What makes a "cancer survivor"?
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Anonymous
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I just got a fundraising email from a friend who is doing a 5k, and in his email, he says "as a cancer survivor myself..."
This guy had a cancerous mole removed when we were in grad school. They took a pretty good chunk of skin, but got it all, and he never had to do any further treatment-- no radiation or chemo or anything beyond regular follow-ups and mole checks with a dermatologist. Oh, and that was well over ten years ago. I'm not ragging on anyone's self-identification; perhaps he equates the fear he experienced with the horror of more extensive treatments, and I am in no position to judge his experience. But... cancer survivor? Does anyone else find that term a little odd in this context? Makes no difference, just looking for a perception check. |
Anonymous
| I had skin cancer. My mother and brother died from lymphoma. Those are very different things, especially since I gave myself skin cancer by refusing to wear sunscreen. I don't think he qualifies and I wouldn't donate anything just for that fact. |
Anonymous
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Just a thought: have you kept in touch with him? Maybe he had cancer thereafter?
Otherwise, yes it seems odd. But then again, people die of skin cancer. Could have been a "wake up" moment in his life or something. People experience things differently. |
Anonymous
| In this case there is a distinction between getting a suspicious or odd-looking mole removed and getting a cancerous mole / skin removed. While your friend didn't undergo chemo (or at least as far as you knew) I'd say he can say he's a cancer survivor. The thing about melanoma is that it can spread fast and you never know if you got it all. Having any amount of melanoma is a very scary thing. |
Anonymous
Yes, we've kept in touch. We're in the same field, so we're often at the same conferences. Plus, we're just friends. Christmas cards, traveled to each other's weddings, stayed in each other's guest room for a night or two when traveling to the other's city, etc. This is not the first time I've heard him describe himself as a cancer survivor. He used to have a survivor sticker on his car, from some other fundraising event, for example. But I just got the email today, so thought I'd throw it out to the crowd. |
Anonymous
+1. My MIL recently died after a long period of unwellness following the development of skin cancer which metastisized into her jawbone. The remaining 15yrs of her life were not at all pleasant. Have you seen pictures of Roger Ebert lately? They ended up removing half his face due to aggressive skin cancer. A pre-cancerous mole or basel cell carcinoma, I probably wouldn't consider myself a cancer survivor. Melanoma can be very scary. |
Anonymous
| Cancer survivor = someone who had cancer and is still alive. Unless this guy is raising money for his own personal use why does the title matter. Frankly, he should be appauded for supporting such a worthy cause. |
Anonymous
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OP, I don't really think it's your place to compare cancer suffering. Who cares if he didn't suffer as much as someone else? He's out working for the cause and that should be applauded.
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Anonymous
| OP, have you had cancer? I'm wondering what makes you think you get to determine who is a cancer survivor and who is not. The man had cancer and he survived. Sounds like a cancer survivor to me! |
Anonymous
| If melanoma hits the blood stream, you usually have 6 months to live, if that. I wouldn't bust on someone because he caught it early. |
Anonymous
| Are you for real OP? This is one of the douchiest posts I've seen on here. |
Anonymous
If it was BCC then I think it is a little strange. I have had 3 pre cancerous / BCC moles removed and would never consider myself a cancer survivor. I get that it is officially a cancer diagnosis but survivor makes it seem like there was a battle fought. I have had 4 close family members battle cancer (multiple myeloma, colon cancer, lung cancer and liver cancer). three lost their battle - one survived. I would never think of putting myself in the same category as them. While I suppose I could I don't identify as a cancer survivor. |
Anonymous
| I know three women who have had cancerous lumps removed from their breasts. In each case, the cancer was caught early, so no radiation or chemo was required. Would you consider them cancer survivors? I would hope so. |
Anonymous
| With friends like you, OP... |
Anonymous
| I'm in the melanoma YES BCC probably not the words I would choose category, but nor would it have struck me as strange. |