Explaining Terms

I realize many are baffled by terms metastatic breast cancer patients and other cancer patients use to indicate their cancer is at a good place.

1. Ned—no evidence of disease Dan likes this term best.

2. NEAD - No evidence of active disease. This a newer term than NED bc it also addresses scarring (dark spots) on cat scan that may have once been cancer like the dark spots on my ribs. But they suspect no active/new disease on cat scan.

3. Remission - my resident expert (Dan) says sometimes docs still use but it’s not very useful. Maybe if your cancer is taking a break for years. stage 4 is not curable so it leads ppl down an unrealistic path.

4. Cancer-Free - Not a term i will ever use. cancer cells float in the body and are just dormant usually til triggered. everyone has them but mine will always be there and ready to act bc of my primary tumor.

me: ogliomestatic: means that person is metastatic but cancer just in a few places

here’s a great link on what not to say to someone with metastatic cancer. it won’t take you there directly but copy into browser.

https://www.healthcentral.com/slideshow/what-to-say-to-your-friend-with-metastatic-breast-cancer?ap=818&fbclid=IwAR1xWY3NSNEcp5XoeUCiyLst0lqd1Z2kfLLa71KlcaAqj0KB4m2MROCYpfQ

One of my fav. analogies about living with metastatic cancer is “yes we’re all gonna die someday but i’m standing in a four lane highway with no signals and you’re on the sidewalk.”

And I really hate it when someone tells me their Aunt Betty had breast cancer and she’s fine. i want to say “so what? what stage was she, what type of cancer, what grade (level of aggressiveness) did she have?” so many variables.

Please don’t tell me she is cured bc she had a double mastectomy. Yes, there’s a t in that word. Just heard from two friends who had that and reconstruction and their cancer returned within a few years and they went through all that trauma.

So some steroid ramblings from chemo yesterday,