Book | Laughter and Cancer

When Cancer Takes Flight

A humourous guide to dealing with the turbulence of breast cancer

Background

When I was going through my cancer journey, I sent "long" emails to a group that I referred to as my Boob Buddies. This seemed to be the simplest way to keeping people informed about how my treatments were going without having to repeat the same information over and over again. Besides, my memory was bad and, without the emails, I couldn't remember who knew what. Unfortunately, that problem is still there. At least I think it is.

As a former technical writer, my emails were more than status reports; they were detailed descriptions and explanations of everything from tests that were done to all the treatments (surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation). In the end, once I stopped sending emails, I copied them into Word and discovered that I had over 80 pages of information about my cancer experience. The question was what to do with them.

The reason for writing a book

There are multiple reasons why I turned those emails into a book.

To share my story so that others going through their own cancer journey can. hopefully, identify with some of the things I went through and realize they are not alone in what they are going through.
To help simplify the complex. There is a lot to learn in a short period of time and sometimes what is abundantly clear to a doctor is not completely clear to a patient...even after an explanation. Since I have experienced and know what made sense to me, I can provide patient-friendly explanations. I also like to use analogies (comparisons to everyday objects) to provide some clarity.

The book itself

My book is an analogy. It compares taking a trip on a plane to an equivalent experience in the cancer journey. For example, In the Table of Contents below, everything before the "/" is related to going on a trip. Everything after the "/" is the corresponding stage of the cancer journey. For example, takeoff is like a diagnosis. It can be scary, but it is the first step that takes you to your destination of getting better.

Please keep in mind that not all treatments occur in the same order, so the first stop could be chemotherapy or radiation. It depends on the treatment plan. This was something I didn't know during my cancer treatments. Cancer certainly provides a lot of learning opportunities about things you didn't really want to learn.

Introduction
Planning Your Journey / Your Baggage
The Wait / Tests and Results
Takeoff / A Diagnosis
The First Stop / Surgery
A Layover / At Home After Surgery
Back to the Airport / Next Steps
The Flight Continues / Chemotherapy (Phase 1)
The Flight Continues / Chemotherapy (Phase 2)
Next Layover / Between Chemo and Radiation
Another Leg of the Journey / Radiation
The Landing and Jet Lag / Emotional Adjustments
Ongoing Maintenance / The New Normal
Closing the Book on Breast Cancer

Back cover

Cancer is no ordinary experience and this is no ordinary book.“Hang on to your hat—and your hair! In her book When Cancer Takes Flight, Debbie takes you on a journey that’s fraught with turbulence; but she’s a capable guide, manoeuvring the bumps with her quirky, ironic humour and her down-to-earth approach to cancer. I love how Debbie takes what could be a painful personal moment and turns it into a hilarious incident. At the end of When Cancer Takes Flight you’ll take a deep breath—appreciating that this is no ordinary ride, and your pilot is a force for any cancer to reckon with.” ~Nancy Hall-Chapman, friend to a terminal breast cancer patient, Toronto, Ontario

Some reviews

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. I found it helpful and entertaining. The Boob Buddies emails provided a solid education to me prior to even knowing that I would be taking my own journey. I laughed out loud in several sections. This book will help many women through their breast cancer journey and provide some much needed relief through humour along the way. ~Linda Smith, Breast cancer survivor, Straffordville, Ontario

The book was a great read. As a person who has battled cancer I can relate to many of Debbie’s scenarios. I cried, smiled, and felt a range of other emotions as I read through the pages. This book is a good read for those who have been touched by cancer and for others to understand what a person may go through. ~Sally Davidson, Breast cancer survivor, Mount Albert, Ontario

It was a very insightful book. Quite informative and honest. The section on lymphedema was very well done.
~Darlene Rahn RMT MLD/CDT, Guelph, Ontario

I loved the book. Deb shares her own personal experience of a cancer journey while also providing excellent medical information. THANK YOU. ~Ida Tergonski, Breast cancer survivor, Mount Albert, Ontario

What an excellent book—from diagnosis of breast cancer through all the many tests and treatments. Deb describes the whole process thoroughly, but with a light touch. There is no trace of gloom, despair or feeling sorry for herself. I had breast cancer several years ago, and I would have greatly appreciated a book like this to describe the various, sometimes unpleasant, tests and procedures that doctors never seem to explain well. I highly recommend When Cancer Takes Flight to anyone who is going through the experience of dealing with breast cancer, and also to their friends and family who are supporting that person. ~Lee Kalpin, RMT and breast cancer survivor, Holland Landing, Ontario