Cancer is not a death sentence

This is one of my mantras. As a 30-year cancer survivor, I have said this as long as I've been adult. Today, unless you were under a rock, you heard the news reports about the biggest drop in cancer deaths in decades.

This is great news. One day, I'll scan my pictures of little cancer patient Army of Mom. They will make you cry. That is something I try not to do on my blog, make you cry. I will make you cringe, I will make you squirm and I will mostly gross you out, bore you or piss you off. Crying, not so much.

However, the sad factor in these pictures is pretty high. I had cancer in my face. The official diangosis at the time was Weber Christian, but I think that was a "we don't know that the fuck you have, so we're going to call it this" disease. It was a cancerous tumor in my left facial cheek. I had at least six massive biopsies to remove the cancerous tissue. I was at five different hospitals. The doctors sent me to M.D. Anderson so I could be a guinea pid before I died. They told me and my folks that I had about three months to live. I was 6 at the time. I saw some horrific stuff and lived through some horrific stuff.

I remember stuff that most people never imagine. I saw kids die. I watched mothers weep. I tried to cheer people up and never let them see me sad. I wanted everyone to be happy. I tried to put my own IV back in after pulling it out while playing with a wagon. I knew I'd be in trouble for not being careful. Blood was everywhere. I had an out of body experience during a surgery. I'm still convinced that I died on the table because of the memories of the panicked staff working on me. I lost teeth during surgeries. I went to school in the playroom with a tutor. I missed all of my first grade. There were weeks I was at school. The rest of the time, I was in the hospital.

It is funny, you might think with all that I have endured, I would have lost my faith. On the contrary, I think it made it stronger. My middle name means "Reborn" and I feel certain that God had a purpose for me in life. I hope every day that I can live up to it. When I look at my kids, I feel like I know why I was able to live.

But, I got off topic. Don't put off that annual exam. Early detection is one of the keys to the lower death rate. Take care of yourself. Your life is a gift. Say thank you and appreciate it.