The United Colors of Cancer

Until I was diagnosed with cancer, I'd always associated color pink with cancer. There was a time of year when pink surfaced everywhere, it seemed. Yoplait would start its pink cup covers drive and I diligently collected my Yoplait tops and sent them in so that donations may be made for cancer. Little pink tents would pop up at stores everywhere asking for donations to cancer. I contributed to several girlfriends' efforts for the Avon Walk and the Race for the Cure, all that while thinking "[the color] pink = cancer." It is a credit to those who have worked so hard to further breast cancer awareness and research that pink has generally become the trigger color for cancer awareness for most people who are uneducated about it. Breast cancer awareness has opened eyes and hearts everywhere to the awful existence and effects of cancer. And it is absolutely impressive, the breadth that breast cancer awareness has reached. I never would have thought I'd see the day when big, manly NFL players would wear something pink on game day to raise breast cancer awareness. Such a manly gesture for a feminine problem. In my humble opinion, our common psyche has equated the color pink to cancer awareness.

Last week, while my my daughter and I were watching TV a new Kentucky Fried Chicken commercial came on. It featured several people holding pink buckets of chicken. One woman said, "I'm doing it for my sister;" a man declared "I'm doing it for my wife;" and a little boy ended the commercial saying "I'm doing it for my mom." Afterwards, the male announcer declared that KFC was donating a portion of their chicken sales to the Susan G. Komen Foundation. The commercial ended with an announcement that the fried chicken purveyor was donating a portion of it's chicken sales to the Susan G. Comen Foundation. At which time, my daugher turned to me and said "Well, I'm going to get a bucket and wrap it in teal and say 'I'm doing this for my mom.'" It took a few seconds for that to register. So much so that my daughter saw the puzzled look on my face. To which she addressed "Mom! Teal is the color for ovarian cancer!" Duh! But of course! How could I have missed that? Easy! To this day, I still equate cancer awareness with the color pink. So, I wasn't I wasn't thinking teal chicken buckets at all, even though I've been dubbed a "teal warrior" for having survived ovarian cancer.

But, because I am now an ovarian cancer survivor, should I shed pink for teal and put my efforts toward ovarian cancer research instead of my tiny donations and efforts towards breast cancer awareness and research? Do I owe that to my "tribe" now? It seems as though there's a prevailing sense that one should be loyal to one's "tribe" and advance research and awareness for their sort of cancer. And rightfully so! I wouldn't want to inflict ovarian cancer on anyone. So yes! I want a cure for it and am keenly aware that my efforts and donations will help that cause. But, ideally, what I really want and wish for is equal funding for all types of cancer and not just ovarian cancer (just because that's the cancer from which I'm in remission). I want everyone to have a fair shake at cancer research and awareness, no matter how obscure the cancer.

I wish there were a United Nations for cancer -- each cancer represented, but a united front to eradicate the disease altogether. While I understand and appreciate that each cancer behaves differently, I am also aware that financial backing or publicity and coverage for certain cancer research is not as abundant as that breast cancer or prostate cancer, for example. I just wish that each of the other cancers represented by the ribbons above had the same backing and support -- the same resources like Susan G. Comen Foundation for breast cancer research and awareness. If everyone pooled resources together and cross-referenced each other's work, then I believe there's strength in numbers and unity of purpose. -- much like that of Stand Up To Cancer's mission statement:

". . .to accelerate groundbreaking cancer research that will get new therapies to patients quickly and save lives. SU2C's goal is to bring together the best and the brightest in the cancer community, encouraging collaboration instead of competition. By galvanizing the entertainment industry, SU2C creates awareness and builds broad public support for this effort. This is where the end of cancer begins."

Kudos to organizations like this and the American Cancer Society! There is strength in numbers, certainly. And I believe in that. I do stand in steadfast support for my sisters who have been affected by breast cancer and ovarian cancer. But, I am equally hopeful and supportive for all my brethren who have been affected by cancer -- whatever kind or color it is. It may sound naive, but in this case, cancer is cancer and together, we must eradicate it -- all of it.

(Does this make me a cancer socialist?)

World Cancer Day

My boyfriend sent me this link yesterday.

Embarrassingly, I admit that I had no clue it was such an occasion. But, whenever I see the word "world" as a descriptor of anything, I think it's a big deal. This one should be. The numbers WHO cites are staggering:

"Cancer is a leading cause of death around the world. WHO estimates that 84 million people will die of cancer between 2005 and 2015 without intervention."

It seems to me as though cancer awareness should be more wide-spread than it already is. I know that before I got sick, cancer just seemed to be this huge white elephant in the room that no one wanted to look at. But once it made a move, everything/everyone around it is near destroyed. It was always something at arms' length. The lethal mystery disease! And the only time I was keenly aware of cancer would be when the annual Walk for the Cure would come around.

I can't escape it. And not that this is a bad thing. But the difference is just notable -- from cancer being at arm's length to it being everywhere. I would like for others (untouched by cancer and hopefully never touched by it) to have at least half the awareness I have. Granted I have a hypersensitive awareness to it. It can no longer be that white elephant, or that mystery disease that everyone is afraid of. People can no longer think "it can't happen to me" because it does!

But in addition to the disease itself, I hope for heightened awareness to those of us living with it. I think it's safe to say that our population has grown exponentially over the past decade at least. We (those touched by cancer) exist and therefore should be acknowledged and can't be in the fringe. We're part of society and should be.

How many famous people got cancer last year? How many famous people got out of remission last year? How many famous people died of cancer last year? Now multiply that by at least 1,000,000 and that's how much more had died probably. Never mind those that are/were sick with it and living with it, like you and me and some we know. It's almost an epidemic.

So, it's ironic that the day wherein cancer awareness was supposed to be in focus just eeked by most of us -- like cancer just slowly creeps. The silent killer.

The good thing is that this seems to be an annual event:

"Each year on 4 February, WHO supports International Union Against Cancer to promote ways to ease the global burden of cancer"

Perhaps next year, it would be a "noisier" day. I'll certainly mark it on my calendar and see what kind of noise I can organize around the day.