More than 2500 breast cancer patients have passed through Dr. S. David Nathanson’s operating rooms over the course of his 40-year career. Though science cannot explain it, Dr. Nathanson, one of America’s Top Oncologists, says intangible traits like courage, persistence, faith and hope have proven essential prescriptions in the treatment process. Without over-the-counter answers to the emotional struggles that accompany a breast cancer diagnosis, how do patients find strength within to survive?
Inspired by one of his own patients, Dr. Nathanson has made the emotional and physical experiences of his breast cancer survivors available to more than just the patients moving through his office. In his new book, Ordinary Miracles: Learning from Breast Cancer Survivors (Hardcover, Praeger Publishers, May 2007), 71 survivors, including one man, share their personal accounts, from diagnosis to recovery, providing empowerment through information to other patients. The personal stories recount the stages of recovery, starting with the despair and fear felt at diagnosis, to the faith and inner-strength each patient draws upon as they receive treatment.
While extraordinary survival stories like Lance Armstrong’s receive much media attention, Dr. Nathanson says it’s equally important for the everyday cancer survivor to share their story. He calls each breast cancer survivor an “ordinary miracle,” and hopes the survival stories told in the book offer inspiration to other everyday, regular people facing cancer. As many as one in eight people will develop breast cancer and 40,000 will die from the disease this year.
“One of the most important keys to survival is hope, which can be found in the stories shared by survivors,” says Dr. Nathanson, the Director of Breast Care Services in the Department of Surgery at Henry Ford Health System.
Dr. Nathanson also says the book is a portrait of the major breakthroughs in the way doctors interact with their patients. While years ago, medical students were instructed to be silent doctors, relying on patients’ trust, today’s interactive patient-doctor relationship allows patients significant decisions and input in the treatment process.
“Reduction of breast cancer incidence requires dietary and lifestyle changes. Maintain a well-balanced, calorie-appropriate diet low in fat and refined sugars and drink alcohol sparingly. Chose food and beverages with less pesticides and exercise every day.”
“Carefully weigh the advantages of having your first child before age 25. Also consider prolonged suppression of the menstrual cycle by modern birth control measures. If you are at high risk for breast cancer, it’s a good idea to take an estrogen blocking drug.”