I hate cancer

Hate is a strong word.

I've been dealing with that issue lately, as my six-year-old has taken to screaming "I hate you so much" at his little brother when they're fighting over something. And now, the little one has taken to yelling "hate you so much" at ANYONE anytime they do something he doesn't like. It was fabulous when he said that to my neighbor the other day, for no reason. I was so embarrassed.

So, I have to figure out a way to teach my kids that they shouldn't say hate to other people, because it's an ugly word.

But I hate cancer.

Hate it.

Cancer haunts me.

Every single day I think about it. I feel like I'm just waiting for my sentence. My dad had it twice when I was younger and my mom is still having treatments against the ovarian cancer she was diagnosed with last year. It was a crappy year for her. (She's doing well now, in case you're wondering. Full recovery expected. And she has normal-looking hair again. AND she can eat food again. AND she can keep up with her grandsons, which is saying a LOT.)

So anyway, with my family history and all the scary statistics out there about 1 in 4 people getting breast cancer or skin cancer or whatever cancer, I feel like I'm in a waiting game. I feel fairly certain I will be one of those people. It doesn't help that both times I've gone for a skin check at the dermatologist, I've had a mole hacked off. It also didn't help that when I was pregnant with Logan, I developed a fast-growing suspicious fibroadenoma that I had to have cut out of my boob. (It ended up being non-cancerous, but tell that to someone who's wide awake on an operating table with a six-month-pregnant belly sticking up, who then has to wait a week to hear the results of the biopsy. Friggin' scary.)

So yeah, age 35, three biopsies under my belt. All good outcomes, but every single time, I wonder, is this the one?

But what can you do?

Well, I SHOULD use more sunblock. I'm bad about that.

But I DO maintain an active lifestyle and while I eat a few too many treats (I'm working on it) I do try to include lots of healthy produce and whole grains in my diet.

Just in the past week or so, two sources of cancer-fighting diet information came across my radar, so I thought I'd share with you, my beloved readers.

The first is this article from Women's Health Magazine which includes some decent tips.

The rundown:
eat less fat, don't remove the yolk from your egg, eat cabbage, eat spinach and other leafy greens, eat blackberries, eat lowfat dairy products, eat salmon and other Omega 3-rich fish, eat whole grains, drink hot green tea, get your vitamin D, use lemon and orange zest and eat lots of colorful fruits and veggies.

The other is a great blog called Fight Cancer With Food. It's written by a girl who lost her mom to cancer, and now she's doing what she can to help others prevent it through healthy eating. The tagline on her blog is "One simple girl, sticking her finger up at cancer."

That's how I feel.

Anyway, she's got some great info on her page. Look at "My anti-cancer plan" at the top of her blog. She's done a lot of research on the topic. It seems pretty sound (though I'm not so sure about soy.)

So, yeah, check out this information and use it to help yourself if you want. I plan to try to make better choices.

I don't want that phone call.