My name is Alina, this is my story about how I survived stage 3 stomach cancer.
I had on and off abdominal pain.
After hearing that I had stage 3 stomach (gastric) cancer, I felt quite a mix of emotions. I was frightened, nervous and worried. I felt disbelief and resentment, but also numb at times.
Post-diagnosis, I started to eat healthy every day and exercise 50% more than I used to.
I did a local resection (surgical removal of a part of the gastric wall), radiotherapy and peptide receptor radionuclide therapy (PRRT).
Unfortunately my insurance didn’t cover the PRRT fully, so I had to pay out of pocket. When I first started I felt a bit anxious, but still motivated for what came ahead.
I also relied on nutritional supplements as part of my treatment.
Thankfully, now that I’ve completed my treatments, I’ve been in remission.
The side effects that affected me the most were:
- Fatigue
- Nausea
- Vomiting
To manage them, I relied on eating better, and medication from my doctor.
I still continued healthy eating every day and kept up with exercising more than before.
I found myself spending twice as much time keeping in touch with my parents, although intimacy with my partner fell completely after my diagnosis.
With my family, we want to go on a hiking trip to the Rocky Mountains. For myself, I plan to go for a dragon boating competition with my coworkers.
My biggest aspiration is to run in the Boston marathon, and I hope to spend more quality time with my parents and partner.
My biggest worry is recurrence. To deal with it, I schedule regular checkups with my doctor to check for any signs of tumors.
Now, I feel optimistic, hopeful, thankful and more confident.
To others, I would say: “Living with cancer is a different experience for everyone. talk to your doctors and stay informed to make sure your treatment plans work for you.”
This patient's story is published and shared with their full consent. Any personal data that can be used to identify the patient has been omitted.
Click here for more information.