Colorectal Cancer Survivor Stories
On the Other Side of the Diagnosis
by Mary-Jo Murphy, MS, RN, CDE
“I am a nurse,” I say to the surgeon, as if that explains that he can be different with me, less guarded, more frank. I’m trying to tell him, I will understand your jargon. Skip the euphemisms. In fact, I will be alert for anything that smacks of not telling the whole truth.
Facing Cancer Together
by Laura Shipp
Country music’s Charlie and Nan Kelley faced the toughest year of their lives when they were each diagnosed with cancer within months of each other.
Now That I Have Cancer...
by John Robert McFarland
I have nauseated days and frightened days. Tired days and hurting days. Long days and short days. Silent days and alone days. Sore mouth days and swollen hand days. Bald days and diarrhea days. Rainy days and sunny days. Cold days and warm days. But no bad days.
A Lesson in Courage
by Laura Shipp
On November 24, 1985, Jackie Pflug’s life was changed forever. When she woke up that morning, little did she know that a weekend trip to Greece would put her in the middle of a deadly terrorist attack. Jackie was a passenger on Egypt Air Flight 648. Her plane was hijacked just ten minutes into the flight. The hijackers soon began shooting hostages. Jackie was shot execution-style in the head and left for dead on the tarmac.
Camouflage
by Ann Favreau
I look out the window and contemplate the wonder of two women, cancer survivors, living life to the full on a trip to see the wonders of the ancient world in Egypt, yet taking time to share personal stories and find joy amidst adversity.
Everything I Learned about Life after Cancer,
I Learned from a Flight Attendant
by Ursula Daiber
My cancer journey began a week before Christmas 2003 and took my family, my friends, and me by complete surprise. There were no real symptoms. A little blood here, some bouts of diarrhea there. It wasn’t until I couldn’t use the bathroom for five days in a row, a first for me, that I knew I better see a doctor. An emergency colonoscopy was scheduled, and the next day it was determined that I had a large cancerous tumor in my rectum, only 3 cm from entry.
The Power of Ten
by Suzanne Lindley
I’ve focused so much of my life around this time that I’ve not looked much past it. Now it is time for me to create new plans. The first new milestone has come, as September marked my ten year anniversary with colon cancer.
Waiting All of My Life
by Theodore R. Westfall
The nagging pain had been distracting me for over a week. Laura, sitting next to me, had been distracting me much longer. When we arrived back to my apartment, I winced as the nagging pain worsened. Laura urged me to see a doctor as soon as possible. A colonoscopy confirmed that a large polyp had penetrated the intestinal wall. I learned that it had been there for possibly ten years. I was diagnosed with Stage III colon cancer.
