How To Guide

Example 1

Polly Todd

Mrs. Polly Todd was diagnosed with breast cancer way back in 1975. She already had one breast removed because three cancerous nodes had been found. She was told that her chances of survival were dim. She went for an expert opinion and this diagnosis was repeated. She was advised chemotherapy and radiation, which she did not want to undergo.

When a friend mentioned the Laetrile-nutritional program, she decided to try it out. She also used diet, vitamins and enzyme therapy. Thanks to the nutritional program, she beat her cancer and had no recurrence of the disease while those with similar diagnosis, who opted for conventional treatments, lived only for 1 1/2 years. Her story is documented in the book “Alive and Well’.

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Example 2

Brenda Cobb

Brenda Cobb was diagnosed with breast and cervical cancer in the early stages. She decided she did not want to go in for surgery or chemotherapy or radiation. Her doctors told her that she would need surgery, chemo and radiotherapy otherwise she would be dead within a… Read More

Example 1

Phil Kissi

The Prostate Cancer Charity website is an excellent resource for people looking to draw inspiration from the personal stories of those men who has suffered with prostate cancer. Phil Kissi MBE is one of the people whose stories are featured. Diagnosed in 2006, he realised he may have the illness when he watched a programme on TV about it.

Phil describes going to the GP to get tested for prostate cancer and finding out that e had an aggressive form, although it was still in the early stages. He also describes how lucky he was in catching it incredibly early. Phil goes onto day that the element he found was most helpful in learning how to deal with prostate cancer was having  GP whom he could talk to and lean on when in need of support. He recommends finding a GP who can offer you the same if you are diagnosed with it but ultimately says that the best thing you could do for your health is take responsibility for it.

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Example 1

Jeanne Borden

Jeanne Borden’s Running Scared is a short story that is designed specifically to convey just how scared she felt when dealing with breast cancer. Comparing herself to a mother sending her soldier son to war, she expresses her fears, thanks and prayers in several paragraphs of prose that are enough to touch even the coldest of hearts. In effect, the story is Borden’s way of coping with breast cancer because putting her thoughts on paper seems to serve as therapy.

Borden’s account of how she is feeling about her treatment for breast cancer can effectively give others the tools they need to be able to cope with breast cancer because it lets them know that they are not alone. As Borden describes how she embarks on her journey and gives herself over to her treatment in order to live, she is speaking directly to the reader, thus giving her readers hope and a method of coming to terms with the illness as well as learning how to cope with it.

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Example 1

Jan Pederson

Jan Pederson was an active, healthy woman. She exercised with her husband three times a week.  In the beginning of 2003, Jan felt that her strength was lower than usual during her gym routine.  After working out, Jan was bloated in the abdominal area and experienced back pain.  A friend of her, who was a nurse and she suggested a medical checkup.

Jan’s pain was a sign of ovarian cancer.  She did some blood tests and an ultrasound and the results indicated a mass and fluid. Jan went into surgery and the doctor removed a two-pound tumor and a big quantity of body fluids.  Coping with stage III ovarian cancer was difficult, and Jan admitted herself at the Cancer Treatment Center at Midwest Regional Medical Center.

The center’s staff was very professional, supportive and dedicated to treating cancer, regardless the stage.  Five years later, Jan is an ovarian cancer survivor and works as a volunteer in the centre where she found cure and understanding.

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Example 2

Maria

When Maria started to fell… Read More

Bettina Woodburn

Bettina Woodburn found out she had cancer by pure coincidence. In 1973, she attended a women’s conference; one of the discussion topics was breast cancer. As soon as Bettina got home, she tried to check her breasts for lumps. She was shocked to find a lump, just as the ones described as the meeting. After performing a biopsy, the doctor told her the news: she had breast cancer. The next step was the mastectomy.

Bettina felt like an essential part of her body was removed, and she struggle to go on with her life as a mother, wife and woman. There was nothing that could replace her breasts whether we are talking about sheepskin prosthesis, sponge rubbers or socks. Finally, betting chose to reduce the size of the other breast in order to achieve a sort of balance. After years of coping with cancer, Bettina has understood that life is short and we need to continue no matter what happens. Therefore, she joined the Veteran Athletics group at 60 and won many medals in the international marathon competitions.… Read More

John Coulthard

cancer means bad news for any man, without a doubt. John Coulthard was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2005. The first step he made was to research all the available options. He consulted his urologist and read a number of books, including “The Intelligent Patient Guide to Prostate Cancer” by Goldberg and Thompson. From all the options, John chose a Radical Prostatectomy. The pre-surgery months were a bit difficult, but john managed to keep up with his activities and tried to get in shape in order to get through the surgery easier.

