Creating a Cancer Support Community Online
- Lora Gene Young is a 38-year-old outdoor adventure enthusiast from North Carolina. She was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer in 2020, but she’s recently completed her active cancer treatments.
- She recently took to Instagram to remind her followers that “nothing about cancer is easy” even if it might look easier for some on social media at times.
- Vulnerability does not come naturally for everyone. But it might be worth it to try opening up, even to a smaller group of people, because you never know how much it can help you or help those you share with unless you try.
Young is a 38-year-old outdoor adventure enthusiast from North Carolina who loves to hike and hunt in the mountains. She has always tried to stay active and take care of her body, but cancer as we all know can happen to anyone.
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“The snow looks pretty, but under is ice. Beautiful but dangerous,” she wrote in her caption. “I was told today that I ‘make cancer look easy.’ That is never my intention. My intention, when sharing my story, was to make those who didn’t have cancer see the struggle, to provide to those who knew and supported cancer patients and survivors, more information, and for other cancer patients, say, I am here, I am struggling as well.
“Just like the snow, social media has the effect of covering the scary bits. My intentions were never to be the snow, the fluff, I never want to make cancer ‘look easy.'”
She goes on to say “nothing about cancer is easy,” and give her followers advice on inhabiting the space of social media.
“Nothing about my experience had been easy. No one’s experience with cancer, as a patient, a survivor, a friend, a family member, a caregiver, is easy,” she wrote. “We can put on make up, and fake eyelashes and wigs and smiles to make ourselves feel better, to put others at ease, but it is just snow. Under the cover is the scary, icy part, always there, always threatening. Look beyond the snow.”
Understanding Breast Cancer
Breast cancer is a common cancer that has been the subject of much research. Many women develop breast cancer every year, but men can develop this cancer too though it is more rare, in part, due to the simple fact that they have less breast tissue.
There are many treatment options for people with this disease, but treatment depends greatly on the specifics of each case. Identifying these specifics means looking into whether the cancerous cells have certain receptors. These receptors the estrogen receptor, the progesterone receptor and the HER2 receptor can help identify the unique features of the cancer and help personalize treatment.
"These receptors, I like to imagine them like little hands on the outside of the cell, they can grab hold of what we call ligands, and these ligands are essentially the hormones that may be circulating in the bloodstream that can then be pulled into this cancer cell and used as a fertilizer, as growth support for the cells," Dr. Elizabeth Comen, a medical oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, previously told SurvivorNet.
The Unique Features of Breast Cancer: Deciding the Right Course of Treatment
One example of a type of ligand that can stimulate a cancer cell is the hormone estrogen, hence why an estrogen receptor positive breast cancer will grow when stimulated by estrogen. For these cases, your doctor may offer treatment that specifically targets the estrogen receptor. But for HER2 positive breast cancers, therapies that uniquely target the HER2 receptor may be the most beneficial.
Creating an Online Community during a Cancer Battle
During a cancer battle, it's important to know that you are not alone. There's a community out there for you to be vulnerable with, if you'd like, and it's worth it to at least try to connect with some people as you battle the disease.
Take Young, for example. She always tries to give honest updates about her cancer journey and take the time to educate others about the disease. But Young is definitely not the only one to build a support system in this way.
Kate Hervey is another cancer warrior who has touched many people by sharing her story. A young college girl, she was shocked to be diagnosed with synovial sarcoma, a rare type of cancer that tends to form near large joints in young adults, after seeing her doctor for tenderness and lumps in one of her legs.
Inspiring College Student, 20, Builds Community on TikTok Sharing Her Cancer Journey During COVID-19
Hervey, a nursing student at Michigan State, had to handle her cancer battle during the COVID-19 pandemic and scale back on her social activities as a high-risk patient. That's when she turned to TikTok as a creative outlet, and inspired thousands.
"One thing that was nice about TikTok that I loved and why I started posting more and more videos is how many people I was able to meet through TikTok and social media that are going through the same things," she says. "I still text with this one girl who is 22. If I'm having a hard time, I will text her because she will understand. As much as my family and friends are supportive, it's hard to vent to someone who doesn't know what it's really like."
Hervey is now cancer-free, and says she couldn't have done it without the love and support of her TikTok followers.
"I feel like I've made an impact on other people and they have made an impact on me through TikTok, which is crazy to say. I can help people go through what I've been going through as well." She has graciously agreed to allow SurvivorNet to use her content in order to help our community.
So while sharing your story for thousands of TikTok users might not be your thing, it's important to consider opening up to others about your struggles during a cancer battle. Even if it's with a smaller group, you never know how much the support can help you or help those you share with unless you try.
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