Forgot I had cancer!

Angela_K
Angela_K Member Posts: 374 Member
edited June 2013 in Anal Cancer #1

After being consumed by cancer treatment and recovery over the past three years and being cancer-free now for 2.5 years, this week, for four consecutive days, I actually didn't think about cancer one single time.  When I realized this it took my breath, just a little.

Yes, I find myself celebrating the small stuff.  Like my brain being 'cancer-free' for almost 96 hours!

Comments

  • mp327
    mp327 Member Posts: 4,440 Member
    #2
    Hi Angela!

    I'm still waiting for that to happen to me, but I'm getting closer!  Congrats on being 2.5 years cancer-free!  I think this disease teaches us to celebrate all things that are good in life, even the smallest of things.  I went out to check my flower beds the other day and felt like doing the happy dance because the chipmunks actually went a whole day without trying to dig any of them up!  LOL!  Keep moving forward, my friend, as I know you will!  Love and hugs to you!

  • pializ
    pializ Member Posts: 508 Member
    #3
    mp327 said:

    Hi Angela!

    I'm still waiting for that to happen to me, but I'm getting closer!  Congrats on being 2.5 years cancer-free!  I think this disease teaches us to celebrate all things that are good in life, even the smallest of things.  I went out to check my flower beds the other day and felt like doing the happy dance because the chipmunks actually went a whole day without trying to dig any of them up!  LOL!  Keep moving forward, my friend, as I know you will!  Love and hugs to you!

    Angela

    Wow! So it can happen! How fantastic is that? I appreciate the small things more recently. Cancer is not good, but the change in perspective is! Liz

  • lizdeli
    lizdeli Member Posts: 569 Member
    #4
    pializ said:

    Angela

    Wow! So it can happen! How fantastic is that? I appreciate the small things more recently. Cancer is not good, but the change in perspective is! Liz

    Angela

    That is worth celebrating! I get excited when I have a day or two when I do think about cancer.  It's a really good feeling!

    Liz

  • LaCh
    LaCh Member Posts: 557
    #5
    black sheep, white flock, white sheep, black flock

    Well, once again, I'm the odd man out...  I assumed that the tumor was gone when the treatments were over and don't think about the cancer that I had. (I do, however think about the litany of problems that I have from the #$@! treatments because they affect my quality of life.) 

    I've not had any follow-up evaluations and don't plan to.  It's all in the rear view mirror and I'm more interested in what passes by now.  I often find myself going left when everyone else goes right, or vice versa.  Sometimes it's a good thing, sometimes it doesn't serve me very well, but that's just how it is, and always has been.  Dunno why. Just is.

  • Sundanceh
    Sundanceh Member Posts: 4,392 Member
    #6
    Congrats!

    Great news, Angela!

    I just made it 9-years from dx with cancer 3x....and 2 years in a remissive state...and now we're looking again...

    It seems like if you can get over the 2-year point of being clear, that it really brings hope...and allows you some freedom to manuever around and see the possibilities once more. 

    Years 0-2 are difficult, because you are sort of hung out between both worlds.

    Anyway, the more time goes by, it can only help relieve those anxieties....

    Best wishes going forward...

     

     

  • OMG 1012
    OMG 1012 Member Posts: 61
    #7
    I cant wait

    to be there too---I can go 12 hrs without thinking about it on a good day--still have itching so that brings me back :( getting port out end of the month--another milestone :)

     

  • TraceyUSA
    TraceyUSA Member Posts: 316
    #8
    OMG 1012 said:

    I cant wait

    to be there too---I can go 12 hrs without thinking about it on a good day--still have itching so that brings me back :( getting port out end of the month--another milestone :)

     

    Port ?

    I'm glad to see that there is hope for not thinking of the 'C' word every day.  I was beginning to think it was just me that couldn't get it out of my mind.  Martha hit it on the head when she said this disease teaches us to celebrate the good things in life.  It's those little things that I used to take for granted that mean so much now.  Anyway, I see that you (OMG 1012) mentioned getting your port out.  I'm an anxiously awaitng that milestone as well, how long after treatment did you have to wait to get it removed?  I finished treatments in the middle of March and can't wait to get rid of this thing bulging out of my chest.

  • OMG 1012
    OMG 1012 Member Posts: 61
    #9
    TraceyUSA said:

    Port ?

