Yeah, Cancer Sucks. And It Makes Me Crazy Sometimes.

So this thing happened today.  I'm driving home, sitting in a traffic jam on I-275.  So naturally, I'm scanning Facebook updates on my phone right?  (I hope there are no police officers or authority figures whom I revere reading this post.  I'll be so ashamed).

Anyway, enough about my emotional hang-ups.  I came across a post someone put up about the crapiness of cancer, and how it had just taken a friend.  This is never something you want to hear/read/know.  But for some reason, it really hit me today.  Just thinking about this - the loss of life; another person grieving; the feelings of remorse, confusion, anger.  It all just boiled up inside.  I could literally feel my body-temperature rising, sitting there, in traffic, on I-275, on a Friday afternoon.

Cancer. It doesn’t rest. It doesn’t slow down. It knows no limits. It knows no boundaries. It doesn't sleep.  It never quits. It morphs.  It attacks before we know it.  It has an unfair advantage.  Which is why we can never let up. It’s an ongoing and constant effort. There’s no other way to stop it.

I felt sad.  Then I felt angry.  Mad at cancer.  And mad at myself.  For not taking better care of myself.  For not being more appreciative of the fact that I'm healthy and my family is healthy.  That's not something to be taken for granted.  By some accounts, cancer incidence rates are projected to increase 45% over the next 20 years.  Health is something to be treasured, valued and nurtured.

So, if you're reading this (and I guess by default, you are) and you want to make a difference, here's two things I suggest you do.

1. Take care of yourself.  This might be the most effective way you can fight cancer.  Thanks to the work of many brainy scientists (who are much smarter than me, and worked much harder than I did growing up) many forms of cancer are treatable if caught early.  There are plenty of screening methods out there, and new treatment methods are developed every year.  So, if you haven't had an annual check-up in a while, make an appointment.  Got a habit you need to break, keep working at it, you'll get there.  Been sitting on the couch too much, see my Team In Training friends who will turn you into the endurance athlete of your dreams.
2. Be an advocate.  Got a friend who's fund-raising to fight cancer.  After you've made a donation, tell all your other friends to do the same.  Really encourage them and help spread the word.  Read and learn about cancer and share what you learn across the interweb via your TwitterBook account.  If  you're really motivated, take on a fundraising effort yourself for any one of the worthy cancer-fighting groups out there: Team In Training, Livestrong, Komen, ACS.

My conclusion?  I can do more.  I need to do more.  The way I felt today makes me more certain than ever.