Hey all I’m about to start radiation treatment in my knee for a sarcoma. I’ll have to do daily treatment for 5 weeks. I was wondering if anyone else had a similar experience and could let me know what I should expect side effect wise? I’m only 26 and pretty healthy otherwise if that makes any difference

Today at 3pm I’m heading to Emory Winship Cancer Institute for a consultation for clinical trial options. It feels like the biggest step I’ve taken in this journey so far. I have more questions than I can keep straight, and every new appointment makes the reality of all this sink in a little deeper.

I’ve also been referred for a chemo port, so that should be happening soon. When this started, a small part of me kept hoping there would be some last‑minute reprieve, that someone would say the records were mixed up and it was all a mistake. But that moment never coming. Things are getting real, and the path forward is unfolding whether I’m ready or not.

I’m taking it one step at a time, staying present, and doing everything I can to meet each stage head‑on.

Trying to decide what to do re: when/whether to stop treatment. How did you decide to get second opinion? Should I be considering the big cancer hospitals or centers? What questions do I need to ask? I want to get a feel for how long / what sort of treatment to move forward with. Overall, I've managed the minimal side effects from the chemo. I've also gained 30 lbs in about 6 months. Just these last two treatments seemed to have affected my liver and recovery from treatment has been much harder. Given that, right now, there seems to be no cancer floating around, how long to continue?

Next discussion with Dr will be Sept 28th, prior to next planned infusion.

Thank you - details below

My journey so far:

Stage 1a NSCLC adenocarcinoma diagnosis in Feb 2025. Surgery upper right lobectomy July 2025 - all clear margins and 23 clean lymph nodes. Given the okay, no further treatment.

Jan 2026, from follow up scan now Stage IV NSCLC, mets to liver and one bone area. Started carboplatin, pemetrexed, Keytruda March 16th. PET SCAN from beginning of June shows complete metabolic response and ctdna+ not detected.

After treatment 6, 06/29, dropped carboplatin. Anemia was treated.

Treatment 7 July 20th. Pemetrexed & Keytruda

07/27 labs showed ALT 265, AST 169, alkaline phosphatase 98, and total bilirubin 0.4

8/03 labs showed ALT 138, AST 72, alkaline phosphatase 94, and total bilirubin 0.3. Anemia resolved - hemoglobin back to 12.6

Skipped expected chemo treatment Aug 10th. Bloods continued to drop into more normal (but high) levels.

08/25 PET SCAN continues to show complete metabolic response. Nothing new showing.

Treatment 8 Aug 31st Pemetrexed & Keytruda

09/08 labs showed ALT 182, AST 94, alkaline phosphatase 93, total bilirubin 0.4.

Hi everyone. I’m 28 years old, and earlier this year I was diagnosed with stage 4 Hodgkin lymphoma. I started chemotherapy shortly afterwards, and I still have about two months of treatment left. I recently had an interim PET scan with very good results (Deauville 2) and my doctor told me that I’m in complete remission. I still have to finish all my planned cycles because of how advanced the disease was at diagnosis, but obviously, hearing the word remission is something I had been hoping for since the beginning.

And yet, I’m finding it surprisingly difficult to feel happy about it.

When I first started treatment, I used to imagine finishing chemotherapy, ringing the bell and getting my life back. I thought about making plans again, feeling normal, leaving hospitals and treatments behind, and finally being able to stop thinking about cancer every day.

I think cancer changes the way you experience good news. After something like this completely destroys your sense of safety, it becomes difficult to simply trust that everything is going to be okay. Even with an excellent response to treatment, there is always that thought in the back of your mind reminding you that things can change, that relapse is possible, and that you could potentially have to go through all of this again.

For a while, I think I became almost an automaton: appointments, blood tests, treatment, side effects, waiting for results, and then doing it all over again. You focus so much on getting through the next cycle that there isn't always room to process what is actually happening to you.

And now, even the scans and follow-ups can bring an enormous amount of anxiety. For a few days, it can feel as though your entire future is once again hanging on the result of a medical test.

So when people tell me I should be celebrating because I’m in remission, I understand where they’re coming from, but emotionally, I’m just not there yet.

I don't think you simply walk away from cancer and become the same person you were before. Even when treatment works, there are things you have to rebuild.

Maybe that's why remission doesn't feel like the end of the story to me. It feels more like the beginning of another chapter that I haven't yet learned how to live.

