Poll: What is your biggest fear related to cancer?

That my daughter will get it.

g) It runs in my family.I don’t fear it.

g), also. It doesn’t run in my family, at all. I rarely think about it. I figure what can I do but deal with it if the time comes to cross that bridge?

g) Watching another loved one die from it.

The absolute worst is what @Rarebear responded. A parent should never have to watch their child suffer.

No fears.

I most likely would refuse invasive treatments, and spend what time I had left enjoying my life free of chemo, radiation and other illness PRODUCING ‘therapies.’

I’d rather have one year of relative wellness and then die, compared to several years of feeling horrible and still dying.

I would utilize pain medications and just sit in the sunshine taking it all in with presence and that is good enough for me.

I do not support prolonging life if the quality is missing, therefore if my odds were less than 70/30 I would opt out on any treatment and allow nature to take it’s course as it should be.

g) Losing loved ones to cancer. I worry more about losing people I love than myself.

A and D, and other, which would be watching someone else suffer through it. Cancer is the worst disease there is.

h) Death.

When I answered on the facebook poll, I chose B because of the gamble involved in sacrificing quality of life for a cure.
But to be honest, ever since my grandmother died of it when I was little, I’ve been terrified of my mom getting it and reliving that period of my life again. Taking care of her at home, driving back and forth to treatment, trusting hospital staff to take care of her, possibly finding out that they didn’t, her fatigue, her hair… everything again.

a, b, and c. It is a thoroughly yucky thing to happen. Depending on the cancer you get, it could be a quick death sentence or it could be entirely curable. I’ve heard what it’s like undergoing chemo and it is thoroughly unpleasant.

It’s a crap shoot. There’s little you can do, I think, to stave it off. You get it or you don’t. If you get it, you cure it or you don’t. If you cure it, you get it again or you don’t.

The people with the healthiest lifestyles can get it. Horrible forms of it—brain cancer. Pancreatic cancer. Adrenal Cancer. I’ve lost friends and family to all three in the past few years.

@wundayatta

I have never heard of Adrenal cancer…mmmmm, no parts are immune.

Does the link specify only terminal cancers? Many of the responses here seem to be predicated on the idea that it’s always a death sentence no matter what you do. Speaking from experience here my answers (sorry, I have to give two) I’d go with B and C, mostly because another round of chemo would probably take away more brain function, and I hate what I lost the first time around. BTW, folks, treatment can be miserable, but I’d rather have that nasty stuff and good years after than just giving up.

b. Suffering from the treatment.

@JilltheTooth No, the poll does not specify terminal cancers. I think that in general, people associate cancer with the end. But there have been quite a few success stories, as you have demonstrated. We just need to hear more of them. I mean, as the CRI’s website has shown, even some of the worst cases have been cured.

I lost my second husband to cancer. I don’t allow any fears into my life (except spiders, and I’m working on that). I’d rather be happy.

It’s amazing, now. My 66 yr old cousin is currently battling Stage 4 lung cancer and beating it. I know many more who have survived, than have died. It’s still awful and dangerous but no longer a death sentence. For me it was just a really unpleasant span of time and a great opportunity to indulge in some horrid, tasteless (but very funny) humor. Too bad I can’t eat jalapenos any more, though, I miss them.

@JilltheTooth Wow! Congrats to you and yours! I’ve only had bad luck in my family and friends but then, they were all battling it in the 90s and early 2000. Perhaps it’s a technological jump I missed.

I have battled many forms of cancer and even a form of breast cancer that is very hard to fight. Gave up the boobs for it, but hey, now I can be any size I want to be; however, my biggest fear is passing it along genetically. It’s too late, my children are here and I can’t take it back. I don’t want them to suffer. It can be miserable.

Oh, @cak , I was hoping you’d weigh in here. So far on this thread, you are the best argument for fighting, and understanding that “quality of life” is subjective. It all definitely sucks, but I can’t see a reason not to fight, if there’s hope, and hope is really a powerful factor in any kind of recovery.

@JilltheTooth- unfortunately, it’s something I know, I also know there is the other side and just like everything else in life, it is what you make of it.

I know…every cliche we used to roll our eyes at suddenly has profound meaning… one of the side effects they don’t tell you about. That and not getting so frustrated in traffic.

g) getting cancer

Dying before I’m 80 yrs old
Not being able to afford treatment
Not knowing if cancer will come back after treatment

G: That I might give someone cancer as a result of my work.

I’d be worried about handling pain and discomfort in a way that doesn’t make me a total asshole to the people around me. Having the grace to make the best of the therapeutic opportunities and of the fact of illness, loss of vitality, and of the inevitable prospect of death.
People who maintain some composure while going through degenerative conditions seem valiant to me.