Happy Birthday To Me
Today is my birthday. I feel I did a lot of my celebrating 11 days ago on my cancerversary, but can’t help also remembering that birthday I spent in 2004 in hospital just… Continue reading
In 1948, two French scientists noticed something unexpected in their lab samples: fragments of DNA drifting in blood plasma. At the time, the discovery seemed trivial, even puzzling. DNA, after all, was supposed… Continue reading
You’ve likely heard people talk about “chemo brain”—or maybe you’ve even felt it yourself. It’s that foggy sensation that can make it tough to find the right word, recall a friend’s name, or… Continue reading
So few grains of happiness measured against all the dark and still the scales balance. – Jane Hirshfield “The Weighing” I’ve been reflecting on these lines from Jane Hirshfield’s poem The Weighing and how its… Continue reading
In many cultures, greetings are often seen as polite and routine exchanges. However, in some Muslim cultures, there exists a profound dimension to these everyday interactions. When someone asks, “How are you?” in… Continue reading
I discovered that today, September 16th is ‘Tattoo Story Day’. While I am not sure if this is a day that’s universally marked, it gives me the prompt I need to tell the… Continue reading
Checking my August Awareness Day Calendar, I discovered that today, August 30th is designated as Grief Awareness Day. Sometimes I feel we are awash with grief in our community. Not just in our… Continue reading
Are you looking for a new job after cancer treatment? Perhaps you left your last employment after your diagnosis, or maybe you are still in your current job but want a fresh start… Continue reading
“In a society which is much more inclined to help you hide your pain rather than to grow through it, is necessary to make a very conscious effort to mourn.” – Henri Nouwen Grief… Continue reading
T for this week’s round-up of the best of the blog posts which I’ve read over the past week. These are the posts that have moved me, taught me something, inspired me, and which I’ve wanted to share with you. Don’t forget if you have written a post which you would like readers to see, just […]
The Thing Is to love life, to love it evenwhen you have no stomach for itand everything you’ve held dearcrumbles like burnt paper in your hands,your throat filled with the silt of it.When… Continue reading
The Butterfly Effect For Marie Ennis O’Connor So close and still Quietly far away From the company Who chose you The day you heard The word we all Heard. Echoes In a canyon… Continue reading
26 posts. 26 days. 26 letters of the alphabet, one blog post beginning with each letter. H is for Hair I started this blog a few years after my breast cancer diagnosis and… Continue reading
Today is my birthday. I feel I did a lot of my celebrating 11 days ago on my cancerversary, but can’t help also remembering that birthday I spent in 2004 in hospital just… Continue reading
European Breast Health Day takes place on 15th October and women are being urged to do do something active to mark the day. You can do this by organising an “Exercise Event” in… Continue reading
At the risk of repeating myself ad infinitum on the subject, regular readers will know of my distress over the effect of chemotherapy on my fertility as a young woman with cancer, and… Continue reading
Kristin Hallenga, received a Pride of Britain award this week for launching a breast cancer awareness campaign, Coppa Feel, while undergoing treatment for the disease. After receiving her award, the 23-year-old said: “That was just wow!… Continue reading
The number of women with cancer in one breast who opt to have the other breast preventively removed — known as a contralateral prophylactic mastectomy — more than doubled from 1995 through 2005… Continue reading
Scientists are close to discovering how breast cells become cancerous it emerged yesterday. Dr Paul Edwards from Cambridge University has identified a gene called NRG1 which is linked to more than half of… Continue reading
Cancer treatment will be dramatically transformed in the near future as a number of research projects reach fruition. Sir David Lane, chief scientist at Cancer Research UK, revealed this week that teams are… Continue reading
Yesterday I attended the launch by Europa Donna Ireland (EDI) of a leaflet highlighting the 9 things every woman in Ireland should know about breast cancer. It is the first time a… Continue reading
This was the question I pondered today as I read about a drug which has been developed to erase painful memories. If you have seen the 2004 film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless… Continue reading
Researchers at UK’s Dundee University have been given more than £1.5m to come up with a model that can measure the shape and speed of cancer. The university has long pioneered the use… Continue reading