Reaction to a diagnosis

Keeping Friends and Staying In Touch

After my diagnosis of Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma my friends and family were shocked. Many people react differently. There was a network of people helped me get through some tough times including some people who I was never all that close with showed their true colors and were unbelievably supportive. It was easy to see who cared enough to stick around. But it is not always black and white. People who I thought would be at my side drifted away for all sorts of reasons. I found that the main reason was because they might be awkward themselves and had a hard time being put in a situation they probably have never been in before, or if they have been in a similar situation it might not have had a good outcome. Some people don’t know how to react especially school friends. Adults usually can figure ways to show they care. StupidCancer.org is an outlet for feelings that might be hard to express. Send them a link or a bracelet because it is easier to joke about giving cancer the bird with the clever middle finger StupidCancer band then it is to feel sorry for you, since after all, you don’t need the baggage. StupidCancer.org is a way to express feelings the way we all need to.

Heather Buchan

Heather Buchan is a two-time Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma survivor from New Jersey. Her first diagnosis was at age 16 in 2008. After high school and first semester in college she relapsed in 2010, requiring more treatment and ultimately a bone marrow transplant. After a perfect match transplant from her older sister, her cancer is cured and currently attends Syracuse University in the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications.

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