Treatment experience
12 articles shown
The Days My Hair Fell Out During Chemo: Caring for a Wig and My Scalp
A first-person account of accepting hair loss that began in the second week of chemo, and softening the blow by shaving short early. The writer rotates a human-hair wig with beanies and scarves as the situation calls for, and cares for the scalp - which turned out to need the most attention - with gentle cleansing, moisturizing, and sun protection, through to the soft regrowth after treatment ends.
Starting Over With Breathing Practice After Lung Surgery
A first-person account of recovery after surgery to remove part of a lung: using a breathing exercise device, coughing and clearing mucus, and gradually building up to walking. It shares the lesson that recovery is not a straight line, but something you build a little at a time, listening to the signals your own body sends.
The Child Who Was Hospitalized with Neuroblastoma: A Record of That Long, Slow Recovery
A caregiver's quiet, honest account of one family's journey through neuroblastoma, from diagnosis to chemotherapy and surgery, and on through a recovery that came one slow step at a time. It records the hardships of hospital life, how a caregiver keeps going, and the joy found in small bits of progress.
Recovery After a Stem Cell Transplant: My Time as a Caregiver at the Bedside
A caregiver shares the recovery story of looking after a family member who underwent an autologous stem cell transplant. It covers visits to the clean room and hygiene routines, the mucosal damage and trouble eating when blood counts hit rock bottom, the anxious wait for signs of engraftment, infection control and re-vaccination during the immune-weakened weeks after discharge, and the often-overlooked importance of the caregiver taking care of themselves too.
The Day His Blood Pressure Spiked, and How Our Whole House Changed
A caregiver's honest account of a sudden high blood pressure diagnosis: getting past the resistance to taking medication, and how the entire family reshaped their habits with low-salt cooking and evening walks. It covers measuring blood pressure every day to watch the weekly average, and why resting before you measure matters.
What a Cone Biopsy Was Actually Like — The Road I Walked From Testing to Recovery
A first-person account from someone who had a cone biopsy (LEEP) after an abnormal cervical Pap smear. She walks through the diagnostic process, how the procedure was done, the real changes during recovery such as brown discharge and scab bleeding, the anxious wait for the margin results, and the follow-up testing that continues even after it's over — all told plainly and honestly.
Laparoscopic Colon Cancer Surgery: My Own Experience from Admission to Discharge
A candid, first-hand account of the whole journey: a colon cancer diagnosis, laparoscopic surgery, hospitalization, and recovery. From the misery of bowel prep and the tiny scars, to passing gas, walking, the step-by-step return to eating, a week in the hospital, and the precautions after discharge. An honest record for anyone facing the same road.
The Day She Hears Her Breast Cancer Results, and Wants to Go Alone
When a patient says she'll go to her final breast cancer results appointment alone, or with a friend, the family can feel hurt and left out. This piece looks at the feeling underneath that choice, and why "I'll be by your side no matter what the result is" matters more than arguing about who comes along. It also covers the prognosis of small early-stage breast cancer, why notes on consultation day help, and how waiting family members can manage their own emotions.
Robotic Total Mastectomy with Immediate Reconstruction: Is the Whole Bill Really Out of Pocket?
A first-hand account of wrestling with the cost of a robotic total mastectomy and immediate reconstruction. The hospital's quoted total and what you actually pay out of pocket are two different things. The takeaway: get an itemized estimate up front and check your indemnity insurance coverage before you commit.
Hormone-positive breast cancer: when you're weighing whether you can skip chemo
A caregiver's plain-spoken account of when chemotherapy might be skipped in hormone-positive, HER2-negative breast cancer. It walks calmly through how the tumor's subtype and genomic test results can open a path of hormone therapy alone.
Only Once the Surgery Date Was Set Could I Finally Breathe
From my wife's breast cancer (invasive ductal carcinoma) diagnosis to the day her total mastectomy with immediate reconstruction was finally scheduled, this is one caregiver's quiet account of the anxiety and sleepless nights he lived through, and how his mind finally settled once a date was on the calendar.
Stage 2 Pancreatic Cancer, Surgery, and What I Learned Choosing a Hospital
A personal account from a stage 2 pancreatic cancer diagnosis through surgery to remove the head of the pancreas and recovery. It shares why I chose a hospital based on which medical team could see my condition quickly and move me into surgery without delay, rather than insisting on a famous, big-name hospital, along with a plea not to put off getting checked even when symptoms seem vague.