04. PTC: Cancer Life Phases

It can be scary knowing that you are at an increased risk of developing cancer. By making healthy lifestyle choices now and into the future, you are doing everything you can to protect your health. It is important to know that even if you have several risk factors, it does not mean that you will get cancer for sure. Some people who get cancer may have few or no risks that they know of! Make the appropriate life changes below to limit your risk, and be sure to see your doctor regularly.

Moving forward

Once you LEARN about the higher risk of cancer in organ transplant patients and can LOOK for the signs that give early warning to cancer types common to your type of organ transplant, it's time to face and understand how to LIVE through the life cycle of cancer.  That will include PREVENTION, DIAGNOSIS, TREATMENT options and finally living through long term RECOVERY, hopefully cancer-free.

On a personal note:

As the concept designer and implementation webmaster for this TRIO sponsored Post-transplant Cancer website resource, I am driven by my personal life challenges with cancer in the many years since a life-saving heart transplant way back on October 19th of 1994 (now in 2020, some 26 years of active living).  Those cancer challenges include prostate cancer in 2000, many skin cancers over those years, and kidney cancer in 2012.  Treatments have included radiation, kidney surgery, Mohs surgery to name a few, all successful to date with early detection and great medical team support as the key elements for that long-term success.  I hope with this risk awareness educational website resource, you too will stay vigilant and enjoy the same surviving (thriving!) active life that I have been blessed with these many years. I welcome your comments and questions by writing to GleasonJim@aol.com.  Now, I invite you to go and learn about the LIFE Phases of living with cancer risk after your own life-saving organ transplant.

With early detection and treatment, most cancers today have excellent treatment results.  Read through the following topics to build a better understanding of how to face and deal successfully with cancers you may be faced with given your particular type of organ transplant and the most common forms of cancer for that type.