Cancer Boot Camp

Within two days of being diagnosed with cancer, I received a "Cancer Support Community" newsletter in the mail.  Being more of a loner than a joiner, I let it sit on the counter for a while.  When I finally took a look at it, I was surprised to see so many interesting offerings available free of charge.  The newsletter had all of the cancer networking groups you would expect, there are general support groups, groups by types of cancer, and even a singles with cancer group.  (the compassionate side of me thinks that group sounds kinda cool and the judgmental side thinks it's kinda sad -ok, I probably shouldn't judge without trying it out)  Anyway, there are a bunch of classes you would expect like nutrition, art, yoga, and tai chi, and a few to tempt a 'new age' enthusiast like myself such as African Drumming and Reiki Circle.  Unfortunately, most of the classes take place at the during working hours or just after, and the location for the classes is 25 commuter-clogged miles away. 

It took me 6 months, but I finally attended my first class at the Cancer Support Community Center - Cancer Boot Camp.  (given on a driving friendly Saturday morning)  Cancer Boot Camp was conducted by a Naturopathic Doctor that believes most cancers are fueled by inflammation in the body, and cancer can be prevented or battled if you already have it, by reducing our exposure to it.  To counter inflammation, we need to eat an anti-inflammatory diet (LOTS of fruits and veggies, preferably organic) exercise a minimum of 3 hours per week, and stay hydrated by drinking half your body weight in ounces of purified water.



My daily green smoothie!

Cancer Boot Camp stressed the importance of treating food  as medicine, which translates into 5 to 7 servings of vegetables and 4 servings of fruit per day - basically twice as many as were recommended in the past.  To help increase veggie intake, they are okay with using some green drink powders that can be mixed with water or juice, or added to  a green smoothie.  There are also some supplements that are recommended including Omega 3 fish oil and Curcumin / Turmeric. 

Now for the bad news.  Naturally, they don't like sugar or carbohydrates.  The doctor didn't ban them, but only want you to have 2 servings, which is basically 2 slices of bread, per day.  For me, the saddest news of all was that they are very anti-dairy.  This was devastating to a Wisconsin born cheese-head such as yours truly, and so I have yet to break up my love affair with Cheddar and Monterey Jack.  Since the very first thing the doctor giving the presentation said was to follow the recommendations 80% of the time, not 100%, I figure I can still have a grilled cheese sandwich 2 days out of ten, because I simply can not survive on green smoothies alone!

Immune Therapy Update - I am still sailing along with immune therapy treatment.  Recently, I had my 13th infusion, which is the 3rd one since having to miss a treatment.  Overall, I feel pretty well and have increased my working hours from 1/2 time to 3/4 time.  The only annoying side effect for me is the sticky 'allergy' eyes, that is especially bad in the mornings.  I still take a daily allergy pill, and I use over-the-counter eye drops recommended by my eye doctor, which help somewhat, but I will continue to seek out a more effective solution.

6 Months Diagnosis Anniversary and the Self-Pity Party

my new t-shirt!

First, an update - I have had 2 more Nivolumab infusions since I had to skip a treatment due to a stressed liver.  I was worried about my liver last week ahead of the most recent blood test.  When I was in for acupuncture I mentioned it.  I was told to drink water with lemon in the morning to counter a 'hot' liver.   Since I have a lemon tree, this was an easy fix - and so far it seems to be working.

November 7th is the 6 month diagnosis anniversary.  I am over the shock, over the fear, but concerned about 'self-pity brain' settling in.  Recently, a former coworker died.  The news was sudden and everyone at work was shocked and saddened, except me.  My first thought was 'lucky bastard' -followed by  'he smoked way longer than me, he drank way more than me, exercised way less than me, and yet he died at home, not from a long drawn-out illness, but from a heart attack at age 69.  Life is not fair!'  What is wrong with me - why can't I just be sad for his family -why do I have to compare and judge his life to mine?  Is it just human nature or am I letting cancer put me in a prison of self absorption, and allowing it to distort my world view.

Helen Keller is quoted as saying "self-pity is our worst enemy and if we yield to it, we can never do anything wise in this world."  Self-pity is definitely addictive.  Not only do I use it occasionally as an  excuse to skip the gym or have that second bowl of ice cream, but I find that I also use it to avoid making decisions about the future.   If left unchecked, self-pity is not only an obstacle to living life fully, but can also be destructive to me mentally and physically.  All of this is true, but sometimes I just can't help myself when the darkness creeps in.

Debbie Macomber states "it's all right to sit on your pity pot every now and again, just be sure to flush when you are finished."  Maybe I am still adjusting to my new normal, or maybe it's human nature and I will have moments of self-pity as long as I can stop it before it takes up permanent residence in my gray matter. 

I want to end this blog post on a positive and grateful note, so I would like to say that I am so grateful to all of the lung cancer patients who came before me and participated in the immune therapy drug trials.  I know that I would be in far worse shape today, if it weren't for you - Thank You!   I guess I'm pretty lucky after all!