At times, the thought of having this surgery was depressing, but he had his wife’s support. After the surgery, john was a bit frustrated because he was not able to do things as he did before. The staples and the catheter were not comfortable at all. John got back to his favorite activities about eight weeks after the surgery. His blood tests are perfect, and he is able to ride the bicycle again.

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Doug Blampied

Doug Blampied, an insurance executive from Concord, N.H. took a big hit when he found out he had leukemia. For months, he was feeling weak and tired, and he thought it was just a virus. However, when the fever became too high, he went to the doctor. After just few hours, he was rushed to the hospital for more tests. The diagnostic was myologenous leukemia, or cancer of the spinal fluid.

Doug started chemotherapy and suffered from the daunting side effects. Doug had few chances to recover, but in 1983, the tests indicated that his cancer was in remission. Six months later, the leukemia appeared again, crushing Doug’s chances to life. He underwent a bone marrow harvest, than opted for a transplant. During the same period, Doug found out about the benefic impact of macrobiotics in leukemia cases. He tried to change his diet and lifestyle in addition to the drug treatment. Now, eight years later after being diagnosed with leukemia, Doug feels better than ever.

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Example 1

Ann Marie

Finding out about having leukemia is a horrible thing, given the fact that the number of victims this diseases does yearly is very high. Still, there are people who suffer from it and with the proper treatment manage to beat this type of cancer and live a normal life. This is Ann Marie’s story, a woman who discovered she had leukemia and managed to get healthy.

She found out about her disease in 1997 after going to the dentist and a visit to her family doctor due to tingling fingers. After passing through a blood test which revealed a low white blood count, and a few more days when she felt really bad, she was diagnosed with leukemia.

This is how her journey as a cancer patient began. She went through difficult treatments, chemotherapy, her body felt all the changes, she experienced the inevitable hair loss and had to cut it. She spent weeks in the hospital and after she took her third bone marrow test, the doctor informed her that… Read More

Example 1

Arlene Rohrer

Being a smoker Arlene Rohrer knew that those little cigarettes could one day be harmful to her health although she had not had one in years. She also had been in New York City around the 9/11 attacks and was exposed to the black dust that was in the air. Both elements were found in her lungs. While lung cancer may have never been on her mind it did become part of her health history. It was 2009 when the diagnosis hit her chart after fatigue and a cold had plagued her daily life.

The diagnosis was Stage IV non-small cell lung cancer and to make matters worse the prognosis was slim that she would become a cancer survivor. Fox Chase Cancer Center became her place for treatment with a radiation treatment known as Cyberknife as the lung cancer had spread to a spot on her brain. It was a new treatment option at that time. Her stay at Hope Lodge was met with the spot on her brain completely removed followed by chemo. Her… Read More

Example 1

Nancy

Breast cancer survivors are some of the strongest ones in the world. Nancy is a survivor that suffered from this disease and is now a 2 ½ year survivor that is dedicated to telling her story so that other women can be inspired to get a mammogram each year and know what to look for before it is too late. Nancy was lucky and this is her story that started with a simple mammogram that saved her life.

Preceding a mammogram Nancy’s cancer was found in the early stages of diagnosis putting it in the stage 1 of the cancer prognosis. Her treatment included 35 radiation sessions, a lumpectomy plus the lymph nodes from under both arms were removed. Nancy also did not have to undergo chemo. She had no family history of this type of cancer and no risk factors of any kind either. It was the mammogram that had saved her life and as women, we all know how easy those are to have done. A simple test that can truly save your life. They… Read More

Two examples below

Sheila R

Sheila R, of Nova Scotia in Canada, had had a hysterectomy so she was surprised when she started getting a discharge. She went to her doctor who prescribed medicines for a yeast infection, which did not help her. Later she started having some bleeding, when to a gynecologist and was, after many tests, diagnosed with stage 2 squamous cell carcinoma of the vagina. She was only 44 at that time, had a 13 year old daughter and a husband who was recovering from a stroke.

