Health Matters: Life After Cancer

There are 14.5 million cancer survivors living in the country.

Being declared cancer free isn’t always as joyous as one may think.

It can be a tough recovery process, both emotionally and physically.

That’s exactly why Essentia Health is launching their first breast cancer survivor support group, as more health care providers are realizing it’s a powerful force for healing.
 
 
Cancer is a disease that affects almost every family in the country.

From benefits to walks, many are used to rallying for people undergoing treatment.

But if a person is declared cancer-free, the support tends to go away.
 
“That happiness that you think should be there after you say ‘I went through all of these surgeries, I went through all of my treatments, and I’m done and now were moving forward’ it may take some time to just get back to yourself,” says Essentia Health Physician Assistant, Brittani Boehlke Fiecke.
 
While it can be unclear why a person got cancer in the first place, life after cancer can be a changing experience.
 
“But this is for many people a transforming experience and it’s a time where they’re really thinking about their health so we want to support them,” says Cancer Survivorship Program Manager, Leah Deyo.
 
That support often comes from talking with other survivors.
 
“You see two cancer survivors talking and something just clicks and they maybe share something about their experience,” says Deyo.
 
And while it can be an emotional roller coaster, staying healthy is another concern
 
“But they’re an individual just like everyone else and they’re susceptible to other cancers so we want to be screening,” says Deyo.
 
Deyo encourages survivors to schedule follow-up appointments with their health care providers.
 
“And possibly identify a new cancer or a new illness in the earlier stages rather than seeing it while it’s further progressed,” says Boehlke Fiecke.
 
In fact, maintaining your well-being is especially important for cancer survivors, being near your ideal body weight decreases chances of breast cancer recurrence.
 
“It really is a life changing event that occurs when you’re diagnosed with cancer,” says Boehlke Fiecke.

Breast cancer survivors and supporters are invited to come together on June 14th in Moorhead.

Essentia Health is sponsoring a Life After Breast Cancer conference at the Courtyard by Marriott.

It’s also important to note the moment a person is diagnosed with cancer is the moment you are considered a cancer survivor.

There is no difference between survivors going through treatment and survivors who are in remission.