Random thoughts at the beginning of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, from a husband of someone with Stage IV breast cancer: 1. There are no losers in the “battle;” some just run out of time. 2. There are an awful lot of people with breast cancer out there, women (and men), who have go through this terrifying, exhausting experience pretty much alone. I see them about every week – older folks and younger people without anyone by their side… it’s heartbreaking. 3. The breast cancer machine is set up to promote “winners,” and illustrate some whose time ran out, to generate money. Which is fine, but not exactly accurate. A surprising number of survivors – I’ve read new estimates of around 25 percent – do not return to work after treatment’s end, often due to chemotherapy side effects that can linger. And many more of those with metastatic, or Type IV breast cancer, are living longer…. it’s now treated, in a way, like a chronic disease rather than a terminal one. However, the whole machine – from oncology and managing treatment side-effects to financial and emotional support – isn’t quite geared for that yet; a step or two behind. Leaves a lot of people in limbo between living and dying.
