Blogs

I was hesitant to glance at myself in the mirror in the year after my breast cancer surgery. But I soon learned that I was more than just my image, and I encourage others to do the same.

A woman whose husband died from cancer explains how she shattered a piece of pottery and glued it back together, to represent the cracks of her life left by her loss and how her husband remains connected to her.

A cancer survivor explains how he had to flip the script and become a caregiver for his wife when she was injured, and how it affected him.

A woman with metastatic breast cancer reflects on her pre-cancer life 20 years ago and how her perspective on the disease has shifted as she’s reached a level of acceptance and hope for the future.

A breast cancer survivor describes how preparing an outfit for her son’s upcoming wedding and seeing social media photos of other women sparked body envy within her for those who have not been affected by breast cancer surgeries.

A cancer survivor explains how he has learned to build resilience against the stress and terror around getting routine cancer scans done so that he can live his life more freely.

A colon cancer survivor expresses her frustration about the way the health care system is currently being managed as yet another wave of COVID-19 cases caused her to cancel an appointment she’d waited three months for.

A man with breast cancer explains how contracting COVID-19 led him to discovering the benefits of slowing down.

A breast cancer survivor discusses how researching cancer risks and environmental factors made her feel better equipped with information against the disease.

A mother of a breast cancer survivor explains how she and her daughter creatively incorporated exercise into her daughter’s daily routine to improve her physical and mental health during treatment.

A survivor of multiple cancers explains how “visits” from deceased friends and loved ones made her feel safe before undergoing treatments.

A woman living with metastatic breast cancer describes how the death of a friend’s grandmother reminded her of her own grandmother’s passing and the lessons she learned about life from it that she applies in her cancer journey.

A patient with stage 4 ovarian cancer still receiving treatment six years after her first diagnosis explains that even though she’s exhausted from all her treatments and the related side effects, she knows many others don’t survive as long as she has.

A woman explains how she grapples with the acceptance that her sister may never enter remission from cancer.

A mother of a breast cancer survivor explains how she pinpoints the reasoning behind why a certain day might be extra difficult emotionally for her and how she deals with it.

A woman living with metastatic breast cancer shares how her relationship with her sister who was adopted from Korea transformed after they both received a cancer diagnosis.

A survivor of breast cancer explains what she has learned about inclusive language and how it can empower patients who have been diagnosed with cancer on their healing journey.

One breast cancer survivor shares the experience she had with her daughters in trying to get them to understand the importance of participating in preventive screenings.

A brain tumor survivor explains how she chooses to approach life with acceptance of the hard times rather than trying to throw them away.

A cancer survivor offers advice for those facing anxiety and fear about cancer that takes control of their life.

A cancer survivor expresses the fears many survivors face with another year of staring down the COVID-19 pandemic.

A nursing student describes how the day her sister was diagnosed with cancer shaped her world in many ways and caused a domino effect on her life.

One cancer survivor describes the impact of the words of support from other patients with cancer throughout his experience that helped pull him out of devastation.

A cancer survivor explains how she was able to intimately reconnect with her spouse after cancer caused their love life to fizzle for many years.

A cancer survivor offers tips on dealing with the mental gymnastics of wondering whether his COVID-19 vaccine will work against the omicron variant and how more isolation will affect his mental state.

A cancer survivor explains her approach to New Year’s resolutions and how she plans to make her health a priority.

A mother describes how her daughter formed an unlikely friendship with one of her chemo nurses after her treatment ended.

A breast cancer survivor describes a project she participated in — the Dear Body Project — to thank her body for all that it has endured.