She underwent surgery to remove the lymph nodes in the groin area, followed by 25 external beam radiation treatments. It took her five months to get back to work and recovery and healing was slow. She has to go for regular check-ups since then.

Ann Flintoff

Ann Flintoff of Jacksonville was diagnosed with vaginal cancer, she was under the impression that a hysterectomy would take care of it. She did a lot of research and went to the Mayo Clinic because she wanted to live.

She received six weeks of… Read More

Two examples below

Sok Kim

Sock Kim who lives in Singapore found out that she had nose cancer (NPC – nasopharyngeal cancer) in Aug 2006. She underwent 8 weeks of radiation treatment in Sep-Oct 2006.  In Jan 2007 tests showed that there were no more tumors.

But tests in Sep 2007 showed sub-cm tiny nodules in the right lung. In Mar 2008 the scan confirmed 2 nodules in the right lung, “suspicious of metastasis”. In December she had surgery to have the nodules removed. The biopsy showed cancer.

Subsequently, after a few months, she got some respite. ’All the test results are normal. My lung is my main concern, so the good x-ray result is comforting and reassuring,’ she says.

Gih Lye Choon

Goh Lye Choon found blood in the mucous, was put on antibiotics but was not cured. Then Goh went to an ENT doctor who advised a biopsy which showed cancer. Goh did not require surgery but had radiation daily for five days a week for seven weeks.

After 14 months of regular check-ups, x-rays and liver… Read More

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Jerry James

Jerry James Bradshaw was doing a lot of work which required a great deal of communication, so when his voice got hoarse, he put it down to his work, particularly since he also had sinus and allergy problems. Over the counter medicines did not help and finally he went to a doctor who diagnosed bronchitis. He was put on antibiotics.

He got better, but later the hoarseness returned and he went to an ENT doctor who said he had a growth on his vocal chords. A biopsy showed cancer. He went to the Cancer Treatment Centers of America in Tulsa and was put through a regime of 6 chemo treatments and 33 radiation treatments over a period of almost two months. Later he had 5 more chemo treatments.

Bobby Bennett

Bobbie Bennett was diagnosed with cancer of the right vocal chord by her doctor in Oklahoma. She was not happy with the course of treatment he advised and was discouraged when her daughter saw an advertisement and told her to check out the Cancer Treatment… Read More

Two examples below

Belinda Plowman

When Belinda Plowman was a baby she had Retinoblastoma (Rb) which is an inherited form of eye cancer. When she was only 16 months old she had her left eye removed. When she turned five, she became an outpatient at Barts and would have to visit the hospital every year.

She had decided that she did not want to have children if they would inherit the disease (her mother had it too), but when she got married and found out that they could go in for genetic testing once she got pregnant, she decided to go for it. Fortunately when she did get pregnant and was tested, it was found that the embryo did not have the genetic mutation which would cause Rb.

A few years later, she had IVF where the fertilized eggs were tested before implantation, and later she gave birth to a healthy baby boy.

Tor Fleming

Tor Fleming got married to Andy who had Rb. When she had her baby boy, it turned out that he had the gene for Rb… Read More

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Ruth Presswood

Ruth Presswood felt a lump on her neck, went to her doctor and all her tests were fine. But her doctor sent her for further investigations which ultimately showed that she had thyroid cancer – she was only 19 years old. She had an operation which removed the tumor, thyroid and a few lymph nodes and a neck dissection to check if it had spread.

She had to have radioactive iodine treatment and apart from the scar on her neck, is now cancer free. But she did lose some feeling in her neck area as some nerves had to be cut during the course of the surgery. She was diagnosed in 1999, got married in 2005 and now has a two year old son.

Renee

Renee was diagnosed with thyroid cancer when she was 23. She was pregnant at that time and did not want to terminate her pregnancy so she had to wait for 20 weeks to have surgery. She had a total thyroidectomy and bilateral neck dissection.

She is a cancer survivor of… Read More

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Viv Thomas

Viv Thomas was diagnosed with throat cancer after discovering a lump on his throat while shaving. He was in Portugal at that time, having moved there from the UK. After a series of tests he was found to have throat cancer and decided to have it treated there after exploring options in the UK and US.

