Wendy Harpham on Healthy Survivorship

Year-end Scare

I was prepared to learn I needed more treatment. I've been through this so many times before, and I recognized the symptoms. They felt exactly like the symptoms that led to my last recurrence. But, hallelujah, my scans yesterday were normal. 

The Meaning Response

In "Why Settle for Placebos," we hinted at the connection between meaning and the placebo effect. I just read Hippocrates' Shadow, a new book by Dr. David H. Newman that discusses this link directly. On page 154, the author discusses a "meaning response" as described by anthropologist Daniel Moerman: the

The Kindness, and Xanax, of Strangers

Sally' Hoskin's December 26th column in the NYTimes is fun to read, as cancer essays go. What I especially like about her description of being evaluated for her second bout of breast cancer are the many messages of Healthy Survivorship:

Let's Stop the Cancer Epidemic

With limited resources devoted to cancer survivorship, we have to ask ourselves, "What is the best way to spend the money?" Should we devote limited resources to improving methods of treatment or prevention?

What a Wonderful World...

A 3 1/2 minute video you might enjoy: Maher, 4, Sings

Fertile Hope

In my last post, I said that knowledge helps patients deal with losses such as infertility. Here's an example:

Slim and Strong

Every participant at the Miraval conference had a uniquely powerful story of loss and redemption, despair and hope. Some of the most poignant stories came from young women who underwent cancer treatment that saved their lives but impaired or destroyed their fertility before they'd ever experienced motherhood.

Equine Experience

I've always been a bit scared of horses. They are BIG. If I got kicked, it would hurt. So during my stay at Miraval, I participated in an abbreviated equine experience, a three-hour session with psychologist Wyatt Webb.

Pass It Forward

Earlier this year, I wrote about "Hands Up and Down," Debbie Khoury commented on my last post, suggesting I was the giver and she was the taker at Miraval. It's easy to see why she might think that.

I Think I Died and Went to Heaven

So far, the anticipation of this gig is being exceeded by the actual event. From the Miraval staff, to the event coordinators, to the incredible women attendees (a mix of survivors and oncology nurses), I've been surrounded by gentle and life-loving words and actions.

The Miracle of Miraval

This morning I left Dallas the same way I always do for a speaking gig: packed and ready to write during the plane rides and to deliver my presentation at the event. This time is different.

The Evidence Gap

Here is an important article for Healthy Survivors: The Pain May be Real, But The Scan is Deceiving. It's the story of an otherwise healthy woman with knee pain who undergoes CT and MRI scanning. The scans revealed a torn meniscus. Now the problems begin.

Progress in Cancer Care: The Hope and The Hype

You read that a new treatment offers significant advantage over standard therapies, and you think, "Fabulous!" Later you learn that the improvement is minimal. Huh? How did the gap between reality and perception grow so large?

When Choosing, The Key Word is "All"

What are Healthy Survivors to think when they read that Cardiologists Debate Expensive Heart Scans? What's the debate about? Whose judgment should patients trust?

English, please.

For YouTubeviewers who are Healthy Survivors, the underlying message of the "Medical Terminology Concerto" video is worrisome: Medical terminology is an effective way for clinicians to keep patients from understanding what they are saying.