Mentality is the driving force behind a patient with advanced breast cancer’s 25-year battle with death!

The anti-cancer journey of 76-year-old Mr. Gu and his wife (Ms. Gao) who suffers from advanced breast cancer has made more and more people believe in love, and has also made more people believe that love can create miracles!

A life-changing diagnosis

In 1996, 51-year-old Ms. Gao was diagnosed with advanced breast cancer. The doctor said, "You can live for three years at most." Ms. Gao's life began to count down.

Ms. Gao was the head of a teaching and research department at a university. She devoted herself to teaching and often felt exhausted. Before she was diagnosed with breast cancer, she participated in a three-month teaching program in a border area. After returning to Liaoning, she was diagnosed with breast cancer during a physical examination, and it was already in the late stage.

The above chart is based on the patient's condition (51 years old, female, breast cancer), and the patient survival rate at different T stages of the tumor was found on AiChaCha Cancer Think Tank (www.51100fen.com).

A small T stage indicates a small tumor and/or a small number of tumors, a good treatment effect, and a good prognosis. Tx indicates that the T stage is unknown, and T0 indicates that no tumor is found. TNM staging can be divided into clinical TNM staging (CTNM staging) and pathological TNM staging (PTNM staging). Clinical TNM staging is the judgment made by doctors after diagnosis and before treatment based on imaging, laboratory tests, and biopsies. Pathological TNM staging is based on tumor resection specimens, and the latter is more valuable than the former in guiding treatment and assessing prognosis. However, only patients who undergo surgical treatment have pathological TNM staging. This figure is a comprehensive result of clinical T staging and pathological T staging.

It is important for patients or their families to know the definition of this staging in order to understand the severity of the disease.

The above chart is based on the patient's condition (51 years old, female, breast cancer), and the patient survival rate at different N stages of the tumor was found on AiChaCha Cancer Think Tank (www.51100fen.com).

The smaller the N stage, the closer and/or fewer regional lymph node metastases, the better the treatment effect and the better the prognosis. No means no lymph node metastasis is found, and NX means the status of lymph node metastasis is unknown.

The above chart is based on the patient's condition (51 years old, female, breast cancer), and the patient survival rate at different M stages of the tumor was found on Aichacha Cancer Think Tank (www.51100fen.com).

The smaller the M stage, the smaller and/or fewer distant metastases, the better the treatment effect and the better the prognosis. M0 indicates that no distant metastasis is found, and MX indicates that the distant metastasis is unknown.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women. Teachers who work with their brains like Ms. Gao are at high risk of breast cancer because of long-term mental stress and irregular work and rest schedules. With the development of medical technology, the five-year survival rate of most breast cancers can reach 90%. Distant metastasis and local recurrence are very likely to occur. If diagnosed late, the five-year survival rate is only 14%. Unfortunately, Ms. Gao found out too late.

During the long three-year chemotherapy period, Ms. Gao was tortured to the point of collapse and exhaustion after each surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy, which made her "live like a living creature". Her husband, Mr. Gu, could not bear to see his wife pass away in such a regretful way, so he took Ms. Gao on a global tour and embarked on an "anti-cancer journey".

Racing against cancer, the continuation of life cannot be separated from warm love and companionship

At the beginning of the trip, Ms. Gao was in a bad mental state and her walking was unsteady. At each scenic spot, she could only be helped out of the car by her husband to take a look. But as she visited more and more places, Ms. Gao gradually forgot about her illness. With the company of others, she was able to sing and laugh happily, forgetting that she was still suffering from cancer. It also allowed her to enjoy the beauty of life comfortably.

Looking at his lover's smile, Mr. Gu was extremely relieved. To him, love is not just about staying by your bedside, but also about the joy and smile in your companionship.

During these twenty years, Ms. Gao has participated in countless trips, written four travel books, and is still alive. Generally speaking, cancer has not recurred for more than five years, and even if it is clinically cured, she is full of hope for the future: "I am 74 years old. If I don't die in another two years, I will reach the national average life expectancy. I am no longer afraid of death." She and Mr. Gu will continue to travel.

The key to fighting cancer is mentality

A terminally ill patient who was given an ultimatum miraculously survived for 25 years. The key to successful anti-cancer treatment lies in the mentality. Cheng Shujun, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and an oncologist, once pointed out: "The unique way to prevent and treat cancer is to maintain a good mentality. The more angry, sad, and fearful you are, the more opportunities you give cancer cells." A good mentality to coexist with cancer cannot only consider surgery and medication to kill cancer cells, but also intervene in the patient's diet, lifestyle, mentality, etc. Otherwise, if the patient's body and mind collapse, treatment will be very difficult.

Of course, a good attitude alone cannot completely cure cancer. If no treatment is given after cancer is diagnosed, the possibility of self-healing is very small. Dr. Liu Peng from the Department of Oncology, Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences pointed out: Strictly speaking, except for misdiagnosis, the incidence of self-healing of cancer is extremely low. However, a positive attitude is very important for cancer patients, because positive patients will cooperate more with the doctor's treatment, strive to maximize the efficacy and minimize adverse reactions. Therefore, cancer patients can walk more easily on the road to fighting cancer if they have a good attitude.

We all thought that there were too many important things in life, but in the end we found that nothing is more important than companionship. From the ordinary love of Mr. Gu and Ms. Gao, I understand the best meaning of "cherishing". Even if you can only accompany me for a while, I am willing to accompany you for the rest of my life. Since life is destined to be a farewell, I dare not ask for the future, but only for your company now.

Attitude comes first. No matter where you go, I will stick with you till the end.