CANCER

A couple of years ago I was asked to speak at a fund raising event that honored those who have died from cancer. One of the most poignant moments that night for me was to see those long rows of white bags-- the luminaries-- with lighted candles in them, glowing softly in the dark. Each one of them, representing the life of someone who had fought the battle and lost it, to this disease. Those little lighted memorials brought back thoughts to me that night of a military cemetery such as Arlington or Flanders field, with all their monuments standing row on row. These weren’t war heroes, honored that night, but to many of us, they were our heroes.

I felt that I was qualified to speak on the subject for many reasons but probably the most important one was that cancer has raised its ugly head in my life to many times. I could have had my own little row of luminaries there that night. When one couples my grief, with the grief and suffering of all of the people that have lost a loved one to cancer—well it’s not possible to describe that in any language I know. 

One wonders why a nation that has put a man on the moon and is mapping the stars, can’t find the answers to controlling this terrible disease. But when you dig into the complexities of cancer you begin to find out how difficult this is. This is not one disease-- but hundreds of diseases with the same label. Couple this with the complexities of our medical research system, as they all look for that magic pill and it only becomes far more difficult then it has to be. Then pair that with the responsibility each of us has, to look out for our own bodies and it becomes even far more difficult. Yes, this isn’t a battle just being fought in hospitals and research labs. It is being fought in how we take care of ourselves, this earth and the things we are doing to it that contribute to the formation and spread of this disease.

Cancer has many side effects and one of the most formative ones is the cost of treating it. Families have suffered immeasurably, in a valiant-- but all to often-futile fight to keep someone alive. The phrase, “you can’t put a price on a human life,” has been echoed in personal injury lawsuits all around this nation, but the treatment of cancer does just that. If you are poor. Don’t get cancer. We are not that much closer to finding a cure for many cancers, then we were fifty years ago but we are miles ahead when it comes to treating, managing the disease, and prolonging lives. Albeit at a tremendous cost. A cost that has some insurance companies pulling the switch on the patient by refusing to pay and leaving those with no health care or poor health care, being condemned to die an earlier death.

I have had the experience of caring for and witnessing the deaths of two family members that I loved very much. You will always remember that last meeting with the Oncologist when they say, “There is nothing more we can do,” and yes; remember for the rest of your life. Even more, you will remember the hurt on the face of your loved one when they know that this is the end of the road. There is a list of cancer causing agents that would fill a small book. A list many of us should read and heed. For now, it seems to be one of the more important things we can do by ourselves.