Cancer

Cancer scares me. . . I'll admit it. There are few other diseases out there that every one of us can say we've been affected by, either personally, or by way of a friend or family member. We know it happens. We know that in some cases we can't do anything to stop it. . . and maybe that's why it scares me. The lack of control.

Lung cancer is one thing. If I never pick up a cigarette, never work in a coal mine, I'll probably be lucky enough to avoid this one. Skin cancer, same thing. I can put on sunscreen, cover up when I'm outside, avoid the tanning bed (not that I'm very good about doing any of these things, but I COULD). But breast cancer? Cervical cancer? Colon cancer? It's all about watching and waiting, getting tests when we're supposed to get tests and praying it doesn't happen to us. . .

There are few other things that are that outside of our control.

I do not enjoy that feeling.

A close friend was just diagnosed with Uterine cancer. Apparently a HUGE number of people get this kind of cancer every year. 75% of people that catch it early (stage 1 or 2) are cured. But what about that other 25%? That's a really big number. What happens to those people? All of a sudden, out of nowhere, their lives are never the same. They are fully capable, productive members of society, with lives and careers and familes, and then suddenly, they're patients? They are confined to hospital beds and losing their hair and throwing up? It floors me that this is something I never really considered until now. . .