You don't have the "in" cancer.

Today's blog post is going to be a little different than normal...

First of all, I wasn't even going to blog today. I really have to get in the right frame of mind to blog, and I just wasn't feeling it. I was being a negative Nancy. I've been so busy all week with other stuff, that I just wanted to sit here today, and do nothing. But, little miss Ashley L thought she deserved a new blog post, just because it's her birthday! Who does she think she is?! Ohhh... since I'm drinking out of my Evgeni Malkin cup that she sent me, I should probably give her what she wants!!! :)

So.... Here's a new type of blog post for you all!!

Today there was a knock on the door... I shuffled to the door in my pajamas and rumpled hair, and seen it was a delivery. To Daniel Crabb. From the Lemieux Foundation. I sent Danny a text to ask what it was, and he told me to open it. Inside were two Lemieux Foundation hoodies!! I was excited, and even more happy when Danny told me that all the proceeds went to the foundation and Austin's Playroom. The Lemieux Foundation supports cancer research (Leukemia, Lymphoma, Hodgkin's Disease) and neonatal research. Austin's Playroom, specifically, aims at making playrooms in hospitals more comfortable and calming for the siblings and children of patients. I think the WORLD of the foundation and the playroom project, and not just because the cause is great. But because they were founded by Mario Lemieux (Danny's all-time favorite hockey player) and his wife. They work hard raising money for the research and other projects, and you just can't help but admire that!

So, I was sitting here, happy with this recent purchase. Money well spent if I do say so myself! Then I started thinking about the other charities we support. Danny is always giving money to the Firefighters when they're collecting money. We do multiple Toys for Tots runs every year. This last year we bought a few toys for children who were about to lose their mother to breast cancer. I have donated to Susan G Komen for a few years... We basically donate to everything we can. Not because it makes us "feel good." Because we can. Money is needed for all of these charities, foundations, families... We are blessed and can afford to support ourselves and still have money left over to share with these deserving people. With the recent public Komen vs Planned Parenthood debate, I've started to reconsider where my money goes....

Susan G Komen has made an effort to NOT ALLOW other charities/fundraisers to use the term "For the Cure." They also discourage the use of pink. REALLY?!?! Pink is the color for breast cancer awareness... If a survivor wants to dress in pink, make a name for herself and her group of supporters, and raise money for breast cancer research (not FOR Komen), she's not allowed to? Susan G Komen events will not suddenly diminish. They will not be forgotten about. People will still support them. To me, this is the Komen organization just trying to be a bully!!
What also saddens me, is when I was researching the above accusations... I found that the LIVESTRONG organization has made similar complaints against other foundations and charities with STRONG in the name.
I understand these organization want to preserve what they feel is "theirs." However, Komen does not OWN the color pink! Sorry, but they don't. Also, I'm sure "For the cure" was used SOMEWHERE long before Komen decided it should be their slogan. And last I knew, I thought their slogan was "Susan G Komen For the Cure." To me, as long as smaller charities aren't using that WORD FOR WORD, it shouldn't be a problem!!

So, I will have to REALLY consider about continuing to donate to Komen. Really. I will GLADLY support breast cancer research and awareness. I LOVINGLY support breast cancer survivors (my grandma beat breast cancer TWICE. Wendy, Faith's mom, also beat it TWICE. This last time WHILE PREGNANT). I just want to be sure my money isn't going to a place that tries to bully smaller charities.


Now... on to another rant!!!!
I've seen multiple stories today about Colon (or Colorectal) Cancer (one was on the Washington Post website).
I will admit, I thought I was alone (or at least one of very few) with my feelings of "outcast" because of the type of cancer my husband survived. Did he have the cancer that Lance Armstrong had? NOPE. Did he have a serious and life threatening cancer? YES HE DID.
The stories I've read today showed me I'm not alone in this feeling. You see pink EVERYWHERE. People know about breast cancer. Awareness has been raised. Research has come a long way thanks to all of this awareness.  Now, it's time to share that wealth. It's time to spread that awareness to other cancers!!
It's a sad day when you don't have the "right" type of illness. You don't have the "in" cancer. NO CANCER IS RIGHT OR "IN" AND I WISH PEOPLE WOULD REALIZE THAT!!! It's ALL scary. It can ALL take your life. I will quote a blog post I read today:
"Pink ribbons are pretty. Breast cancer is not. Bracelets that say, “I Love Boobies” are (arguably) silly and fun. Breast cancer is not. Facebook campaigns that encourage women to post a cryptic status update about the color of their bras do not raise “awareness.” All of these things trivialize a devastating, life-threatening disease." (mysemicolon.net)

You all know how strong Danny was/is. You've read my blog, you know how I feel. I haven't gotten to the part where he went through chemo yet, but take my word for it, he was AMAZING. I've told him, too, that I hope I never have to go through that. I'm SO not strong enough for that. And, now that he has gone through it, and got through it so well, there's NO WAY I could do it. Because all I would ever think is "Oh well Danny handled this just fine... Why can't I?"
So, I better not ever get cancer. And if someday I'm blessedly pregnant and I complain, someone, please, throw it in my face THAT I HAVE IT EASY!!!

