Childhood Cancer Normal Vs. Abnormal

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Nolan Richter

Block U Medical Humanities

Dentinger

December 11, 2016

Normal vs. Abnormal: Childhood Cancer

Abstract

The diagnosis of cancer can drastically change an individual’s life. The motivation to

conduct the research necessary for this research paper was based off the interest of viewing the

changes Alexis Gould had to endure during her post cancer diagnosis. Cancer can be life

threatening and some individuals don’t survive. To gain information for this topic, and the

changes that occur both pre-and post-diagnosis, I conducted research about cancer online and

through articles. Alexis Gould was also used as a specific reference to explain the changes her

body went through during her cancer treatments, and how the diagnosis has impacted her

family’s lifestyle. The results from Alexis’ story concluded that routine hospital visits are the new

normality for the Gould family and that an improvement to chemotherapy are being considered

to improve a patient’s quality of living positively. Cancer affects individuals throughout the

family, advancements in technology have allowed for higher survival rates, and life becomes

nothing but abnormal and chaotic after cancer diagnosis.

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I. Introduction

Cancer, “a malignant tumor of potentially unlimited growth that expands locally by

invasion and systemically by metastasis” (“Cancer”), can be formed in individuals of all ages.

The treatment of cancer is very difficult for the individual diagnosed with it. Cancer and the

treatment of cancer, is very common in today’s society and, “is currently the second leading

cause of death in the United States” (“Statistics for Different Kinds of Cancer”). Many changes

occur within a household due to a diagnosis of such disease. In the case of Alexis Gould, her life

became nothing but abnormalities and complete chaos due to the prognosis of her cancer type,

neuroblastoma. Abnormal vs. normal ideas concerning the diagnosis of cancer include: the

advancement of medical technology and how certain treatments cause abnormal sicknesses,

abnormal vs. normal cell growth, and the differentiation of a family’s lifestyle both pre-and post-

cancer diagnosis.

II. Advancements in Medical Technology

Advancements in the medical field have allowed for early detection of cancer and

treatments can be conducted right away. There are many doctors that specialize with patients

diagnosed with cancer. Oncology is “the branch of medicine concerned with the study,

classification, and treatment of tumors” (“Oncology”). Cancer patients are monitored closely by

their oncologists as these are the medical professionals that give out the cancer treatments and

diagnosis. Alexis Gould had many routine doctor visits with her oncologists and they would

discuss treatment methods that would be most beneficial to her health. However, although these

professions are crucial in saving a patient’s life, they do not spend a lot of time with their

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patients. A Journal for Oncology Practice article stated, “each oncologist saw an average of 11

patients per day… Average physician-patient interaction time was 29.0 minutes” (Hamel et. al

387). Cancer treatments take up a lot of energy and can often make the patient extremely weak.

Doctors and other medical professionals don’t hover over the patient as they need as much rest as

possible. Routine check-ups and vital testing are completed throughout the day, and it’s during

this time that the doctors come in contact with the patient unless there is an emergency. Although

these medical professionals contain a lot of knowledge and power, so do the machines and

treatments they use. Technology advancements have allowed for easier and more beneficial

treatments and have made it more possible for cancer patients to survive. The most well-known

treatment for cancer is chemotherapy, “which is a drug treatment that uses powerful chemicals to

kill fast-growing cells in your body” (“Tests and Procedures”). Chemotherapy kills cancerous

cells and prevents the cancer from spreading throughout the body. Although the chemo is used

for killing the abnormal cells, it has been known to kill all other cells in the process. The

treatment process is difficult to endure but the outcome in many cases is worth it. The overall

survival rate for patients that are treated with cancer are much higher than those who go without.

As described by the Annals of Oncology, “overall survival was significantly longer in the group

of patients randomized to chemotherapy compared to those allocated to best supportive care”

(Glimelius et. al 595). All individuals faced with this disease want to overcome it and the

advancement with chemo has made that more of a possibility. It’s normal for individuals to feel

sick during chemo treatments, but this normality is not easy to endure. Emily Gould, Alexis’

mother, stated in an interview, “there have been times that I have taken my kids to school and

then Lex got sick so I had to bring her to the hospital where she stayed for almost a month”

(Gould 1). In order for Alexis to be able to hold down fluids or food, she needed to take

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medications that would ease her nausea and help her red blood cells produce preventing anemia.

Other side effects that Alexis experienced were hair loss, fatigue, appetite changes, and weight

changes. There were also many potential risks of complications and was closely monitored by

her doctors. All of this for one treatment, thus arising a question being, is this normal?

When a patient seeks out treatment from a medical professional, they do it in order to get

better. Chemotherapy does its job at reducing the tumor size and preventing the cancer from

spreading, but it doesn’t necessarily help the patient in a normal setting. Patients must undergo a

series of difficult trials and experience a large amount of pain, in hopes of being cured of a

disease that they may instead die from. It’s almost a race to see what may kill the patient faster,

the cancer or the treatment. Although chemotherapy has a lot of risks and side effects, newer

studies and ideas are being conducted to prevent this from occurring and to possibly replace