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Have you pumped into any of that terminology? Which one do you prefer to use? My reading recommendations for September included a book titled Winning the War on Cancer. Cancer is a serious matter, but the funny thing is that this title stirred a storm in a water glass. I received pretty angry feedback, stating that cancer is not a fight we can win or lose.

Well, I would have to agree to that. I have never indicated anything else. It appears the people behind this feedback had not actually read my book review from the link (nor the book) but instead got agitated by the words ‘war’ and ‘cancer’ in the book title. I completely understand their mindset, but it’s not fair to start jumping on the walls without checking the whole issue. Quite honestly, I had similar thoughts when I first saw Sylvie Beljanski’s book, Winning the War on Cancer. However, I was curious, so I chose to read the book. And I am happy that I did.

Cancer is not a war that we either win or lose based on our achievements and maybe some luck. No, it’s a deathly disease that either kills us or doesn’t. Sometimes, it takes its time, pretending to have disappeared and then making a comeback. It is a crooked bastard (excuse my language!). However, this book is not about specific individuals fighting/living/experiencing cancer. No, it’s about a molecular biologist, Mirko Beljanski, who might have discovered the cure for this disease. And it’s about the medical industry. And it is about the journey of Mirko Beljanski’s daughter, Sylvie, trying to continue her father’s work. And I dare to say that their declaring a war against cancer is okay, if not even necessary. So, to conclude, I find the title of this book fitting. Furthermore, the content of this book is very interesting.

I would like to recommend another book; this one is the story of a little boy with cancer: First Survivor by Mark Unger. (I hope nobody gets agitated by this title!) This story is about the author’s little boy, diagnosed with neuroblastoma. I could not read it without shedding some tears. Check it out if you may.

More reading recommendations: I discovered a blog recently that I’ve now been following. It was originally about something else (architecture, nature, old items), but now it is also another cancer story (sorry! It is readable only for those of you who understand Finnish). This blogger’s honesty in describing her cancer journey is very touching. Here’s a link to Thildan Kuvasto.

You might wonder why I suddenly write again about this topic. Well, let me say that this disease touches so many of us, and I hate it. It’s stealing the life and joy of its victims and their families. In addition, I quite recently lost someone (again!) because of this disease. It makes me angry, probably precisely as angry as the people behind the feedback I received. But let’s stick to facts, shall we? And let’s not define a person through sickness. A person is still a person, regardless of what they might have. And every person is valuable just because they are. A person.

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