Stats are bullshit...

From Ehow.com:

Stage 3A
# When receiving a diagnosis of Stage 3A breast cancer, a woman likely has a tumor that measures up to 5 cm in diameter. In addition, the cancer has spread to the lymph nodes in the armpit. The cancer in the lymph nodes has likely joined together and/or is attached to other structures within the breast, armpit and collarbone region. Another diagnosis garnering a Stage 3A diagnosis includes a tumor that is larger than 5 cm but has spread only to the lymph nodes in the armpits. Stage 3A breast cancer carries with it a five-year survival rate of 51 to 56 percent.


Sooooooooo ... it is being said, online, that I, basically, am looking at the "fact" that there is a 50% chance that I will die within 5 years of my diagnosis. Wow. I gotta say, when I was first diagnosed, I read stats like that and nearly shit myself. It crushed me. I would lay in bed at night when the house was quiet and think about my son and how he'd never know how much I love him. I'd think about monumental happenings in his life that I would never witness. I thought of him calling another woman "Mama." I thought about the fact that I had never owned a home or a horse or a salon or a "classic" car ...
But, the years have passed. And I have have been so fortunate to meet so many people "in the know" ... in the cancer world.
I have learned that these stats don't take into account all the new meds that have been out for the past 5+ years. And, I have been fortunate enough to be a candidate for quite a few of them.
Even if I was NOT a candidate for those meds or others that we will be blessed with in the future, I would not and never will accept the idea that I am a "stat." Never.
I urge everyone that knows someone that is dealing with a chronic illness to educate themselves about these "stats" and the fact that many/most of them are WAY too old to hold true, as the they don't include new and fabulous treatments.
Just a thought.
xoxo
Anna