Hi, I'm Clarice. I’m a safety, training and investigative officer in Canada, and I’ve been working full-time as I fight through Stage 4 lung cancer.
I was in a car accident a long time ago, and my lower back was bothering me. My family doctor mentioned that they can fix your disks now. So we went to get an X-ray of my spine and it showed a spot. They needed to investigate more, and that's when they found out. It was a Stage 4 lung cancer tumor.
As I dealt with the disease, I also faced difficulties with shortness of breath.
When I got the news, I felt frightened, overwhelmed and worried. It made me feel furious, numb and resentful, but I also felt a sense of emptiness and grief. I was perplexed, but disappointed, too.
After the diagnosis, I changed my lifestyle trying to exercise more and eating a healthier diet more often.
Initially, I decided on radiotherapy, but it wasn’t working effectively, so
I later changed to chemotherapy instead.
After I had to change my treatment plan, I was angry and anxious, and left me feeling more discouraged.
I didn’t seek a second opinion beyond my doctor’s recommendations for me.
I managed the side effects like
- fatigue
- nausea
- weight fluctuations
with better nutrition and prescribed medication. Thankfully, I haven't faced financial difficulties because of the treatment plans.
Since starting treatment, I've made permanent changes to my lifestyle, especially regarding exercise and nutrition. Because of the key therapy, my immune system is very weak. So now, I don’t go out very often or do anything that I used to do because I'm scared of picking up germs and getting sick. I talk to my parents quite often now, much more than I used to before. I visit them more often too.
Right now, I'm at my 5-year mark from when I was diagnosed and that's the survival rate. My tumors are getting worse. There are still a couple of treatments left to try but at the same time. I'm still working full-time through all of this. And I would like to take a couple of vacations. That's my only request.
Since I found out I have terminal cancer I haven't had any big dreams or aspirations except maybe to travel, or have another treatment that will bring me more years to my life. I hope that I live a bit longer for my loved ones.
There's no way to overcome the fear of terminal illness. I'm not going to recover, I'm terminal. If I didn’t have lung cancer, because that’s the only spot [the cancer] is in, I’d be a perfectly healthy individual. My doctors are just trying to keep me going.
It's still a battle with feeling helpless, frightened and overwhelmed. I still feel anger and resentment beyond isolation and feeling powerless. Really, if it wasn't for my lung cancer, I'd have nothing else wrong with me. So I need them to find something that will be a breakthrough, something to bring me back down to a stage one.
To those on their cancer journey, I'd say: Do your own research, be your own advocate. Because nobody will advocate for you. Unlock and look for treatments out there. This world is a big place and that's what I'm currently trying to do now.
This patient's story is published and shared with their full consent. Any personal data that can be used to identify the patient has been omitted.
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