Finding yourself on the open road.

Y ou just received the news no one wants to hear. You have cancer. Now what? You might even wonder, “Why me?” So you get educated, read books, search the Internet, and get second opinions but, in the end, you do what you have to do to survive. For some it’s surgery, whereas for others it may be radiation, chemotherapy, or some other treatment. Whatever your choice, the main ingredient is attitude. You can do research till the cows come home but your mental outlook is everything. Each life touched by cancer is unique and mine, which is special to me, is offered to you for consideration. I was diagnosed with prostate cancer in the summer of 1997 at the age of 42. I took the news in stride and, like any good patient, set off in search of knowledge. I would be the youngest patient in my urologist’s long career to undergo a prostatectomy. With the loving support of my wife of 16 years, I survived the ordeal and overcame much of the fallout associated with the surgery. Everything changed 13 years later. My world imploded within a short window of four months. The economy tanked in 2009, my wife lost her job, our finances crashed, foreclosure hit, my mother died, and 28 years of marriage ended in divorce. Then, in the spring of 2010, I was diagnosed with a recurrence of prostate cancer. I was shell-shocked to say the least, but stepped up to the recommended radiation treatments with courage and determination. I started the first of 39 radiation treatment on April 19, 2010; however, on the day of my first treatment, I made the 62-mile commute to my office and was informed that I no longer had a job. I felt at the end of my proverbial rope. How could so many challenging circumstances befall one person in such a short amount of time? Heart of Oncology Nursing Mallori Hooker, RN, MSN, NP-C, AOCNP®—Associate Editor