From 2009 to 2014 I volunteered twice a week at our local cancer center. Volunteers would welcome new patients, answer questions, provide literature, do wig fittings, etc. This was a very rewarding experience. In this role I met many incredible people including patients, doctors, nurses, and technicians.
One patient turned each chemo session into an party. For Fathers’ Day she gave us ties to wear. For 4th of July she brought in a big platter of hot dogs and chips to share with everyone. For an upcoming visit she tried to find a theme for her treatment day. I looked online and found National Fried Chicken Day near her appointment. For that treatment she brought fried chicken for everyone. Volunteering gave me a wealth of experiences and allowed me to help lots of people.
We met one young woman with an incredible attitude. I don’t remember what type of cancer she had but it was caught in an early stage. Her prognosis was good but you never take cancer lightly. Some patients with very advanced cancers survive when all the odds are against them. Other patients with a seemingly trivial case die or have serious complications.
Providing Information
This patient asked lots of questions about treatments, side effects, etc. I explained how chemo often causes sickness, hair loss, weakness, and the like. I had no firsthand experience with cancer but many of the other volunteers did. The medical staff give patients some details about treatments and side effects but the volunteers often received lots of additional questions.
Different people have wildly different reactions to chemo therapy. Some patients have an easier time with treatments while others have a very difficult time. We gave her details about the possible range of reactions and said that most people fall somewhere in between these two extremely. We told her that she will almost certainly have sick days and lose her hair.
Most people react with a big of trepidation, as you would expect. The reaction of this young woman surprised us all. On hearing of the side effects she got a determined look on her face and said, “Let’s go! Bring it On!”
Let’s Go!
She said that she was going to get sick, lose her hair, and deal with some serious discomfort. Her stern and determined reaction was, “Let’s Go! Bring it on!” No one ever gave this reaction after being told about hair loss and sickness. Her inspirational explanation could serve all of us.
She explained that the goal of beating cancer requires requires unpleasant treatments, sickness, and hair loss. She was eager to get treatments started as soon as possible. She was eager to go through the ordeals associated with the treatments. The faster the treatments started then the sooner the treatments would end. She was going to face the cancer treatments head-on. If the going got tough she was not going to face the cancer and say, “Is that all you got?”
Life Lesson
Her stern and determined attitude provides each of us with a life lesson. Many things in life require effort, pain, and determination. I recall hiking to the top of Mt. Pilchuck years ago. This six mile trail has a 2,150′ elevation gain. You can get spectacular 360° views from the lookout station at the summit. My body ached as I hiked the steep trail to the summit. But, you cannot experience the summit without the hike. The cancer patient could not experience being cancer free without going through the unpleasant treatments.
When challenges arise you can choose either retreat and say, “Whoa is me,” or you can say, “Another challenge, bring it on!” The woman did beat the cancer. I would not be surprised if everyone who worked with her learned valuable life lessons in seeing how she dealt the cancer.