Category: Experts Speak - Part 2
How To Avoid Worrying About Pain
One day a breast cancer survivor came to my office with a bump on the back of her heel. She told me that it was painful and she was worried her cancer had returned. This woman, an executive and a runner, had a smooth, soft and tender mass about the size of a walnut. Immediately…
Cancer Survivorship Issues Faced by the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community
Once diagnosed with cancer, members of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender (LGBT) community face some unique challenges. First, they have to decide whether it is safe to come out to their oncologist and treatment team. Even those people who are generally comfortable revealing their sexual orientation or gender identity may be more guarded and…
Living Through – A Spiritual Guide Through Cancer
I suppose I have recited Psalm 23 publicly at religious services more times than I can count, but in the private times of trial and tribulation, when I needed the comfort of the Holy One, I have turned to it as well. Allow me a preface, and then I will return to the Psalm itself.For…
Self Care – Everyone Needs It!
Dealing with a major illness can be traumatic on all levels—physical, mental, emotional and spiritual. Similarly, recovery from illness also needs to happen on all levels. Self-care refers to simple practices that nurture the mind, body and spirit. As part of a healthy lifestyle, self-care practices can help boost resilience or one’s ability to “bounce…
Meditation For Cancer Survivors: Getting Started
Editor’s Note: For the first time, researchers have shown that practicing mindfulness meditation has a positive physical impact at the cellular level in breast cancer survivors. For many years, oncologists have known that alternative or integrative therapies likes meditation bolster the emotional well-being of cancer survivors. ABC News anchor Dan Harris, a leading and studied…
Mindfulness Meditation: Finding Peace and Ease While Living with Cancer
Cancer survivors and caregivers have many common concerns and challenges. In my classes, most people say that cancer has shown them that life is precious and that they are in the fight of their lives’. This struggle to survive is often fraught with stress and anxiety. In addition to the effects of treatment, there can…
Self Care – Everyone Needs It!
Dealing with a major illness can be traumatic on all levels—physical, mental, emotional and spiritual. Similarly, recovery from illness also needs to happen on all levels. Self-care refers to simple practices that nurture the mind, body and spirit. As part of a healthy lifestyle, self-care practices can help boost resilience or one’s ability to “bounce…
Colorectal Cancer Survivorship: What Every Survivor Should Know
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common cancer in the United States for both men and women with an overall lifetime risk of approximately one in 20. Fortunately, death from colorectal cancer has dramatically declined thanks to advances in therapeutic treatment options and an increase in the number of people undergoing colorectal cancer screening…
Surviving Cancer: Physical Realities
Cardiorespiratory (CR) fitness, also called aerobic capacity, is one of the most important indicators of health and longevity in humans. CR fitness refers to the body’s ability to transport oxygen from the air to the body’s cells in order to produce energy for a multitude of processes (e.g., muscle contraction, immune system function). The integrity…
Being Sun Smart: What You Should Know About Skin Cancer
Skin cancer is the most common type of cancer in the United States, accounting for more cases than all other cancers combined. More than one million cases are diagnosed each year and approximately 50% of Americans who live to 65 will have at least one skin cancer. Learning the characteristics of skin cancer is essential…