Cancer survivors

Overview
Cancer survivors are those individuals with cancer of any type, current or past, who are still living. The National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship (NCCS) pioneered the definition of survivor as from the time of diagnosis and for the balance of life, a person diagnosed with cancer is a survivor. This expansive definition of "survivor" includes people who are dying from untreatable cancer. NCCS later expanded the definition of survivor even further to include family, friends and caregivers who are affected by the diagnosis in any way.

The National Cancer Institute's Office of Cancer Survivorship uses a variant of this expanded definition, which is sometimes ridiculed for the potential to abuse its inclusiveness: "I got cancer, and the government now says every person in my whole neighborhood is a so-called cancer survivor."  Oddly, cancer is the only disease in which friends and neighbors are officially encouraged to use language with the potential to misidentify themselves as having personally been diagnosed with the disease instead of being a voluntary caregiver. This is essentially unknown among people with similarly devastating diseases, such as AIDS, Alzheimer's, or heart disease.

Many cancer survivors describe the process of living with and beating cancer as a life-changing experience. It is not uncommon for this experience to bring about a personal epiphany, which the person uses as motivation to meet goals of great personal importance, such as climbing a mountain or reconciling with an estranged family member.

Prominent cancer survivors

 * Lance Armstrong, cyclist, winner of the Tour de France
 * David M. Bailey, singer/songwriter
 * Sheryl Crow, Grammy-winning singer
 * Cot Deal, major league baseball player and coach
 * Barbara Delinsky, writer
 * Hacksaw Jim Duggan, professional wrestler
 * Melissa Etheridge, Grammy-winning singer
 * Farrah Fawcett, actress (Charlie's Angels)
 * Peggy Fleming, Olympic gold-medal winning figure skater
 * Andrés Galarraga, major league baseball player
 * Ruth Bader Ginsburg, second woman appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court
 * Tom Green, comedian
 * Scott Hamilton, Olympic gold-medal winning figure skater
 * Mario Lemieux, professional hockey player and part-owner of the Pittsburgh Penguins
 * Mike Lowell, major league baseball player
 * Tucker L. Melancon, United States Judge, Western District of Louisiana, 5th Circuit
 * Andrew McMahon, vocalist, pianist and songwriter for Something Corporate
 * Kylie Minogue, popstar and actress
 * Olivia Newton-John, actress
 * Sandra Day O'Connor, first woman appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court
 * Sharon Osbourne, TV Personality
 * Arnold Palmer, professional golfer, winner of 92 professional titles
 * Nancy Reagan, First Lady of the United States
 * Seven Summits, motivational speaker
 * Sean Swarner, mountain climber, two-time cancer survivor, climbed Everest and the Seven Summits

Related chapters

 * Psycho-oncology

Resources

 * Cancer Survivors Online
 * National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship
 * People Living With Cancer
 * People Living Through Cancer
 * Cancer Survivorship Message Board

Famous cancer survivors (external links)
 * Tony and Me, A Story of Friendship. By Jack Klugman
 * Jack Klugman's Blog