Wednesday, December 12, 2018

Post-Treatment Worries: It's Not All So Bad

There are methods to cope with ongoing cancer research and worry.
PUBLISHED DECEMBER 12, 2018
Barbara Tako is a breast cancer survivor (2010), melanoma survivor (2014) and author of Cancer Survivorship Coping Tools–We'll Get You Through This. She is a cancer coping advocate, speaker and published writer for television, radio and other venues across the country. She lives, survives, and thrives in Minnesota with her husband, children and dog. See more at www.cancersurvivorshipcopingtools.com,or    www.clutterclearingchoices.com.
Front, back, side, front, back, side. The advice on how to put a newborn to bed has changed and changed and changed over the years as new research studies appear. So, what are the best near-term and longer-term treatments for cancer? It can feel like trying to hit a moving target, even after being treated for cancer.

As an eight-year breast cancer survivor and four-year melanoma survivor, I say do yourself a favor and make your peace with the ever-changing landscape of cancer treatment. This is easier said than done. It is a strange mix of gratitude and worry.

Reassure yourself that the best that could be done at the moment of treatment has been done. Be grateful that we know a lot more about cancer than we did even a decade or two ago (which isn't really that long a time window in human history). Oncology is a very rapidly changing area of medicine, especially when you throw genetic research into the mix. All this is ultimately good for you and for your hereditary family members! See? Worry really isn't all bad. And yet…

No comments:

Post a Comment