media coverage of cancer - bit of a rant

This is such an emotive subject. When Julia Bradbury was on tv talking about her mastectomy followed by reconstruction (all done privately with access to experts in the field) and little or no other treatment required, I remember thinking “she escaped relatively easily, whys she crying?”  (Compared to my stage 3, mastectomy, chemo which has left me with heart/bowel issues, plus 15 rounds of radiotherapy) I guess we don’t know the mental struggles and sheer fear that the word cancer strikes into each of us. It is possible that ONJ had many appointments with specialists who managed with intervention, to keep her as healthy as possible… We may never know. I certainly know how irritating the press are with their sensationalism..we just have to suck it up…best wishes 

Thank you for posting this. I dismay at how the MSM continually use this word. Cancer patients haven't gone looking for a fight, the word "battle" implies that a person hasn't fought hard enough against their cancer, rather it is the medical treatment which has been exhausted/unsuccessful.

Best wishes to all xx

The headlines are all about grabbing attention and i do think from her original diagnosis it has been a 30 year battle, she has worked hard to highlight the disease and look for more progressive treatment options whilst receiving treatment on numerous occasions. 

We all want to live and get on with our lives but whether you are given the all clear or not it is something that for me will always stay with me and life wont ever be the same. I dont sit here dwelling about the what ifs i get on doing what i have always done. But thats easier said than done for some. 

I do feel proud that i have had the strength to fight this disease and some days it felt exactly like that a huge fight! Im not trying to say im amazingly strong but i know some people who would have struggled to cope. I feel fortunate that actually iam mentally strong and could get through everything cancer and its treatment has to throw at me. 

Mcmillian and other charities would be better educating staff to deal with the emotions of people and their families  affected by cancer, getting more experienced and empathetic district nurses to actually come out and nurse. I dont think its their role to teach the press about what language to use.  

Best wishes to all xxx

Cancer is a great equaliser as even though the wealthy can afford private treatment it's not always better, might even be an expensive con, they will have the mental impact of hearing the words "it's cancer".  We all put her our brave faces but underneath!!!

Hi Carolyn28

I agree with you.  First there’s the “losing a battle” language, and the implication that someone who has died of cancer has somehow failed.  Fine, some people are happy with that language, but many of us aren’t.  I feel I’ve been (so far!) pretty brave, coping with my 11 months of treatment with minimal fuss. But my medical teams have been doing most of the fighting, not me.  And if cancer comes back and kills me, I don’t want people talking about me as if I’m a loser.  

Liz O’Riordan, the former breast surgeon who herself had breast cancer, has blogged about this and challenged the language in the media, as have others.  The press know many people find the “losing a battle” language offensive. The fact that they continue to use it is laziness.  

Second, would ONJ really consider she’s spent the past 30 years fighting a battle against cancer, or might she think she’s spent most of that time getting on with her life?  I only finished active treatment a few months ago, and of course I think about cancer often, and know there’s a possibility of recurrence.  But meanwhile I don’t feel as if I’m in the middle of a battle.  I feel like I’m getting on with my life and I’m enjoying it.  Even if I eventually die of cancer I don’t want anyone to suggest that my life from initial diagnosis onwards was a “battle with cancer”, because there’s far more to it (and me) than that.  Best wishes to you all xxx

Clearly we all have different perspectives on this and personally i dont find this language offence, we are too wrapped up in what we can and cant say so eventually we will have people feeling like they are unable to comment in fear of saying the wrong thing.

I read last night Samantha Wommack had tweeted her condolences to Olivia Newton John and commented that she now has her own battle with this disease. If thats how she feels about this then she should be allowed to say it. Its not just journalist using these headlins, its a common way of referencing what someone has gone through. 

I dont personally like the .... you got this!!! Have i?? I was under the impression i got breast cancer, but I dont now because i fought it!!! 

I wont apologise for being strong enough to fight this disease its what got me through tge ladt 15 months and what will get me through the coming years.

There are far more important things that i found need to be challenged, why only 50 year olds offered mamagrams i was 46 when diagnoses and i feel lucky at that as there are so many 20 30 year olds being diagnosed. Lack of meaningful  appointments, i have seen the surgeon actually one of his team not him, once since mastectomy in april. Random t/c from breast care nurses which are difficult to engage in when im at work or driving! Seen oncologist once all other appointments on the phone and always late. Appaling treatment from district nurses, i could go on!!! Lets focus on what really matters, effective treatments for a horrible disease and better communication between proffesionals so that everyone gets the best care.

I was surprised by how negatively I reacted to the Julia Bradbury coverage and the way she presented herself. It hit so many bum notes with me. There was a jarring difference in the way she presented differently to Deborah James imho. In the end I stopped reading anything she’d said, which was far, far too much!

Thank you you’ve just saved me writing an identical post! You’ve done it far more eloquently and politely than I would’ve done too x

You’ve got this  enough to elicit the darkest of looks from me too x

I feel exactly the same, she is very lucky in her early diagnosis and treatment. At first i questioned myself, was i jeslous that she had surgery done with immediate reconstruction simething which wasnt ever discussed with me. But i dont think i was jealous i just think i was angry that she was massivly over exposed and not really showing what i have found to be a true representation of bc and treatment. Maybe this was her choice but if your putting yourself out there to highlight,inform and raise awareness then show all adpects and recognise your in a far more privilidged position than most.

I followed her on instagram but find it a bit condescending, eat this drink this use these products, not everyone can justify a ten pound bar of soap!!

Good luck to her she has come back strong but for many everyday is a struggle in one way or another. 

I still consider myself much more fortunate than some of the people thst i used to see when i was having chemo.

Xxx