Yannick Buccella, Gastrointestinal and Molecular Oncologist at City Hospital Zurich, shared on X:
“A patient told me today something very touching: she can spot other cancer patients in the street.
Not by the obvious signs, she said she usually knows before any of that. She described it as recognising something in the way a person stands in a queue, looks at other people or moves through the crowd.
And when two of them notice each other, she said, there’s a half-second of eye contact that means: I know. You don’t have to explain. I found this genuinely moving, because it’s something I can’t give my patients.
I can explain their tumor, the genetic profile of the cancer cells, the treatment or the scan. I cannot say “I know.” The one thing I can’t prescribe is being understood by someone who has been there.
There’s a quiet loneliness in this disease that has nothing to do with being alone.
You’re surrounded by people who love you and are frightened for you, which means you end up managing their fear alongside your own. You of all people become the person reassuring everyone else.
If you’re a patient reading this: that recognition is real, and it’s worth seeking out rather than waiting for.
Support groups, patient organisations, the person two chairs over during your infusion.
People are often reluctant, because joining feels like accepting a membership you never wanted.
But it is the one form of help where everybody can relate. Useful tools and tricks, understanding, experience or just another pair of ears: it’s worth it!”
Other articles from Yannick Buccella on OncoDaily.