What do I say?

Some time ago, I wrote about the difficulty of knowing whether to tell people I've had cancer when I see them again after some time. I decided that we should talk about these things - part of the reason cancer is a word that scares people so much is that we don't talk about it.

I'm now at a conference, seeing people I only see once a year. Some of them know, some of them don't. So, what do I say if they ask me how I am? Well, I'm implementing my policy of openness. I'd much rather tell people myself than have the news passed in hushed voices and whispers!

But the reactions when I say, "I've had cancer"! I suppose I was once the same and avoided this issue. I'm now even more sure that we should be open in talking about cancer and how it affects us. I want people to see that it isn't the end of the world. And I hope that it may be of some help to see me and to see that I'm ok. If it makes people uncomfortable, then that's their problem, not mine. I'm not ashamed of being a cancer survivor, but some of the reactions I've had recently have suggested that people would much rather I kept my recent medical history to myself!