As much as patients look forward to the day they can ring the bell or hear they have no evidence of disease, it can also mean they will be sent out on their own to sort through life with the long-term damage of cancer.
BY Sarah DeBord
PUBLISHED April 02, 2019
Sarah DeBord was diagnosed with metastatic colon cancer at age 34. In the years since, she has turned her diagnosis into a calling, and become an advocate for other young adults diagnosed with colorectal cancer and parents with young families facing cancer. She works as a communications and program manager for the Minneapolis-based Colon Cancer Coalition , volunteers her time with the online patient-led support community COLONTOWN , and blogs about her often adventurous experiences of living with chronic cancer at ColonCancerChick.com.
I can't imagine life without walking into an oncology clinic at least once a month. I consider my oncologist my primary care doctor on any form that asks, as I see him frequently enough to complain about any ailment I might normally take to a walk-in clinic. I also wonder what it would be like to not see my oncology team with such regularity.
What happens when you ring the bell, have no evidence of disease (NED) or graduate from the cancer world? From conversations I've had with peers, it's a long sought-after place to be, but one-many will find scary and isolating once they get there—especially as they are left to deal with the long-term side effects of their cancer treatment.
What happens when you ring the bell, have no evidence of disease (NED) or graduate from the cancer world? From conversations I've had with peers, it's a long sought-after place to be, but one-many will find scary and isolating once they get there—especially as they are left to deal with the long-term side effects of their cancer treatment.
No comments:
Post a Comment