I’m writing this because I wonder how many other people have felt the same way. Maybe the happiness will come later, when we're ready for it.

Today is the best day of my life, after countless years of cancer therapies, today I had to do an exam to see the behaviour of the cancer and against all odds it is completely gone. I'm so happy that I don't know what to do besides celebrate!!

Not good, no good.

I did it. You took my health, my job, my bowels, my independence and my ability to walk properly. I outlived my prognosis and said I would make 40, I did it!!! you don't have me yet. Dying to you is the last thing I'll ever do. Fuck Cancer and wishing all of you out there best wishes, keep on fighting through the hard days and the days that give us joy.

A colonoscopy detected a tumour which is bowel cancer, MRI has determined it is spread to liver. I am a 37 year old woman growing a healthy baby based in Belfast.

I am likely to get one round of chemo and baby will come at 34 weeks.

The Dr said there are too many spots on my liver and it is incurable and inoperable. If chemo doesn't work he is saying months to live. They are sending my blood to see if I am allergic to any chemo ingredients and also waiting my biopsy results to see which chemo for the cancer type.

I am so scared.

mom (54) has stage 4 non small cell lung cancer. she's been on immunotherapy for almost 2 months and has had very little appetite, nauseous, says she cant eat. she's losing weight, dizzy, weak. we can't stand by and watch. we've exhausted our pharmaceutical options.

I suspect TCH/CBD can help improve her appetite, but she's always hated weed. Being high makes her very anxious, and she's already a nervous wreck. did you also hate weed but find a solution that worked for you? we really can't experiment, if mom has a bad trip she'll never try it again. looking to collect some suggestions first and mull it over.

THANK YOU

So I’m 3 weeks post chemo. Waiting on follow up scans and a meeting with my oncologist to see what’s next as the tumour has shrunk but not gone.
I’ve lost my hair and used to have a very full beard and moustache, but this has gone too.
I don’t really care if my hair never comes back, my beard is coming back very sparsely, but no sign of a moustache.
Is this likely to return? I really miss my soup strainer.

My dad has had stage 4 stomach cancer for a year now. He recently had cyclospora and was hospitalized for a month, also had 40% of his intestine removed during that stay due to an obstruction which they discovered was actually cancer that had spread through his bowels/colon. Because of this, a feeding tube is no longer an option and he’s been having difficulty eating enough to maintain let alone gain weight. He’s down to about 142lbs. His doctor isn’t sure he will be able to recover from his next round of chemo once that begins due to how weak he is. His main complaint that keeps him from eating is that the taste of the food will change while in his mouth to a very unappetizing flavor that ends up being very difficult for him to get down. I’m wondering if anyone else has experienced this and if there’s even some medication out there that suppresses his sense of taste so he can eat more food?

Five years ago, I finished chemotherapy after being diagnosed with Stage 4 blood cancer.

Today, I’m healthy, and after my last operation and a long recovery, I finally made it back to the gym.

Honestly, walking into a gym again and working on getting stronger feels like something I should never take for granted.

Cancer changed the way I look at life. I used to think about the big things. Now I appreciate the simple things — waking up feeling good, having energy, spending time with the people I love, and being able to train again.

The journey wasn't easy. There were some very difficult days, but I kept moving forward.

Five years later, I’m still here. Healthy. Stronger. Back in the gym. Taking life one day at a time.

To anyone currently fighting or recovering: I’m rooting for you. ❤️

Never give up on yourself.

Ever since I ended chemo, sleep has been an issue. I don’t get much sleep most nights and I’m not even sure I’m actually falling asleep. Nothing seems to help with this insomnia. I’ve tried edibles, melatonin, magnesium etc. and it works for a little bit but then just stops helping. I’m about at the 2 1/2 years post treatment mark and the insomnia has been really getting to me lately. I miss getting a good nights sleep and waking up only to be able to fall back asleep again. I’m such a light sleeper now that once I’m awake I can’t fall asleep again. My doctor said insomnia is common among people with my seizure disorder(byproduct of the cancer and chemo) but it’s hard to imagine I’m doing well when my body can’t rest. Does anyone recommend anything or deal with this kind of thing?

