I could feel the vibrations through my pocket , the never ending buzz caused me to stop in my tracks . My voicemail begins to play , and the heaviness in my father’s voice fills the silence of the airy night. ” I have been trying to reach you , I know you must be working but I wanted to tell you that your mother was in the hospital earlier…call me when you get a chance” he said.
It was around 8:00 p.m. and I had just left work, I was walking to the train station to go home when I …

Photo by Sam Odgen
A Message from Peter August 2013
When you live with metastatic cancer you live in 3 month spans. Typically every 3 months you have a scan and no matter how good you feel you hold your breath until the results come in. My most recent scans were a month ago and I wish I had better news to send. My cancer has spread to my lungs and liver. We have been on quite a ride since this cancer journey started 5.5 years ago and over 11 treatment programs. That is way too many. I really hate to tell …

May 2013
THE CANCER IS BACK
My treatment stopped working. My cancer had a chance to grow and get inflamed. We have already started a new treatment and they are hopeful for great results. These are the challenging times when my body is extremely sore with no energy. This is a time when I really have to focus on me. I will go and reboot my life. Starting with diet and exercise. I will need to rest more and get back to physical therapy and get my body working again. I have already received a steroid shot to loosen up my hip. I will …

Angelina Jolie decision to share her story about being tested for the breast cancer gene and undergoing a double mastectomy is major and will help so many men and women.  It is incredible that as such a public figure, she was able to keep her story private until she wanted to share it with the world.
Shared it now is!
Since writing her story on the Op-Ed page of the New York Times, every newspaper, news cast and social media is abuzz with her story. Her honesty and truthfulness will help many make a very tough decision.
Here is my story about how …

After a breast cancer diagnosis from her local oncologist, Jill arrived at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute for a second opinion.  During a time of uncertainty, Jill was comforted by the professional and compassionate staff at Dana-Farber.  When Jill worries she’ll have to circle the garage for a parking spot, she is greeted by valet staff.  When she is hungry during appointment-filled days, she goes to a snack station conveniently located on her clinical floor.  And when Jill has questions, her physicians, surgeons and entire care team are there to support her through treatment.  Dana-Farber is a special place that defines level …

As I mentioned before, growing up in the 60’s and 70’s when someone was sick, they stayed in the hospital for extended periods of time.  It was the norm for the time we grew up in. My mother and father always came home from the hospital no matter how long they were in the hospital for! Extended hospital stays was a stable in our household growing up.
Were we naive for not thinking about our parent’s illness as being terminal? Or were we just children being children and not thinking of a young parent’s mortality? Was it the time we were …

I have stopped counting the years since my parents have passed away. They are frozen in time at the age of their passing. It wasn’t until I turned 42, the age my father was when he died that I for most likely the first time realized how truly young my parents were when they died and how much of life they were shortchanged! My sister and I grew up with both of our parents having long extended hospital stays. It was the way things were done in the 60’s and 70’s. It was our normal and we did not think …

One of the challenges of being a breast cancer survivor is the fear of recurrence. It’s a strange fear for me at this point, more than four years out from the end of my treatment. I don’t look like a cancer survivor anymore, and most days I don’t feel like one. Most of my coworkers don’t even know I have been through cancer, and I would think that it would surprise them, given that I am just 33 years old. My breast cancer is no longer a regular topic of conversation among my family and friends. It just seems further …

As Colleen’s sister I am compelled to write about her on this site. I have found it difficult to not just tell you how terribly I miss her. Or to write about how difficult it is to live without the only person, other than your parents, that you have known all of your life. She was the other half of me, the younger, far more energetic, better half of me.
Colleen feared nothing – from bike jumps and roller coasters as a kid, to white water rafting and sky diving as an adult – nothing stopped her. Even cancer couldn’t stop …

In 2011, we shared the memory of Colleen O’Farrell. A member of the Fox 25 News team, known for her indomitable spirit, she died from Triple Negative Breast Cancer at age 39.
Colleen lived with her husband Pete, and their two kids in western MA. When news of her illness broke, the surrounding commuity sprung into action, including children of the community. The story of what happened next was documented by freelance writer, Andrew Sullivan and published in the Community Advocate, 10/9/2009, excerpts noted below.
“Members of the 4H Horse and Hound, and Fox and Guinea Pig held a fundraiser to support …

“As a novelist working on a story told through letters, I came to appreciate that in this age of text messages and email we’ve forgotten the importance of letters. But not until I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2009 did I understand that letters are gifts with the power to heal. Knowing someone took the time and care to hand-write a note was encouraging and uplifting. After coming home from radiation, I would read the cards lined up on my kitchen counter and know I wasn’t alone. Today I’m cancer-free, and I’m convinced those special letters helped speed my …

“My sixteen year old daughter wrote this song as a tribute to her aunt -a breast cancer survivor.
First version a niece’s tribute to her aunt.
Final version of a niece’s tribute to her aunt.
Hope this encourages somebody!”

“My husband told me I was beautiful bald.  Of course, I had been telling him that for years!”

“I squeezed my Grandpa’s hand after every bout of chemo.   Just that moment made me feel like everything was going to be alright.

“2004&2005 I was diagnosed w/ bilateral breast cancer. I was treated w/ surgery & radiation. Without the encouragement of my husband & friends the battle would have been much more difficult.  Even though I was an oncology nurse, it was still a daunty task. Volunteering w/ breast cancer patients has helped me to survive. Yes I am a SURVIVOR!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

Angelina Jolie decision to share her story about being tested for the breast cancer gene and undergoing a double mastectomy is major and will help so many men and women. It is incredible that as such a public figure, she was able to keep her story private until she wanted to share it with the world.
Shared it now is!
Since writing her story on the Op-Ed page of the New York Times, every newspaper, news cast and social media is abuzz with her story. Her honesty and truthfulness will help many make a very tough decision.
Here is my story about …

In 2011, we shared the memory of Colleen O’Farrell. A member of the Fox 25 News team, known for her indomitable spirit, she died from Triple Negative Breast Cancer at age 39.
Colleen lived with her husband Pete, and their two kids in western MA. When news of her illness broke, the surrounding commuity sprung into action, including children of the community. The story of what happened next was documented by freelance writer, Andrew Sullivan and published in the Community Advocate, 10/9/2009, excerpts noted below.
“Members of the 4H Horse and Hound, and Fox and Guinea Pig held a fundraiser to support …