Cancer survivors struggle to sort out "normal" signs of aging from symptoms of cancer's return.
BY Barbara Tako
PUBLISHED February 10, 2019
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.
It is sometimes difficult and even frightening to try to figure out if a pain is "just" a pain or if it is a symptom of cancer. I was diagnosed with cancer for the first time in my mid-forties. I guess I would call that middle age. I learned that was, in fact, a "young" age to develop breast cancer. I know I am not young and yet since cancer, I struggle with separating normal aging effects from symptoms of cancer's return.
When is something a cancer survivor experiences due to aging and when is it something to worry about? Do you ever voice a health concern to a loved one or friend just to be told, "Oh, you're just getting older"? I would love to respond, "Hey, cancer survivors would love to get older!" Instead, I just bite my tongue. I understand that they don't get it.
When is something a cancer survivor experiences due to aging and when is it something to worry about? Do you ever voice a health concern to a loved one or friend just to be told, "Oh, you're just getting older"? I would love to respond, "Hey, cancer survivors would love to get older!" Instead, I just bite my tongue. I understand that they don't get it.
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