Impact of Cancer
- Rock star Ozzy Osbourne, 71, says his wife Sharon Osbourne, 68, encouraged him to keep performing while she battled colon cancer.
- Osbourne was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2002, and went through surgery and chemotherapy for treatment.
- Chemotherapy for colon cancer can be administered as a first-line treatment, before surgery, or in cases where the disease has returned.
Osbourne has been in remission for nearly a decade, but her husband is opening up about the struggles he and his family faced while watching his beloved battle colon cancer. Once hearing she had been diagnosed, Ozzy says he wanted to stop touring and performing in order to care for her, but his other half pushed against the idea.
Read MoreChemo Experience for Colon Cancer
In Osbourne’s case, she had surgery as first-line treatment but needed to go through chemotherapy after learning the cancer had spread. Chemotherapy is often considered a standard treatment option for a variety of cancers, but in cases of colon cancer, it can be offered in different stages.
As a first-line treatment, chemotherapy for colon cancer is often well-tolerated. Many patients are able to continue working while only having to take time off around when they receive their treatments. Common side effects of chemotherapy may include diarrhea, fatigue, mouth sores, bleeding, and a decrease in white blood cell (WBC) count leading to an increased risk of infection. While Osbourne didn’t tolerate the chemo as well as others, it may be because she had received the treatment after surgery.
Chemo can also be given to colon cancer patients before surgery. This is called neoadjuvant chemotherapy, and it's sometimes given if the tumor is very large or if the disease has spread outside of the colon. The goal of chemotherapy, in both cases, is to decrease the amount of cancer in the body to allow for all remaining tumor(s) to be removed through an operation.
Dr. Heather Yeo breaks down first-line chemotherapy for colon cancer
Music Can Be Healing
Art therapy such as music, painting, and dancing can really lift up spirits during treatment. It's not uncommon for those battling cancer to experience emotions such as anger, confusion, and sadness. So, the opportunity to express these emotions through artistic outlets can be extremely helpful music is one of those outlets.
Two-time cancer survivor, Bianca Muniz, turned to music as an outlet during her experience with cancer. Her cancer journey began at just 11 years old when she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Then, at 22 years old, she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Bianca says that undergoing numerous different treatments did have an impact on her voice, but she never let that get in the way of her love of performing, and cancer actually served as a muse for creating new music.
Related: Glam Rock Chemo: How Air Guitar Got This Survivor Through Cancer Treatment
“This experience has had two different effects on my creativity and my music, so I’ve gotten a lot of inspiration from it,” Bianca previously told SurvivorNet. “But also the side effects of treatment, of chemo, and surgery have definitely had a little bit of a negative effect on my voice. Then again, I love performing. I always feel happy after I’ve performed.”
Two-time cancer survivor Bianca Muniz says music helped her through chemo
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