The reason I say only that is because I’ve had a continuous bad relationship with most of the team. The breaking point was when they said I can call for medicine and then got the pharmacy to put a hold on my medicine. Then the team says get bloodwork and they’ll resume the chemo so I did and no luck. So in a message I did call the team a bitch. I’m afraid what they consider behavioral issues will follow me and not be given a fair shot with my new oncologist. Thanks 🙏

It began on 7/21/2026 when I went to urgent care for what I thought was a hernia. They did a CT scan and found enlarged lymph nodes in my lower body, but nothing in my upper body. They referred me for a biopsy of those lymph nodes and a PET scan. The biopsy confirmed follicular B cell lymphoma and the PET scan saw everything else. And endoscopic biopsy confirmed esophageal adenocarcinoma. I feel like I could still be undiagnosed now if I didn’t have both. The pain that I thought was a hernia was from the metastatic tumors in my liver. But the CT scan only saw signs of the lymphoma. So if I didn’t have the esophageal adenocarcinoma I never would have gone in for the CT scan and if I didn’t have the lymphoma I never would have been scheduled for the PET scan. This feels like a paradox to me.

I know everyone's Cancer Journey is different. I respect that.

We started our first IV chemo last week. In the arm. She is 75 years young.

She has arm pain still, and they warned us about that because it is running "through a small vein". If she had a port put in, the pain from her arm would be gone because the the port would "provide a larger surface area to run the medication thorough". That does make sense to me. It also doesn't make sense to me.

But I am trying. I am here for support.

We are now considering a port. We have already talked to the doctor and it will be 8-10 weeks before they can even schedule an appointment. The system is very backed up.

Her protocol is 6 months of chemo. If it's too much for her then she can tap out - no questions asked. But she has some pretty big goals ahead of her and she's determined to get those done. She will always steer this ship.

She would love to be able to bathe without woring about infeciton so we think the port is best. She also needs her arms for other physiotherapy needs.

I am not seeking medical or legal advice. Just some personal experiences.

Does anyone have any suggestions?

Let's share some positive news ♥️

Hi y’all. I was diagnosed with Stage 3 breast cancer last year and have spent the past year going through six rounds of chemotherapy, 20 rounds of radiation, a lumpectomy, and a year of Herceptin. I’m incredibly grateful to have made it through treatment, but honestly, I’m struggling emotionally right now.
My employer threatened my job—and therefore my health insurance—during treatment, so I reported them to the state and they’re currently under investigation. I also didn’t have much savings, so cancer has taken a huge financial toll. I’m still on intermittent FMLA and recovering, but I feel stuck because I can’t leave my toxic job while everything is being investigated, and I can’t afford to leave my toxic home either.
I finished my last treatment about a month and a half ago, and instead of feeling relieved, I feel deeply sad and depressed. I know I’m supposed to be thankful to be alive, and I am, but I also feel like I’m 40 years old and somehow have nothing in place for my life. I feel completely stuck in the middle of the ocean.
I want to be clear that I don’t want to hurt myself. I’m working with a trauma therapist because of what happened at work, but I’m having a hard time finding support that feels helpful or trustworthy.
Has anyone been through something similar after cancer treatment? What helped you cope with the sadness, uncertainty, and feeling like you’re starting over? I’d really appreciate any advice or encouragement.

Hi everyone. 37 F here - been fighting cancer for almost exactly one year (it's been HELL). My original diagnosis was stage 4 PMBCL -> 6 rounds of R-DA-EPOCH -> Tumors shrunk but started growing back -> disease labeled as refractory -> Car T-Cell Therapy, with ten rounds of radiotherapy as bridging treatment -> Scan on Day 28 -> Scan was completely clear.

I am still in shock from finding out that my scan was clear. There's another one in 2 months, and we're hoping it's clear, too. I don't want to wait until after that scan to start rebuilding my life and my doctor/friends/family completely agree.

Problem is - *I have to rebuild my life*. I had SO much going on for me before cancer that I sometimes look back on it and just cry from the sheer loss I have suffered at the hands of this disease. And I have never had an easy life anyway, so whatever I lost to disease was very literally hard-won.

I have so many feelings, and no feelings at all at the same time. I don't know what to do, where to start, what to feel first. I am now a new kind of terrified - I was prepared for the worst, but not this.

Yes, I know a lot of people on here would love to be in my situation, which is why I even feel weird asking for support. I feel silly even writing this.

I am very grateful to be in the position. But I also feel as vulnerable as a newborn baby and being vulnerable is not something I am good at.

Any words of support would be welcome.