Wendy Harpham on Healthy Survivorship

A Hope Before Death

What lesson did Derek Miller hope his wife and two young daughters could take from his illness and untimely death?

"Not that they could die any day...

We Can't Grieve What We Can't Know

In Derek Miller's final post before he died of cancer at 41 years of age, he said "[N]o one can imagine what's really coming in our lives. That's neither good or bad, but it is real."

Grieving the Unknown

In my May 26th post, I highlighted the final message of Healthy Survivor Derek Miller. He articulated ideas that have been on my mind lately.

Derek Miller's Posthumous Post

Like Randy Pausch of The-Last-Lecture fame, Derek Miller loved his life and was ready to die. Only 41 years old, Miller prepared his last blog post to be published after he died of stage IV colorectal cancer, leaving behind a beloved wife, two precious daughters and extended family and friends.

Warning Strangers

Walking down the jetway, I hear a woman's voice behind me, "Umm, excuse me. May I ask if you work in the sun?"

The man behind me answers, "Huh? I work inside, but I play outdoor sports."

With a micro-chuckle of embarrassment, the woman says, "Gosh, I hope you don't think I'm crazy or overstepping my bounds, but were you aware of the black spot on your earlobe?

A Day With No Post

I want to publish a blog post every day. Why? Because every day I think of ideas and stories that might help readers in their efforts to become Healthy Survivors, and I thoroughly enjoy the writing challenge and sense of purpose of this blog. 

But I don't publish a post every day. Why?

My First 5K

A few weeks ago, my daughters encouraged me to join them for a local 5K race. I hesitated. 5K is more than I usually jog on the treadmill. The notion of a race tapped into my long-standing concern about quitting. [See "Why We Quit"]

The stakes were low. The potential benefits were great. So I accepted their invitation. After two days of a nervous stomach, I experienced my first race ever. 

Free Toolbox

We are not born knowing how to become Healthy Survivors. We aren't taught in school how to get good care and live as fully as possible when living with, through and beyond cancer or other serious illness. I wish we were.

Understanding Post-Treatment Survivorship

If a picture is worth a thousand words, this 17-minute video by Eric Slade Productions is worth at least an undecillion (1 followed by 36 zeros). 

Virtual Thanks

I just returned from Vancouver, where I delivered oncology Grand Rounds for British Columbia Cancer Agency and then a keynote for the 8th Annual Lymphoid Education Forum for patients and caregivers.

When I arrived at the venue for the public lecture, Andrea, a regular reader of this blog surprised me.

Unsafe at Any Dose

Please  bookmark the NYTimes editorial by Helen Caldicott, MD, founder of Physicians for Social Responsibility, and read it when you can. Why?

Why are You Here?

Yesterday I offered the opening comments for the Dallas Lymphomathon. Here's an excerpt: