Treatment experience
12 articles shown
Back to the Classroom: The Day My Child Returned to School After Finishing Childhood Cancer Treatment
A parent's firsthand account of guiding a child back to school after completing treatment for pediatric leukemia. It covers meeting with the homeroom and school nurse in advance, a gradual return starting with half-days, practicing answers to classmates' questions, and the realistic road to recovering learning and concentration after chemotherapy.
Concurrent Chemoradiation for Cervical Cancer: A Record of the Six Weeks I Went Through
A firsthand account from a patient who underwent six weeks of concurrent chemoradiation for cervical cancer. Combining daily external radiation with a weekly chemotherapy infusion, she honestly records the fatigue, changes in urination and bowel movements, skin irritation, and the brachytherapy process, telling the story of getting through it by sharing symptoms with the medical team as they arose and managing daily life.
When I First Got a Stoma — A Story of Those First Few Days
A calm, personal account of the first days after suddenly getting a stoma: the feelings, the first pouch change and skin care, preparing for meals and going out, and the process of steadying a shaken mind.
Going to the Bathroom More Often After Colorectal Cancer Surgery — Adjusting to a New Bowel Routine
A personal account of adapting to more frequent, looser stools after colorectal cancer surgery. Recovery takes time, but managing diet, staying hydrated, and eating on a regular schedule help reset a bowel rhythm. It also lays out the warning signs that mean you should see a doctor.
Childhood Leukemia: Sharing Family Roles Through the Long Treatment Journey — One Family’s Story
One family shares its experience of the long road from a childhood leukemia diagnosis through remission induction and maintenance therapy. They divided the parents’ roles into primary caregiver and administrative handler, cared for the healthy sibling and the sick child alike, exchanged information with other parents on the same ward, and found ways for caregivers to avoid burnout.
Six Rounds of Ovarian Cancer Chemo: The Days My Strength and My Hair Slipped Away
A personal account of going through six cycles of chemotherapy after an ovarian cancer diagnosis. The day the hair began to fall, the strength that came back more and more slowly with each round, the shifting appetite and the tingling hands and feet. Not a tale of triumph or despair, just one person who lived through that stretch of time.
My Child's Chemoport: Watching Over the Insertion and the Daily Care
From the day a chemoport was placed under my child's chest skin before chemotherapy, through the needle access at each treatment, the cleaning and bathing care at home, and the heart-stopping nights when a fever came, this is a caregiver's quiet account. It is a record of how a small device that frightened us at first slowly became a trusted lifeline for our family.
The Day I First Handled an Ostomy Pouch, and How I Got Used to It
From the helplessness of the first pouch change, through leaks and a food notebook, to changing it in under ten minutes by fingertip feel alone. A personal account that your hands learn within days, and ordinary life returns even with an ostomy.
After the Whipple Operation: How Digestion and Blood Sugar Reshaped My Days
Five months after a Whipple operation for pancreatic cancer, one patient's account of enzyme supplements, small frequent meals, new blood sugar management, and protecting weight with protein.
Keeping My Daily Life While on Targeted Therapy — Until Resistance Comes
A first-person account of life on a once-a-day targeted drug after an EGFR-mutant lung cancer diagnosis: managing skin rash, diarrhea, and cracked nails; the habit of taking the pill every day; and living an ordinary today while quietly fearing the resistance that will eventually arrive.
Months Without a Voice After a Tracheostomy, and the Road Back to Speaking
A first-person account of the months spent voiceless after a tracheostomy. At first I got by with writing and gestures, then grew used to managing mucus and keeping the area clean, and slowly reclaimed sound through a speaking valve and speech rehabilitation. A quiet, honest record of that time.
Living Alongside Chronic Myeloid Leukemia, One Pill at a Time
A first-person account of life after a chance diagnosis of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), found at a routine checkup. The writer reflects on taking a daily targeted-therapy pill, the side effects, the nerves before every molecular test, and the quiet return to an ordinary life.