Many people assume that they will lose their hair if they have chemotherapy. But not everyone does. Why? Because some chemotherapy drugs don’t cause hair loss. Your oncologist will usually tell you if hair loss is an expected side effect of your chemotherapy. 

One of the unexpected aspects of hair loss is that you may not only lose the hair on your head, but you may lose your eyebrows, eyelashes, armpit hair, pubic hair and hair on your legs. Everyone is different — you may lose your...

Almost all of us have experienced this — a friend or co-worker or acquaintance acknowledges our cancer diagnosis with an “off-the-wall” comment.

What does “off-the-wall” mean? Here are some of the meanings:

• Far out
• Freaky
• Quirky
• Highly unusual
• Bizarre
• Strange in an amusing or entertaining way
• Oddball
• Totally unexpected
• Crazy

Most people aren’t sure what to say so many times, they repeat what they’ve heard someone else say. Many times, they don’t realize how inappropriate or...

Recent studies show that about 2/3 of Americans are either overweight or obese — too much fat in relation to their lean muscle tissue. Many of us are just a few pounds “overweight” while a small percentage of Americans are “morbidly obese.” The causes for weight gain are complex — ranging from genetics, hormonal, and emotional to lifestyle and cultural influences — lower income families may lack the income to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables.

Once we’re diagnosed with cancer, we want to...

I'm not sure what I expected going into surgery at Vanderbilt 2 weeks ago today. Leading up to it I was anxious and in a hurry to get it done and get it out of me. I was diagnosed with laryngeal cancer that required having a complete laryngectomy and bilateral neck dissection.

Sweetie waiting with me for the docs to come get me for surgery

That morning started like so many other mornings that we have been at Vanderbilt for me to have a procedure. Until this one, I have had several...

Did you hear the news? The death rate from cancer decreased by 29 percent in the years from 1991 (when the death rate peaked) to 2017. And even better, the biggest annual drop in the death rate occurred between 2016 and 2017 when the death rate declined by 2.2 percent.

That’s the largest single-year decline ever recorded. These facts and figures are calculated annually by the American Cancer Society and published in their journal CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians.

Which types of cancer...

Cancer Leaves A Mark

Every type of cancer leaves a mark of some kind on the patient, their family, and their friends. Some are very noticeable scars, loss of body parts, disfigurement, while others are internal that are not seen and most know nothing about. Loss of your voice in a matter of hours is a life changing event. 

Loss of your voice in a matter of hours is a life changing event. You are rolled into the operating room able to talk to the doctors and nurses, then when you come...

Sometimes just living seems so difficult during treatment or as a survivor. Pain, discomfort, fear of recurrence, side effects, lingering side effects afterward — it seems more than a soul can bear. 

Yet we persist and continue with life. And yes, we even experience joy and happiness. But are there ways to make our life easier?
These simple thoughts might be the answer to help us slosh through our rainy days.

I look for the Silver Linings.

Our diagnosis sucks. There’s no getting...