Stand Up to Cancer

I'm sure most of you watched the Stand Up to Cancer special on the major networks last Friday night. I wasn't sure what to expect but was impressed with Hollywood's support for this event. I've often thought that if we could get celebrities as involved with cancer as they've been for AIDS, we might make some more progress. I was pleased that they showed the many aspects of cancer, from people like Adrienne living with it for many years, to kids with these diseases, to the many people who are dying. My dad died of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, my mom had breast cancer, her new husband had colon and prostate cancer, Curt's dad died of colon cancer, his mom died of lung cancer. It's depressing to think about and even more sad to live through it and watch people suffer. I've spent more than my fair share of time in hospitals and clinics, experiencing every type of suffering from these diseases. While I'm happy to see a united effort, I'm concerned that none of the money will go toward research into Hodgkin's. It's that orphan disease that affects so few that drug companies and researchers have little interest. At the end of the day, research dollars are spent on the big cancers: breast, prostate, lung. I get it that those affect the most people but, still, I'd like to see far more money going toward the diseases that affect few but still have a long way to go, especially pediatric cancers.

Adrienne is almost back to normal after last week's events. She took it easy over the weekend, slept a lot, and now feels nearly back to normal. It seems like another crisis has been averted, thank goodness. When you see young people living such normal and uneventful lives, it breaks your heart to see what she deals with on a daily basis. I'm so proud of her, determined to have as normal a life as possible. I hope others living with cancer can use her as an example and live each day to the fullest.