Ham causes cancer…and so does eggnog! 

I bought some eggnog the other day….and my kids protested. We don’t DO eggnog anymore!  Eggnog kind of signifies my cancer diagnosis to them.  Before I was diagnosed,I bought some eggnog. Shortly after I drank a glass I had severe stomach cramps. I had never in my life had a stomach ache or stomach cramps, and decided the eggnog was bad.  I asked if anyone else had had any, and grateful that they hadn’t, I disposed of it.  I had several more episodes of severe abdominal pain after that which in the end led to my cancer diagnosis.  But to them, eggnog and cancer are related, even to this day!  One of the survivors who wrote a story for my site had the same experience after eating ham, he also misdiagnosed it as food poisoning.  I wonder if others have similar stories?  At least now I get all of the eggnog to myself!

I was recently interviewed for my newspaper,they are doing a story on my non-profit and appendiceal cancer (Yeah!  We need more awareness!).  They asked a lot of questions about my cancer.  It made me remember how devastated my youngest daughter was with my diagnosis. Sure that cancer was a death sentence, she was afraid I would die.  Once she knew I had cancer (she was ten), she went to school and told all of her friends that her mom had cancer.  That day she came home ecstatic.  I asked her why.  She told me of all of her friends who had lost relatives to colon, breast, brain and ovarian cancer.  But she said “Mom, no one knew ANYONE who ever died of appendix cancer!!”.  I decided that maybe there was at least one good thing about having a rare cancer!

If I don’t post again before the holiday, I want to wish everyone a VERY Merry Christmas!!