By Anne Marie Cerato

There are a few words I thought I’d never utter together, Tattoos and Therapy are an example, mind you “I have cancer” is another! You might wonder how inflicting pain on one’s self could be seen as therapeutic, but I swear to you it is. The pain is temporary, what stays behind is a permanent reminder, much like a scar. Before actually getting tattooed, I did try conventional therapy, it worked for a while, but was somewhat unsatisfying, but I’m jumping the gun!! We really should start at the beginning.

My name is Anne Marie and I am living with stage 4 Lung Cancer, my story starts in 2009 when I was diagnosed with stage 3a Adenocarcinoma of the right lung. This was a shocker because at the time I was a healthy 30 year old that had never smoked!! I received treatment almost immediately (Chemo-radiation, surgery followed by high dose chemo); six months later I was done. All this seemed to have worked until 2011 when it was determined that like the cat, the cancer came back. This time, it was in both lungs and in multiple lobes and my options were far fewer, so how did [...] continue the story

I should start by saying that on my actual Cancerversary (April 15th) I was so preoccupied with a doggie crisis that I spend all day at the emergency veterinarian’s worrying about my dog that I forgot all about what day it was! Needless to say, in the days that followed I did a bit of reflection on what surviving three years means to me.

I remember shortly after I was diagnosed, a friend of mine told me about her mother who was also battling cancer at the time. She mentioned that her mother had been fighting for three years. I thought, wow, what a long time!! In hindsight, it seems like no time at all!! It’s strange, I barely recognize myself or my life anymore, but I love who I am and I certainly love my life…cancer and all! I had always thought I knew what I wanted, but it took cancer to show me what was really important, and it wasn’t what I thought it was. Cancer has been both a blessing and a curse, and along the way, I’ve learned a few things that I’d like to share.

I’ve never felt so loved or so alone in my life

It is [...] continue the story

By Megan Oates

“You have cancer.”

I replayed his words over and over…and over. I looked straight ahead and saw nothing; the room was a blur of colour. I felt faint. It was the most dreamlike feeling. In that moment I was so aware of everything I was doing; it was as if I could only blink in slow motion. It was beyond surreal. My heart sank. I could hear my unsteady breathing. I could feel my chest as if it was rising a mile each time I took a breath. If the doctor continued to speak, I heard nothing. I was completely and utterly numb.

I felt my heart beat pound in my ears and I felt the blood drain from my face. The tears came and I could not stop them.

I looked intently at the faces of my parents. Both seemed to be in disbelief, gazing into an ethereal cloud of reality that had just dawned upon us. I wish I could have known what they were both thinking at that very moment.

I’m sure no parent ever wants to be told that their seventeen year old daughter has cancer.

I looked out the window into the brilliant sun. The clouds seemed to [...] continue the story

Shanna (Shan) had a kind heart, gentle spirit and a smile that would radiate across the room. Shan was a gifted artist, skilled swimming instructor and professional figure skating coach. Shan loved to work with children and planned to teach. She had graduated from university and was heading off to teacher’s college when she was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer.

Living her beliefs, Shan always took a positive outlook on life. She accepted the tests and breast cancer treatments with determined optimism and said “let’s get this show on the road.” Sadly the predictions of hope were not to be realized and Shan passed away a few months later. Like many young adults, Shan’s symptoms were misdiagnosed, her cancer was not detected early and it spread quickly. Shan was only 24.

Friends and family bonded together in their loss to preserve Shan’s spirit. Team Shan Breast Cancer Awareness for Young Women (Team Shan), a Canadian charity, was established in Shan’s memory to raise awareness that breast cancer is not just a disease of older women. The Team Shan logo and sunflower graphics used in our work were inspired from Shan’s original artwork.

Team Shan has produced a successful communication model to reach young [...] continue the story

Beating the odds in a fight against a deadly cancer for most people would mean staying alive. For Mark Herzlich, who was diagnosed with bone cancer while he was a football star at Boston College, living meant playing football in the NFL. Byron Pitts reports.