    I'm glad to see that there is hope for not thinking of the 'C' word every day.  I was beginning to think it was just me that couldn't get it out of my mind.  Martha hit it on the head when she said this disease teaches us to celebrate the good things in life.  It's those little things that I used to take for granted that mean so much now.  Anyway, I see that you (OMG 1012) mentioned getting your port out.  I'm an anxiously awaitng that milestone as well, how long after treatment did you have to wait to get it removed?  I finished treatments in the middle of March and can't wait to get rid of this thing bulging out of my chest.

    Port out

    Hi Tracey,

    I finished treatments in January.  I was TIS which is not even considered stage 1.  I had a small hemmy removed in Oct, that is when they found it.  They thought they had gotten it all, but to be on the safe side they decided to treat me anyway with standard protocol chemo/radiation.  except no rad to groin area, just the site of the surgery because it had not invaded the underlying tissue (it was just on the surface).  have had CT scan and follow ups, so I would say it is 6 months, since end of treatment. And I agree with Martha too---life has so much more meaning now---All we can do is hope for some sort of normalcy in our lives again!  and the not thinking about it is a start :)

  • 7243
    7243 Member Posts: 249 Member
    #10
    Amen

    Oh yes ... Free at last ... How wonderful!   

  • sandysp
    sandysp Member Posts: 868 Member
    #11
    Still in the rear view mirror

    For me the big C is still in my rear view mirror which I check regularly, especially when I am sick, like now. I don't think for a moment this malady has anything to do with it, but my obsession with cancer is still there dominating my thinking to a greater degree than I would like.

    I hope you just keep getting healthier and healthier and don't think about it until you see your next checkup on your calendar.

    Then I hope you don't think twice about that. Just another day you didn't maybe get to go to the beach or something.

    Love you!

    Sandy

  • sandysp
    sandysp Member Posts: 868 Member
    #12
    Sundanceh said:

    Congrats!

    Great news, Angela!

    I just made it 9-years from dx with cancer 3x....and 2 years in a remissive state...and now we're looking again...

    It seems like if you can get over the 2-year point of being clear, that it really brings hope...and allows you some freedom to manuever around and see the possibilities once more. 

    Years 0-2 are difficult, because you are sort of hung out between both worlds.

    Anyway, the more time goes by, it can only help relieve those anxieties....

    Best wishes going forward...

     

     

    August 15th

    Date of last tx. I hope you are right. Thanks for that post.

    Sincerely,

    Sandy

  • sephie
    sephie Member Posts: 650 Member
    #13
    fabulous

    congrats on not thinking about it..... i still do every day with every painful bowel movement.... they are very much less painful and i am grateful for that but the pain is still there and according to MDA is permanent radiation damage...i still fear every bump and spot anywhere.... i now have a tooth pain that no one can figure out....i have had 2 skin cancers but this anal one was horrific......   take care.....sephie

  • shirlann54
    shirlann54 Member Posts: 162
    #14
    Angela

    I love it when forget about the cancer too.It's been  1 1/2 years for me  too .I'am  feeling better and better .I do have my bad days .And some times i way over do it .My husband and i just got back from lake Michigan I't was so much fun .I forgot all  about my cancer then .

  • Angela_K
    Angela_K Member Posts: 374 Member
    #15
    shirlann54 said:

    Angela

    I love it when forget about the cancer too.It's been  1 1/2 years for me  too .I'am  feeling better and better .I do have my bad days .And some times i way over do it .My husband and i just got back from lake Michigan I't was so much fun .I forgot all  about my cancer then .

    Yay!

    Shirlann ~ So happy you are doing well and have longer periods of time where cancer doesn't stay in your head!  What also helped me is spending much less time on this site.  At one time being here daily is what I needed most but now that is not the case.  We all cycle through differently.  Although CSN will always be special, it has helped to let go.  Kind of bittersweet.

     

    Blessings,

    Angela

  • Angela_K
    Angela_K Member Posts: 374 Member
    #16
    sandysp said:

    Still in the rear view mirror

    For me the big C is still in my rear view mirror which I check regularly, especially when I am sick, like now. I don't think for a moment this malady has anything to do with it, but my obsession with cancer is still there dominating my thinking to a greater degree than I would like.

    I hope you just keep getting healthier and healthier and don't think about it until you see your next checkup on your calendar.

    Then I hope you don't think twice about that. Just another day you didn't maybe get to go to the beach or something.

    Love you!

    Sandy

    Sandy

    I really like you.  If we lived closer to each other we'd sing a lot together and be bff's. I just know it! :) 

    love,

    Angela

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