CANCER WHAT WOULD YOU/I DO
A diagnosis of cancer is a death warrant no matter how you look at it. The only variables are how sick you will become and how long you have before it claims you. Once cancer has been diagnosed however, it is basically incurable. You can attain a state of remission but there is always the chance of it returning, that threat never goes away.
There are many types of cancer but they are all diagnosed by the part of the body where the disease attacks and grows. I could be diagnosed with cancer tomorrow. The insidious nature of cancer is the symptoms are so common such as vague pain, headaches, shortness of breath; that you could have had it for months before you are actually diagnosed with the disease. In addition, the diagnosis could range from something fairly common such as cervical or breast cancer to something far worse such as mesothelioma.
If ever diagnosed, the first thing I would do is pray. I would feel an immediate need to have a chat with God and make sure he was positive about the changes and challenges that he was about to bring into my life. I would also want to know exactly what type of cancer I had and the prognosis. My next step would be to research the medically approved plus possible holistic treatment options at my disposal.
I would want to focus my research on the cancer with which I had been diagnosed. For instance, let’s say that I had been diagnosed with breast cancer. I would first talk to my oncologist to discuss what options he/she thought were best. My options would obviously be based on how advanced the tumor was. They could range from simple radiation to chemotherapy and a radical masectomy. My mother in law is a breast cancer survivor and her mother and older sister have both passed from breast cancer. When diagnosed my mother in law was immediately placed on a cancer medication and vitamin treatment. She still ended up having to have her breast removed and rebuilt but has currently been in remission for five years now. She also had to undergo a series of chemotherapy treatments as part of the healing process . In addition, the medication she was taking led to a diagnosis of Ocular Degeneration and was told that she would be blind in six months. Her ophthalmologist suggested she try a daily vitamin E to prevent it from progressing. She began that with a daily vitamin pack from Mountain Home Nutritionals and has managed to reverse her eye disease to the point that as of three months ago she now has 20/20 vision once again.
The doctors contribute this medical miracle solely to her vitamin use. As of January 26,2009 she turned seventy -three years old and is currently healthier than I am. I like to believe that if I were to be diagnosed with cancer that I will deal with it in the same strong and faithful manner that she has. Of course, my strength and how I dealt with it would depend a lot on what type of cancer I was diagnosed with and the severity of it.
Let’s say that I was diagnosed with a much more rare form of cancer such as mesothelioma. My research would be much more intense on alternative methods such as vitamins, exercise and nutrition. I would also though, do these in conjunction with the doctor recommended strategies such as chemotherapy or radiation and medication. Mesothelioma is a rare cancer caused by exposure to asbestos. Therefore, I would also want to find out where and how the exposure happened in case of possible civil liability to help offset the financial burden of the illness. The best research tool out there is the world wide web. There are several very informative sites such as the American Cancer Society available. A good site for information on mesothelioma is www.survivingmesothelioma.com . There are almost unlimited sites and resources on the net to discover every aspect of and answer any question on cancer. If I had a diagnosis of mesothelioma I would definitely want to learn all that I could about it including all of the differing perspectives on treatment. The only way I could make a good decision on how to proceed would be to first have all of the fact s and options available.
In conclusion, cancer is the killer that can strike anyone;anytime; anyplace. Once diagnosed, it will kill you at some point. The best you can do is to research to find out exactly what is happening to your body and what your options are for not only alleviating your symptoms but for prolonging your life as well. Take advantage of the information out there to educate yourself before it is a case of have to rather than want to. Also, please take time to locate and donate to one of the many cancer research foundations out there. These programs are our only chance of ever defeating this killer once and for all.
By: Hankins, Sheila
