Types of Cancer

Kelly Turner

Kelly Turner

Kelly Turner, a New Haven, Connecticut, police officer, found a golf ball-sized lump in her breast when she was 36 years old. It turned out to be stage 3 breast cancer.In July of 2001, Kelly began 4 months of aggressive chemotherapy. She had a mastectomy and reconstructive surgery the following January, then radiation therapy 6 months later.

The entire time, Kelly's close friends gave her a tremendous amount of emotional support and helped her through medical appointments and treatments. Her coworkers and church family collected money, and also organized a motorcycle ride and a hockey game to raise funds that could help with her expenses. Kelly coped with the uncertainty of it all with the help of her loved ones, with prayer, and with spiritual music and talks.

On January 1, 2003, after missing 18 months of work, Kelly returned to the police force. Encouraged by the outpouring of emotional and financial support she had received from her friends and coworkers, Kelly decided to help other people the way she had been helped: she formed The Chain Fund , an organization that provides financial assistance to cancer patients and their families. Even though she's helping others through the project, the project is helping her, too, by giving her hope and strength. As she puts it, "I love to be a blessing to others! I enjoy making someone else's life better—even if it's just for a moment in time."

Today, Kelly is cancer free. The Chain Fund has grown to address various emotional and physical needs for cancer patients and families, while continuing its financial focus. Kelly describes herself as shy, but she tirelessly solicits donations and grants for The Chain Fund, holds events and fundraisers, and always thinks of ways she can help others.

Staci Wright

Staci Wright

Staci Wright was in the eighth grade when she began having terrible headaches. The 13-year-old girl had been healthy, happy, and active all her life, playing soccer since kindergarten. But life changed overnight when she was diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma, a type of bone cancer, in her skull.
The treatment was 10 months of chemotherapy, along with 5 weeks of radiation. "For me, the hardest part of the cancer battle was that my pain was hurting my whole family," she recalls. "It put so much stress on my parents and older brother. Luckily my sister was too young to really realize what was going on."
During it all, she tried to stay positive and upbeat, doing her best to live life as a normal kid. The support of her family and friends helped her get through many painful times during the year. But even so, there were days when she felt overwhelmed.
"Sometimes it felt like I was all by myself in this battle," she says. "I realized others couldn't fathom what I was going through, and so there were times when I just wanted to be left alone."
Hair loss from chemotherapy isn't easy for any patient. But for a teenage girl, it can be devastating. Staci felt sad and depressed with losing her hair and didn't want to go to school. "I had a really hard time with my hair loss. But there was nothing I could do about it except move on to more important things, like surviving," she says. Unfortunately Katie's radiation killed all the hair cells on a patch of skin on the back of her head, causing her hair loss to be permanent.
Fortunately her mother, Debbie, learned of a hair system that stays in place, made of real hair attached to material that looks like a scalp. Staci loved her new hair but was concerned about the other kids she met at the children's hospital who were still dealing with baldness. "It's tough for people my age to lose their hair," she says. "They lose their self-esteem with it."

Tamika Felder

Tamika Felder

Diagnosed with cervical cancer at age 25, Tamika Felder had to deal with the stigma of a disease linked to an STD.
"I was surrounded by people who were very supportive and wonderful. But there were also a few people who said cruel things because my cancer was linked to a sexually transmitted virus," she recalls. "That was painful, and those people either ended up being cut out of my life or their place in my life was minimal."
Tamika had to have her cervix and uterus removed, and had chemotherapy and radiation to kill all the cancer cells. To this day, the most difficult part of the experience was realizing she'd never be able to give birth to a child. But financial strain was also an issue, due to all the medical expenses. Before cancer, she had been making a name for herself in the broadcasting industry, but after her diagnosis she was unable to pay her bills. With her career on hold, issues with money, and her social outlets affected, Tamika gave up on life.Tamika made the decision to face the disease head on, and she fought for her life as hard as she could. If she lost her life, she decided, it wouldn't be because she gave up. Today, 10 years after her surgery and treatment, Tamika is once again working in broadcasting, as a television reporter and producer in Washington, D.C.

Ben Moon

The picture of balance

Ben Moon

Ben Moon, then a 29-year-old rock climber, surfer, and adventure photographer, assumed that the blood in his stool and his ongoing fatigue were due to the rigors of traveling or to a virus he had picked up along the way. Luckily, a wise nurse-practitioner suggested that he get a colonoscopy.
"I was only 29, and a lot of people my age don't get scoped," he says. "The fact that I got sent for a colonoscopy saved my life."
Shortly afterwards, he was diagnosed with colorectal cancer. After undergoing radiation all summer and then chemotherapy, Ben had surgery to remove his rectum, leaving him with a colostomy. Eight more rounds of chemotherapy left him exhausted and feeling toxic.

Ben was lucky to have wonderful friends and family who gave him ongoing support. They encouraged him to keep up his active lifestyle, helped with meals, sent cards and notes, and even held a silent auction to raise money for his medical bills. "They wouldn't let me lie around and feel sorry for myself," he says.Surviving cancer has brought Ben closer to his friends and family. He believes this greater connection caused a shift in his photography, too, helping him to capture human emotion more clearly in his subjects. "I feel more focused and driven to improve and grow as an artist," he says. "Cancer helped me appreciate those I love in my life even more, and taught me how to thrive even through the tougher times of life."

Minnie Hines-Chen

Living and loving every day

Minnie Hines-Chen

"Women your age don't get breast cancer," someone told Minnie Hines-Chen when she found a lump in her breast during her first year of college. But at the end of her second year, she was diagnosed with the disease. And just a few weeks later, she was accepted into nursing school.
Determined not to waste energy on anger, fear, or resentment, Minnie chose to have a bilateral mastectomy and an intense chemotherapy regimen so she could get back on track with schooling as soon as possible. "There was only room for one enemy in this battle," she says, "and I knew I needed all my strength to conquer it."
"Being only 20 years old, all the breast cancer survivors I met were older. But it was nice," she says, "because I had strong ladies to look up to, and our shared experience opened up doors and relationships that I never knew existed."
Minnie also had good friends keeping her busy, and her strong will helped her mom keep the faith that her daughter would make it through.
As soon as she was able, Minnie began telling her story and educating others about her experience. She began speaking at conferences and became a Reach to Recovery volunteer to encourage newly diagnosed patients.
Minnie says that she still deals with the stigma associated with cancer. "So many people are uneducated about the disease and the wonderful people who are fighting it every day," she says. "I'm glad I can bring wisdom to those around me. I still have scars from my chemo port, mastectomy, and reconstruction. But I'm here and able, and that's what matters most."
Minnie reached her goal of becoming a nurse and always keeps her positive attitude, despite the long-term effects of her cancer treatment. "I have to take tamoxifen daily, get monthly injections, and am in artificial menopause," she explains. "I can't have children, which puts a damper on my dreams. But until I learn what God has planned for me, I will keep serving others with compassion, laughing with my friends and family, and living for this moment every day."

http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/coping/survivorship/survivor-stories/page1

My opinion of the life stories of cancer in the above articles are amazing and fearful. I say that because all 5 victims could have died of cancer. But instead they kelp fighting their way through all the pain and courses cancer put them through in life. Cancer is not something people should take lightly it is serious. Many people have died behind it and for these 5 victims to survive is amazing because i have lost love ones from cancer that wasn't lucky enough to make it so take it serious.