Surgery: 1,095 Real Stories
1,095 stories match surgery. 777 of them mention chemotherapy.
Colorectal Cancer: Clara’s Survivor Story
Clara Ott was 75 when she looked back on rectal cancer diagnosed at age 49 after many years of ulcerative colitis. She had been under regular medical observation since ulcerative colitis was found at age 25. When several examinations eventually showed rectal…
Read this storyBreast Cancer: Elke’s Survivor Story
Elke Ferch was 66 at the time of her interview and had first been diagnosed with breast cancer in 1991. The diagnosis came as a shock, especially because she was still a young woman and had to face losing a breast. Surgery removed her right breast and about…
Read this storyColorectal Cancer: Jan’s Survivor Story
Jan Holgersson was 59 when he reflected on colorectal cancer diagnosed at age 55. He had lived with persistent diarrhea for more than 6 months but did not take it seriously until the symptoms worsened. Hospital testing found cancer, and he initially feared…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Emil’s Patient Story
Emil Groh was 56 when he described living with end-stage rectal cancer that had spread to the lungs and liver. About 1.5 years earlier, blood in his stool and major weight loss led him to medical care. Blood tests prompted hospital admission, and colonoscopy…
Read this storyBRCA2 Breast Cancer: Heiner’s Survivor Story
Heiner Töpfer was 66 at the time of his interview. In 2011, he accidentally felt a lump in his breast and went to the gynecologist of his then partner. Ultrasound and biopsy showed a malignant tumor. A CT scan found that the tumor was locally limited, which…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Tim’s Patient Story
Tim Meier was 31 when he described living with rectal cancer that had repeatedly spread to the liver. In late 2020, depression, constant fatigue, fever episodes, and side pain led to medical testing. Ultrasound showed suspicious findings in the liver, and…
Read this storyColorectal Cancer: Rosi’s Survivor Story
Rosi Blumenthal was 75 when she described colorectal cancer that was found after a screening test for hidden blood in the stool at her gynecologist’s office. A colonoscopy followed. At first, she thought the problem might be another bowel fistula, something…
Read this storyBRCA2 Breast Cancer: Tanja’s Patient Story
Tanja Auer was 46, married, and a mother when she looked back on 2 breast cancer diagnoses. In March 2012, after feeling a lump in her breast, a biopsy confirmed breast cancer. The diagnosis felt overwhelming, but she asked for a week to think before moving…
Read this storyColorectal Cancer: Lisa’s Survivor Story
Lisa Roth was 59 when she reflected on colorectal cancer connected to Lynch syndrome, also called HNPCC. She was about 45 when the diagnosis first entered her life. One morning before work, she suddenly had intense urgency and heavy bleeding from the bowel…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Erna’s Survivor Story
Erna Hettich was 72 when she described rectal cancer in the context of a strong family history of colorectal cancer. During a vacation, she noticed blood in her stool and frequent bowel movements, even though her yearly occult-blood test had not shown…
Read this storyBreast Cancer: Silke’s Survivor Story
Silke Winter was 51 at the time of her interview and had been diagnosed with breast cancer in 2014/2015. She first noticed a soft, unusual area on the right side of her breast, but she was reassured that it did not seem worrying. Only later, after returning…
Read this storyColorectal Cancer: Holger’s Survivor Story
Holger Pfleger was 73 when he looked back on advanced rectal cancer diagnosed in 2004. Two years earlier, a screening colonoscopy had not found anything suspicious. Later he developed diarrhea and weight loss, and a second colonoscopy found a low rectal…
Read this storyBreast Cancer: Helga’s Survivor Story
Helga Dietrich was 60 when she reflected on breast cancer first diagnosed at age 41, soon after her family moved to a new city. Her 2 children were still minors, and knowing they were well cared for during treatment gave her relief. At the first diagnosis…
Read this storyStage IV Breast Cancer: Tova’s Patient Story
Tova Goldblum was 60 when she described a breast cancer diagnosis that had begun in 1992. At that time, doctors advised removal of the breast. Living in Germany far from her family, she felt very alone with the diagnosis and the treatment decisions. Lists of…
Read this storyColorectal Cancer: Klaus’s Survivor Story
Klaus Wippich was 64 when he described rectal cancer that began when he was 28. After moving to a new city, he noticed blood in his stool. He had previously thought his symptoms were hemorrhoids, but a new doctor diagnosed rectal cancer. Treatment moved…
Read this storyStage I Breast Cancer: Baerbel’s Survivor Story
Baerbel Grafenbach was 60 when early-stage breast cancer was found in late 2011 through mammography and biopsy. Her doctor described it as a non-aggressive cancer at an early stage and called it a good diagnosis. Because of that, Baerbel was able to take time…
Read this storyBreast Cancer: Nurguel’s Patient Story
Nurguel Dogan was 40, married, and the mother of 2 sons when she described breast cancer diagnosed in 2009. A lump was found during regular early-detection care, and biopsy confirmed the diagnosis. Her first worry was for her sons, who were 10 and 11…
Read this storyColorectal Cancer: Dieter’s Survivor Story
Dieter Loewe was 68 when he described rectal cancer diagnosed in 2006. He had pain during bowel movements, but an initial medical visit did not find anything abnormal. When the pain continued, his wife pushed him to seek care again. Colonoscopy found 2…
Read this storyBreast Cancer: Greta’s Survivor Story
Greta Tietze-Stein was 52 when she described breast cancer diagnosed in 2006. A breast inflammation led her to notice a palpable change and see her gynecologist. Ultrasound showed an unclear finding, followed by mammography and biopsy. Because the diagnosis…
Read this storyBreast Cancer: Marion’s Survivor Story
Marion Pfulding was 54 at the time of her interview. Because her mother had died of breast cancer more than 35 years earlier, regular early-detection care mattered to her. After moving to a new city, there was a break while she found new doctors. Once she…
Read this storyStage IV Colorectal Cancer: Lorenz’s Patient Story
Lorenz Kraus was 61 when he described sigmoid colon cancer diagnosed 3 years earlier. During a hiking holiday, he noticed unusual exhaustion and frequent bowel movements after meals. After returning home, he sought medical advice. Colonoscopy in hospital…
Read this storyBreast Cancer: Andrea’s Patient Story
Andrea Jesse was 48 when breast cancer entered her life in 2012. Her first symptom felt like muscle soreness in the right breast. Four weeks later, examination, mammography, and biopsy led to the diagnosis. Surgery happened fast: she had breast-conserving…
Read this storyBreast Cancer: Rosemarie’s Survivor Story
Rosemarie Berthel was 74 at the time of her interview and had received her breast cancer diagnosis at 71. She was widowed, the mother of 4, and already a grandmother and great-grandmother. Mammography had shown scattered abnormal cells in 2007, but she…
Read this storyColorectal Cancer: Bernhard’s Survivor Story
Bernhard Kleinstück was 76 when he described rectal cancer diagnosed more than 20 years earlier. Before the diagnosis, he worked as a teacher. His first warning signs were difficulty concentrating and heavy exhaustion that often hit him by midday. After a…
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