April 3, 2018

Dealing With a Second Cancer Diagnosis

Fighting cancer once is difficult enough, but for patients faced with a second primary diagnosis, life can become even more complicated. That’s why the news of a second diagnosis hit Michael Hill, a 41-year-old Springfield, Missouri native, hard in 2017. A Shock to The System Michael had testicular cancer in 2013, but caught it early, […]

April 3, 2018

Excess Weight May Contribute Up to 40 Percent of US Cancer Diagnoses

Your weight plays an important role in your overall health, including your risk of many chronic diseases — cancer included. In fact, being overweight or obese — defined as a body mass index (BMI) of greater than 25 or 30, respectively — is believed to cause up to 40 percent of all cancer diagnoses in […]

April 3, 2018

Matchmaking for Transplants

Each year, thousands of people diagnosed with life-threatening diseases, including blood cancers, myelodysplastic syndrome, sickle cell disease and many others, require bone marrow or stem cell transplants to give them the best chance at beating their diseases. These patients require finding a matching donor, and while some find a match from a family member, nearly […]

March 13, 2018

From the Cubicle to CEO of Courage and a Cure

Four years ago, Jodie Murphy, age 54, reached what she thought was peak of her career. After 23 years of climbing the corporate ladder, the San Diego native living in Goodyear, Arizona landed the demanding role of Senior Manager of Global Investigations at Gap Inc. “It was a pretty stressful job,” Jodie Murphy explains. “I […]

March 13, 2018

Why Sleep Should Be a Priority for Cancer Patients

Most people experience poor sleep from time to time. Maybe you went to bed too late, were too excited or stressed to fall asleep, took medication that kept you alert or had an alcoholic beverage before bed that interfered with your ability to fall asleep. There are many reasons that you might have a bad […]

March 13, 2018

Hesitant to Join a Cancer Support Group? Here’s Why Camaraderie Heals

A cancer diagnosis is often seen as only a physical affliction, but cancer patients know the battle is also emotional. The whirlwind of emotions experienced following a cancer diagnosis — from anxiety and depression to fear, guilt, frustration and helplessness — can make you feel like giving up. Isolation and loneliness are real issues too, […]

March 13, 2018

What are Environmental Risk Factors, and How Can I Avoid Them?

Tobacco smoke at a concert. Pollution from the factory around the corner. Radiation from a routine X-ray. When it comes to environmental factors that raise the risk of cancer, it may seem like avoiding exposure is as impossible as avoiding the air you breathe. In reality, though, you have more control than you think. Experts […]

March 13, 2018

7 Questions To Ask Your Doctor Before Getting a Colonoscopy

More than 40,000 Americans a day, on average, get a colonoscopy, but many still don’t understand how they work, how often they should get screened – or even why they’re so important. Another fact many don’t know: Despite the thousands of procedures performed daily, colonoscopies are hardly routine. Because the procedures involve intense preparation and sedation, they […]

February 12, 2018

Fighting Fatigue with Determination

From time to time, everyone has experienced exhaustion: as a child, after a slumber party; as a teenager, after intense sports practices; in college, from studying all night for an exam; and throughout the first year of being a new parent, when you are rarely granted uninterrupted sleep. For cancer patients, exhaustion can be relentless, […]

February 12, 2018

Banding Together through Cancer with Music Therapy

Patients don’t need to know how to play an instrument to participate in the Music Therapy program currently offered at Cancer Treatment Centers of America® (CTCA) at Southwestern Regional Medical Center (Southwestern) in Tulsa, Oklahoma. They don’t even need to be musically inclined, according to Dr. David Wakefield, PhD, mind-body therapist at Southwestern. “Some patients […]