'But I Followed Every Rule to Good Health'

Few newly diagnosed warriors with advanced RCC cry "Why me?" louder or more sincerely than people who have lived their lives following every latest rule and fad to avoid  exactly this kind of catastrophic disease. They read the health magazines, keep special diets, stay in shape (man, those are some abs), take their vitamins and won't go near a smoking anything. The pursuit of good health, no, superior health, has been their way of life. Their shield against a short life, at least from disease.  Then they are diagnosed with RCC (or any other cancer) and they find themselves beyond the bounds of reasonable disbelief. "This couldn't be. There must be a mistake." Often they are so in denial they will get three or four opinions and demand another biopsy. They can stand with the radiologist and see the scans themselves, have them explained and still:

There must be a mistake.

I hear from more than a few of these folks on the blog. One gentleman wrote that the week before he was diagnosed at Stage IV he had run well in a local marathon, that he would never smoke (or go near second-hand smoke), that he was in the gym at least three times a week and his diet was impeccable. That he "FELT JUST FINE." He wondered why one should sacrifice the "good life" for all those years just to end up sick anyway. And that is not an uncommon question for these folks. However, for all the venom, I thought his note was more a lamentation than anything else. I suspect he was a warrior raging down, at least beginning to accept the facts, but still searching for somebody to tell him how such a thing could happen, like a ghost searching for its body. By the time he got to little old me I imagine he was just out of options. His last sentence, a not-so-rhetorical question really, was most jarring: "Is all that stuff about living right just a lie?"

There must be a mistake.

Now, I have never considered myself immune from anything, from bad marriages to any kind of disease (well, I am immune from winning lotteries). I sure as hell never sacrificed the good life to avoid cancer...or anything else. I kinda come from the school of health that says, "if it ain't fried, it ain't food." But people who have dedicated their lives to beat disease or to avoid an early death, that is a lot of sacrifice only to find themselves deathly sick anyway. For some the diagnosis alone is enough to kill them unless (or until) they find their warrior legs.

But they are beating up themselves and their lifestyle for no reason. It is true that some behaviors--like smoking cigarettes--cause cancer. But many--if not most--cancers have nothing to do with how healthily you live your life or how many vegetables you eat or vitamins you take. And RCC is a particularly good example of that. If you research RCC you will find expert opinions that this or that bad habit could be a cause, but there seems to be no direct link. The main cause: your DNA goes haywire. Could be from inherited genes...or not. Whatever, some malicious imp in those billions of cells triggers a mutant response...and that is the end of that. Matters not if you are a he-man (or woman) or a just a wimp.

A physician told me when I turned 50 that staying in shape was the best way to fight heart disease, especially if you have a family history, yet even that is no guarantee. But cancer? "Dave, when you hit the big 5-0 all arrogance about the quality of your health should be forgotten. We are all in pretty much the same boat. But if cancer gets you, your physical condition is one of the most important therapies in fighting it. But as far as getting it, we are all equally susceptible. Some of us do, some don't. Way it is."

So all that working out, eating right and taking those vitamins is important. They can help you beat cancer by dealing better with the therapies, the side effects, even the fatigue...the list of advantages goes on and on. Those of us less athletic folks should take a few notes. No, we should get in gear. The better shape you are in, the better you feel. Just ask my Momma.

So health aficionados, you might reconsider cancer as some kind of defeat. Think of your healthy life style as a grand offense, one most of us don't (but should) have. But the key is  bucking up and using it. Otherwise, as they say at the gym, you lose it...big time.

Comments

[Manuel Lopez]

Man, was I angry when I was diagnosed. I gave up smoking and drinking so I could live longer. I rode a bike all over town and still got RCC.
Looking back I know now that a lot of the things I did in my youth may have contributed to it. Factory jobs and working with harsh chemicals, etc. will eventually catch up with you.
Now all we can do is keep those good habits so they can help fight off the disease.

[Karin Boyer]

After learning of his diagnosis of Stage IV RCC in June my Dad didn't beat himself up for not living a perfectly healthy life. No one "deserves" cancer...and no one is exempt.. no matter what the lifestyle has been! Dad immediately set his mind to first know the enemy and then prepare for battle! He started walking one week after being home from his nephrectomy, first around the yard, then down the block and is now at 3 miles a day. He is 72 and determined to do everything he can to outwalk and outsmart cancer or at least give it the best darn try he can! He is a firm believer in having a positive attitude and keeping a sense of humor as one of his main defenses. When his feet are sore from the sutent then he lifts arm weights, when the food tastes like cardboard he eats it anyway to help his body weight. He is motivated to be in the best shape he can to fight this awful enemy.

Thank you for this site David! It is an inspiration to all who visit.

Karin