Living with Cancer & Meeting New Goals
- Mary Williams from Essex, Vermont, has worked hard to change her outlook after her brain cancer diagnosis, saying she shifted from a “this is unfair” mentality to seizing the day as she preps for her number one bucket list activity: running the Boston marathon.
- Williams was diagnosed with grade two oligodendroglioma, a rare type of tumor in the central nervous system, and while Williams’ prognosis isn’t 100% clear, her doctors predict many years in her future, and Williams knows she is lucky.
- Many survivors tell SurvivorNet that they discover a newfound inner strength when faced with a cancer diagnosis, and often decide to set new goals and put their energy to better use.
“Boston’s always something I’ve wanted to do but just cause I was focused on other things it just didn’t happen,” she told CNN affiliate WPTZ.
Read MoreJust one year before learning she had grade two oligodendroglioma, which is a rare type of tumor in the central nervous system, Williams suffered from losing her mother. And while Williams’ prognosis isn’t 100% clear, her doctors still predict many years in her future, and Williams knows she’s lucky.
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So after her “initial shock,” Williams quickly regrouped, and by the very next day she had gained fresh perspective from her new health status.
Understanding Brain Tumors
Brain tumors can be either cancerous (malignant) or benign (noncancerous) and can affect both children and adults, according to the Cleveland Clinic, but William’s specific type of tumor most commonly affects adults.
The central nervous system, which includes the brain and spinal cord, acts as the main processing center for the nervous system as a whole, the American Cancer Society explains. The central nervous system’s normal functioning, which involves sending messages from the brain to other parts of the body, becomes disrupted if tumors are present.
Primary tumors are “glial” or “non-glial.” Glial tumors found in the brain are composed of glial cells, which “help support, connect, and protect the neurons of the central and peripheral nervous systems,” cites Medical News Today.
Non-glial tumors develop on or in the structures of the brain including nerves, blood vessels and glands.
Benign or noncancerous brain tumors include:
- Chordomas
- Craniopharyngiomas
- Gangliocytomas
- Glomus jugulare
- Meningiomas
- Pineocytomas
- Pituitary adenomas
- Schwannomas
- Acoustic neuromas
Malignant or Cancerous tumors include:
- Gliomas, which make up 78% of cancerous primary brain tumors
- Astrocytoma
- Ependymomas
- Glioblastoma
- Oligodendroglioma
- Medulloblastoma
Signs And Symptoms of a Cancerous Brain Tumor
The signs and symptoms of a cancerous brain tumor can vary greatly based on the size, spread, and location of the cancer.
As a result, some individuals will not feel any real effects for some time while others will start to show symptoms almost immediately after the cancer starts to grow.
Common symptoms include:
- Intense and frequent headaches
- Intense pressure similar to a sinus infection
- Seizures
- Body tremors
- Nausea
- Fatigue
- Sudden changes in behavior
- Shifts in personality
- Short-term memory loss
- Weakness of the legs and/or arms in one side of the body
- Blurred vision
- Difficulty speaking and remembering words
Individuals who experience multiple symptoms for any extended period of time should schedule an appointment with their doctor.
Setting Life Goals After Cancer
Many survivors tell us that they discovered a newfound inner strength during or after their cancer battles, and often decide to set goals and put their energy to better use.
“I know it sounds funny but I never would have even considered running a marathon if I didn’t have cancer,” breast cancer survivor Carrie Kreiswirth told SurvivorNet.
Carrie explained that she struggled a lot while she was undergoing treatment for breast cancer. She started feeling run down during chemotherapy and felt like she lost a part of herself. So how did she turn it around?
“I got to a certain point where I just started making certain shifts and certain changes and slowly, but surely, I have started to feel more like myself than I ever had,” Carrie said.
“I changed a lot of my eating habits, I changed my exercise habits. Running a marathon was certainly a lofty goal to set for myself, but I needed that. I needed to know that I could do that … and if I had gone through cancer and come out the other side, then I could do anything.”
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