He had radiation treatments which made him lose his appetite, caused burns, made him lose his voice and worse caused him to lose the ability to make saliva. His treatment lasted seven weeks and after that he goes for regular check ups and is cancer free. He has kept up his active lifestyle and is a cancer survivor.

Allen Clark

Allen Clark, MD, a plastic surgeon, discovered a lymph node in his throat and being a doctor was certain it was cancer. He was diagnosed with cancer and was advised chemo and radiotherapy. But the radiation caused his throat to tighten and swallowing became excruciatingly painful – a common complaing with throat cancer patients.

Many patients are forced to… Read More

Two examples below

Cornelia Dobb

Cornelia Dobb, a journalist, had a mole below her belly button for a year but did not suspect anything. It was only when she was talking to her GP about anti malaria tablets that the doctor noticed moles on the soles of her feet. Cornelia said she had them on her palms as well. The doctor did not seem worried and as Cornelia was to move to Cambodia for two years with her husband to be they went back to discussing tropical diseases.

One day before her wedding the doctor had fixed an appointment for her, but she did not go as she was getting married. She finally went after she returned from her honeymoon.

The dermatologist who saw the mole on her tummy wanted to remove it and she had the procedure done. A week later the report came that she had malignant melanoma. She had bigger surgery this time to see how much it had spread. She was fortunate because the reports said it had not and she did not need further treatment.… Read More

Tina P

Tina P. of Oklahoma thought she was in peri-menopause when she was fifty and no symptoms of cancer. When she went for annual physical, all her results were clear and she was just told to take her vitamins and watch out for weight gain. Unfortunately a week later her pap smear showed cancer and she underwent a radical hysterectomy.

Further tests showed adenocarcinoma of the fallopian tubes that had metastasized to the cervix, ovaries, and abdominal wall lining and all the cancer in the abdominal lining could not be removed. She had eight cycles of chemo after which she was told there no evidence of the disease.

A year later the cancer recurred in the pelvic and groin regions and she underwent eight cycles of chemo which showed no reduction in size of the spots. Then she had another eight cycles of chemo.

Cancer has changed her life – she says, all, ‘I am indeed a better, happier person. I have taken the time to renew and re-energize good friendships and end the negative, energy-sucking ones. I have… Read More

Two examples below

Donald Sannes

Donald Sannes and his wife Andrea own and operate Sannes Skogdalen, a nursing home that employs 85 people in a rural Wisconsin town. One day Donald noticed a pinkish tinge in his urine and went to his urologist who performed a cystoscopy. The test revealed a tumor on the bladder which turned out to be cancerous and that, too, stage III cancer.

Surgeons removed his prostate and nearby lymph nodes, fortunately his bladder was saved and he had no cancer anywhere else. Post surgery he had a catheter in place for some time and suffered from night time incontinence. He had no need for chemo and radiotherapy and within a short time he was back to his old energetic and hectic lifestyle.

Sylvia Ramsey

Sylvia Ramsey is a ten year bladder cancer survivor. She is a Georgia Military Community College (GMC) professor, poet, and national bladder cancer patient advocate. She noticed pink urine and went to her doctor and was put on a course of antibiotics which did not help.

Eventually she saw an urologist… Read More

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Jennifer Ambrose

In April 2007 Jennifer Ambrose was diagnosed with a rare form of appendiceal cancer called pseudomyxoma peritoneal cancer after a laparoscopic appendectomy revealed a malignant tumor. Pseudomyxoma peritoneal cancer strikes one of every 1 million Americans. Sometimes referred to as “jelly belly,” it is usually caused by a mucus-producing tumor cell, often in the appendix.

She underwent a nine hour surgery at UCSD Medical Center where a tumor was removed from her liver, right diaphragm and spleen. After the surgery, she had heated chemotherapy solution that is circulated throughout the abdomen for nearly two hours. Ambrose is cancer-free and a survivor.

Caroline Langlie-Lesnik

On March 29, 2001 Carolyn Langlie-Lesnik RN was diagnosed with poorly differentiated signet ring adenocarcinoma of the appendix. This was discovered in the course of laparoscopic surgery for the fibroids – her appendix had been ruptured, had a mass and was removed laparoscopically via a plastic bag during the surgery.  A frozen section identified the mass as malignant.

Many doctors and treatment centers gave her a poor prognosis, but being a nurse, she… Read More