Okay. Let’s talk about cancer. All cancers are different. We are all unique human beings. We all have unique beliefs and unique backgrounds. We look different, we talk different - different languages, or the same language but it just sounds different. We have different priorities in life, different dreams.
We also have different and unique genetic makeups. This part we can’t really control. We can perhaps have some control over our environment, but we cannot control the genes that were passed down to us. And not all cancers can be explained by genes. Sometimes perfectly healthy people with no genetic predisposition end up with a cancer diagnosis. Why? I wish I knew.
But all cancers are different because we are all made up differently. In breast cancer there are hormone positive and hormone negative, as well as a mix of positive and negative. There are pre-cancers and active cancers. There are aggressive tumors and tumors that just chill for years. There are cancers that can be at least partially explained by genetics, and cancers that have no known source.
It used to be that cancers were all treated the same. You have breast cancer, we will treat it with these drugs and a mastectomy. Today doctors and scientists are realizing that every cancer is going to be a little bit different, therefore, each treatment should be tailored to the individual.
Not every woman who has breast cancer needs a mastectomy. There are many studies on different treatments and how they affect the patients. They can monitor during treatment to see if the chosen treatments are working. Science is amazing, and I am thankful for all the people who have put so much time and effort into the treatments available today.
There are still strides to be made, but I’m hopeful that targeted gene therapy will eventually become the norm for many cancer patients. They’ll have a treatment made for them and will be monitored to ensure that they are responding in a positive way. And there will be a cure one day, I hope. A cure that makes the chances of the cancer ever coming back slim to none.
We’re not there yet. I know people are working on it. Some have spent or are spending their entire lives trying to solve this problem. I want to thank those people. You all have made a huge difference in my life and in the lives of countless people who have come before and will come after. Keep looking for the answers.