Cancer Still Deadly If Not Caught Early
Last week our main social Meetup group GTA Free Spirits lost a long time member to cancer. She was only 1-2 years older than me. Her case clearly shows that cancer (breast cancer in her case) is still very deadly if not caught early.
This lady usually came out to our Chinese dim sum brunches and some of our outdoor hikes during the last few years. During this past spring, she became very fatigued at our hikes and towards the end of our spring hiking season, she could barely do 10 to 15 minutes on the trail before having to turn back while the rest of the group moved on.
Then during the summer when we took a break from hiking due to the heat, we noticed during dining events that she became paler and even had some coughing. By late summer, she had informed me that she was in hospital.
We went to visit her at Sunnybrook hospital and she told us the cancer diagnosis. I asked her if this was somehow related to the fatigue symptoms back in the spring and she admitted that she was in denial back then so she did not seek any medical attention. In fact, she never did any regular important health screenings for years nor even had a mammogram done.
By the time symptoms became so bad when she had difficulty breathing, she knew it was finally time to get herself to emergency at the hospital. An oncologist had determined that her cancer had already spread to the bones as the disease was finally caught but at a pretty late stage.
When we saw our friend at the hospital, she was rail thin after losing 30 pounds and needed a walker to get around the facility. Needless to say she looked very different from the individual we’ve come to know at our Meetup events.
She received some radiation treatments but refused any chemotherapy. I’m not sure why she did not accept all available treatments to her but it seems that she just gave up. She previously had no family history of cancer which shows that this can still happen irregardless of history.
Don’t Procrastinate On Regular Screenings
Unfortunately, her case is a very important lesson for the rest of us. We should all be going through regular screenings for whatever is recommended by our physicians at our respective age groups. This is something we should not procrastinate. If you do not have a family doctor at the moment, it’s not an excuse. You can always go to a walk-in clinic to request such screenings as they do not take long to do.
I know that for myself, I’ve been getting regular screenings for important male related health issues such as testicular and prostate cancers as well as trying my best to keep healthy via regular exercise and proper nutrition.
Many cancers can be beaten these days but only if caught early enough. And if any symptoms of any health issues ever do show up, they should never be ignored as was the case with our departed friend.
We’ll be missing her presence at many of our future Meetup events but it’s definitely a very important lesson left for us to remember. RIP Christa.
