A Poem on Cancer's Breaking News

April 22, 2024
Ellen Reichman
Ellen Reichman

Ellen was a teacher, drug/alcohol counselor and school counselor for 32 years. Always being fairly “unique,” she was diagnosed with a unique form of breast cancer — one tumor followed by two more malignant tumors – in 2007. Ellen and her husband, although native New Yorkers, have lived in Seattle for 41 years. They have two grown children, two grandchildren and two standard poodles.

Any one of us stricken by cancer remembers our own breaking news.

Breaking News:

Kate Middleton, the Princess of Wales at age 42 has cancer.

King Charles, age 75, also has cancer.

Cancer, an equal opportunity disease.

Class, race, religion do not matter.

My heart aches for the royal family

Sure, they have the resources for the best care possible

Sure, they have outside help not many of us regular people have.

But

Cancer does not care.

Breaking News

Any one ofus stricken by cancer remembers our own breaking news.

Our diagnosis revealed, sharing with our families and loved ones.

Don’t look at me differently; I am still the same person

With cancer — not defining me, but a part of me —

We have cancer.

Uninvited cells invaded not only our bodies but our spirit, our souls.

Fight, fight, fight

A carnage like no other; cancer can be brutal

We are now warriors

Facing the biggest challenge of our lives

The term “lost the battle to cancer” bothers me

There are no losers

There is only the disease

I stand in solidarity with the royal family

Although there is not anything royal about a girl from Brooklyn

I know cancer

I have never been the same

Breaking news

This post was written and submitted by Ellen Reichman. The article reflects the views of Reichman and not of CURE®. This is also not supposed to be intended as medical advice.

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