I cannot believe it has been FIFTEEN years! some days it feels like yesterday.
I'll tell you one thing, you never get over it. You always hold a piece of that initial fear with you, tucked away. It rears its ugly head around scan times, and whenever you hear of someone you know having a recurrence, being diagnosed or passing away.
Close to my 10 year, someone I know died from bone cancer, and last month someone I know died from lung cancer. Each of those deaths, even tho we didn't have the same kinds of cancers, makes me so sad. Someone I knew when I was a child was just diagnosed with lung cancer. It's her second cancer. It's devastating.
Live your lives, people. Don't wait for things to be "perfect" because life is not perfect. Take the vacation, take the day off, make the call. Don't leave anything on the table because you don't know who is going to be around tomorrow.
I always thought when I hit the 5 year mark, I'd feel this overwhelming sense of relief. It didn't come. And it didn't come when I hit 10 years, either. 15 is the same, honestly. Cancer changes you, your perspectives, your trajectory, all of it. I care more about time with my family and my loved ones above everything else, and TIME is the most precious thing in my life.
Happy Cancerversary to me.