Fighting Back

Fighting Back

For thousands of years there have been many people that have passed away because of cancer. "Cancer" is defined by Merriam Webster as "a malignant tumor of potentially unlimited growth that expands locally by invasion and systemically by metastasis; an abnormal bodily state marked by such tumors; something evil or malignant that spreads destructively." When we hear the word "cancer" we automatically think of death. It is mostly viewed to be a life changer for the worst, because in the end the patient dies. When a person is diagnosed with cancer, no one really looks at the beneficial aspects of this disease. In some ways, cancer can be an opportunity for positive change.

Having cancer can change the patient's entire view on life. For example, my grandmother loved the outdoors, when she was diagnosed with lung cancer she thought that she would not be able to spend much time outdoors. Knowing that she would only have a few more years to live, she wanted to spend more time doing what she loved the most. I can still remember the many times that we went on nature walks, because she had a passion for looking at cardinal. We would walk hours on end look at cardinals and talking about her perspective on life, and where it was bring her. The doctors gave her a time limit for her life, but did not let that change her. She say that she was sad that she was on the clock, but was happy that she was able to turn her life around and be able to live her life to the fullest.

She consider every moment of her life as precious time that could never be returned. My mom always said she lived her life based on the Latin saying, "Carpe diem" which means to seize the day.

Another example is one of my close family friends. Every year our families go to a different location for a week to relax and spend time together. It happens to be July 4th weekend when we go on this trip. It is always a sunny, warm tropical location. In 2004 Jackie was diagnosed with skin cancer. I personally thought that our days of traveling to tropical locations were over. It was the exact opposite Jackie and her family knew what was happening; it was the start of a new way of life. We still went to sunny tropical places, because we all enjoyed going to a place where it was warm. The only difference was the precautions that we had to take before relaxing in the sun. Jackie always says she would never let something change her way of life. This was a great way to motivate all of us because she would not let anything take control of her life.

Outside of my family circle are other well-known examples such as Lance Armstrong. On October 2, 1996 Lance Armstrong was diagnosed with testicular cancer, which had already spread to his brain and lungs, and doctors told him he had a 50 percent chance of surviving. Lance Armstrong chose to proceed with