So, okay, I am rambling. But I can't help it! I go from one rant to another and that's just me :)

Obviously I want to raise colon cancer awareness. I talk people's ears off if/when they bring up a symptom. At dinner a few months ago, we ran into an old coworker of Danny's. He asked how he was doing, and mentioned his own family history and minor symptoms. Danny said "Oh now you've done it..." and off I went. Telling this man that I'd only met a handful of times, just how scary this is. Just what all he NEEDED to do. I took charge and I wrote down Dr Hyder's name and phone number. I handed him that paper, which he took gratefully, and I gave him one last word of advice. "Do it. Call him. It's worth it." Did he listen? Well, he did. I demand attention when I talk about colon cancer! Did he take our advice? I have no idea. But I hope so.
I want to raise infertility awareness too... But I'll have a separate blog post about that!

So, today, now that I feel like I've ranted enough... I will post a few facts. I hope you all read them. Take them in. And realize just how serious colon cancer is. If you have a different topic you'd like to raise awareness on, hey, feel free to comment! I would be GLAD to post some facts about different cancers/diseases/etc on our blog. It gets a ton of views and I like to think that each of those views is taken seriously!


First, I'd like to mention some famous people who had colon cancer. I knew of one, the others I didn't. There's a long list at coloncancerresearch.com if you'd like to look yourself, I'm only mentioning the few that really stood out to me personally.
~Audrey Hepburn, actress, died January 20, 1993
~Pope John Paul II
~Carolyn Jones, actress, known for playing Morticia Addams in "The Addams Family". Diagnosed with colon cancer in 1982, died one year later in 1983
~Vince Lombardi, coach of the Green Bay Packers, died of metastatic colon cancer
~Sharon Osbourne, British reality TV star and talent show judge, diagnosed with colon cancer in July 2002, aged 49. She has recovered.
~Ronald Reagan, U.S. President
~Rod Roddy, previous announcer for "The Price Is Right," died at age 66, 2 years after diagnosis
~Charles Schulz, creator of 'Peanuts,' died at age 77, 60 days after diagnosis
~Joel Siegel, movie critic and host of "Good Morning America," died at age 64, 10 years after diagnosis
~Darryl Strawberry, baseball player

Did you know any of those people had colon cancer?? I have heard of each and every one of those people many many many many times, and I only knew of Sharon Osbourne. I didn't know about Audrey Hepburn and the others until I found that website a couple of years ago.

Not all causes of colon cancers are known, but many can be prevented!! A colonoscopy is done and your doctor will look for polyps.
From the time the first abnormal cells start to grow into polyps, it usually takes about 10 to 15 years for them to develop into colorectal cancer. Regular screening can, in many cases, prevent colorectal cancer altogether. This is because most polyps can be found and removed before they have the chance to turn into cancer. Screening can also result in finding colorectal cancer early, when it is highly curable. (cancer.org)


A few facts I found at CDC.gov:
~Of cancers that affect both men and women, colorectal cancer—cancer of the colon or rectum—is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States.
~Colorectal cancer also is one of the most commonly diagnosed cancers in the United States. (Third most common)
~While screening rates continue to rise in the U.S., 22 million people are still not up-to-date with colorectal cancer screening.



That's all I've got today. My mind is mush, with all of these numbers and stats in my head. I remember seeing most of these numbers 2 1/2 years ago. At the time it all seemed daunting. There shouldn't be a percentage on my husband's life. I don't care of 30-50% of people with stage 3 colon cancer survive. That number scared us both at the time. And now we know where he stands. He's in that 30-50%. We are going on 3 years cancer free, together. As a team. We will make it to five. We will make it to ten. We will make it for many many years, thanks to God, FOLFOX, Dr Hyder, Dr Johnson, the doctor that did Danny's radiation (I'm sorry I don't know his name... Ugh!!), the doctor and nurse at the ER that first day, and our family physician, Dr Parman (for recommending Dr Hyder in the first place, which led to all the other decisions). And, hopefully, we will expand our family of three and have children together, thanks to Dr Gilbaugh and our future RE.
Please remember to follow and SHARE SHARE SHARE!! I will get back to our story next week!!