Lawrenceville, Georgia
“One Day at a Time”
So I’ve been battling Myxoid Liposarcoma now since July, 2008. I probably had this condition a year prior but just never knew it. Life was good and everything was easy. Then came the rather shocking diagnosis and even scarier “treatment” plan. At the time I wondered, “Why did this happen to me? Am I going to survive this ordeal?”
I’ve since endured 6 five-day cycles of intensive chemotherapy (over 4 months), numerous emergency trips to the hospital, 25 rounds of radiation (over 5 weeks), and surgery is only days away. I’ll be honest: the chemo sucked . . . and the smelly hospital food was even worse! My strong recommendation is to order takeout from your favorite restaurants instead. Whatever sounds appealing is what you should eat.
In contrast, the radiation treatment was a cakewalk. Sure, I now have funny tan lines on my left thigh and a little “sunburn”, but who cares! Life is good again, my appetite is back, and I’m even working full-time (which I find quite therapeutic). It turns out that I work with some pretty darn funny guys . . . and it does feel good to laugh again.
If my sarcoma journey has taught me anything, I’ve learned to cherish the good times, enjoy my family and friends, have a few laughs, and even appreciate a fine meal. I refuse to dwell on the negative or live in fear. Yes, I concede that I am not in control of my destiny, but I am steadfast in my resolve to enjoy life and be thankful for all of the “easy times” that come my way (like now). I no longer grapple with questions that cannot be answered, but instead take things one day at a time.
Fairfield, Vermont
I love my mom. I am glad she is safe. I was sad and missed her when she was sick. I hope she doesn’t get anymore balls in her belly. - Sam, age 7
When my mom was sick with sarcoma, I was ssssscared and missed her. Every day in school when mom was sick my teacher would take me out in the hall and tell me how mom was doing because I wondered and my dad was at the hospital and dad would call. I pray it never will happen again. - Kamren, age 9
Kamren’s and Sam’s mom is a liposarcoma survivor.
California
It was 10 years ago and I was 35 years old. I was recovering from liposarcoma surgery (a radical muscle excision) and as I lie in bed, I heard a sound that I had heard many times before but this time it sounded so different. You see, for years I had been waking up to the sounds of the birds next to my bedroom window and irritated each and every morning that they had awakened me with so much noise. There were always two really loud birds singing to each other. This time, when I awoke, I actually was able to stop and listen to the song that they had been singing to each other so many mornings before. This time, I stopped and I really listened. I realized how blessed I was to be alive and to be able to hear them that morning. My life had been so hurried before I was touched with cancer. I was busy with my job, my teenage daughter and my husband. Now I truly understand what it means when someone tells you to stop and smell the roses along the way. From that morning on, I awake to the beautiful sounds of the two birds singing their songs to each other and realize how blessed I am to be alive. I am so thankful for those two birds every morning. I still continue to listen to the birds sing each and every day of my life.
Wilmington, Delaware
I lost my sister this past summer to liposarcoma. If there is something that I want to share with everyone, it is my dismay when I learned that I was not to touch her after a certain round of medication that she had, due to her immune system being down. Afterwards, she told me that she was having trouble with many well wishers wanting to hug her when they visited, etc. I told her she needed to put a sign up at the door – DO NOT TOUCH! I have learned since this that many people are aware of lowered immune systems and that people need to be careful, but I still want to put it out there that when you are dealing with someone with sarcoma, there may be times when you need to ask first, before kissing and hugging.
Castroville, Texas
Cancer was not something that I had personally dealt with in the past. In October of 2006, we found out that my father-in-law had cancer. This coming from a man who was just a little sick and never weak a day in his life. The transformation from full health to full-blown cancer was a real wake-up call for us as to the devastating effects of cancer. The problem we had was that no one could figure out what type of cancer he had.
It wasn’t until we conferred with MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston that we found out he had liposarcoma. It was a momentous realization that we really do not know enough about cancer and awareness must be raised. After a long fight with cancer, consisting of several surgeries, the cancer finally (and at that point, thankfully) took his life. The amount of pain that he had to endure was unfathomable and it woke me up to the real dangers of cancer and just how frail this form is. Though this is a very sad time in our lives, we now realize that more must be done to research a cure for this disease so that fewer and fewer families have to go through the pain of loss. As long as we live we will not forget him and his fight.
