymphoma and leukemia, along with a host of other cancers sadly have to say, “never.”


PUBLISHED April 13, 2018

Jane has earned three advanced degrees and had several fulfilling careers as a librarian, rehabilitation counselor and college teacher. Presently she does freelance writing. Her articles include the subjects of hearing loss and deafness, service dogs and struggling with cancer. She has been a cancer survivor since 2010.

She has myelodysplastic syndrome, which is rare, and would love to communicate with others who have MDS.
I never knew about the bell until I was diagnosed with cancer. In many cancer centers, including the one where I receive my treatments, women and men who have been diagnosed with breast cancer get to pick up and ring the clapper. After their last chemo treatment, they celebrate as their family and the nurses all form a circle and clap to commemorate this wonderful milestone of their lives. This is a very special ceremony that the survivor looks forward to from the beginning of the horrible chemo and side effects to the final session.

Patients with cancer are often asked when they’ll be done with chemotherapy or treatment. Those of us with blood cancers and bone marrow type of cancers such as aplastic anemia, myelodysplastic syndrome, lymphoma and leukemia, along with a host of other cancers sadly have to say, “never.”

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