{"id":3522,"date":"2019-03-13T17:17:58","date_gmt":"2019-03-13T17:17:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.cancerhopenetwork.org\/?p=3522"},"modified":"2023-11-13T10:51:29","modified_gmt":"2023-11-13T15:51:29","slug":"from-belly-dancers-to-bermuda-a-billboard-for-hope","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cancerhopenetwork.org\/blog\/from-belly-dancers-to-bermuda-a-billboard-for-hope\/","title":{"rendered":"From belly dancers to Bermuda: finding hope after cancer.","gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"text"}]},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Diagnosed with breast cancer nearly 40 years ago, Edna McClure is a living, breathing billboard for hope. \u201cWhen my matches hear 37 years, the conversation is pretty much done. I don\u2019t have to say much more.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After months of mis-diagnoses (\u201cLike many women back then.\u201d), she went to a new doctor with a lump that wouldn\u2019t go away. It turned out to be cancer that had metastasized to her lymph nodes. The prognosis was grim. Even with chemotherapy, another year of life was a long shot for this single mother of two.<\/p>

 The diagnosis came just three months after she\u2019d started dating her husband. She laughs, remembering. \u201cI had a girlfriend. She went up to him and said, \u201cYou know she\u2019s been diagnosed. If you\u2019re going to walk away, now is the time.\u2019 He started to cry. My husband was six foot five and weighed 300 lbs. She was this tiny thing. But she said what needed to be said. And he stuck. Years later, I was fortunate to be able to stick with him through his things. He had throat cancer on both sides of his neck. He had heart failure. We bought a year of extra time with him thanks to an LVAD (left ventricular assist device).\u201d<\/p><\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Connect<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

She worked through treatment and celebrated as life returned to normal. \u201cWhen my hair grew back, I set my wig on fire. To me that wig said that I had cancer.\u201d Her advice for patients still going through treatment flows from that experience. \u201cI tell people that when their chemo is going to be done, plan something for that day. Go somewhere. Do something. Give yourself treats.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She\u2019ll never forget the friends who\u2019ve stood by her side. During treatment, their focus was to help her \u201ckeep normal life going.\u201d It wasn\u2019t fancy, but it was meaningful. \u201cI was a single mom with two kids. I couldn\u2019t get wild and crazy. They weren\u2019t trying to fix me or pamper me. We\u2019d go to dinner, to the beach. We went to see Billy Joel. That was probably the best way she could have helped, just going out and having fun.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Until treatment is over, she\u2019s encourages patients to find the support that helped her \u2013 and the stiff upper lip that is her hallmark. \u201cYou just have to go on. You can get past this. You\u2019ll have times when you will feel really bad. Call someone. Don\u2019t sit there and suffer. If not us, call your best friend. You can pity party after you\u2019re all cured.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She came across an article about Cancer Hope Network and thought it might be a good fit. \u201cI was feeling better, it was time to give back.\u201d She attended training and was on her way to her first match \u2013 a belly dancer. \u201cWe had a great conversation on how to continue what she did for a living. I showed her my prosthesis. We talked about how she could sew some lace over it.\u201d It was an auspicious beginning to her years as a Support Volunteer. She met up with another of her matches while on vacation. \u201cWe\u2019d been matched for a while and she called to invite me to her wedding. I told her that I\u2019d be in Bermuda. Turns out, she was honeymooning in the hotel next door. I\u2019d like to have all my matches in Bermuda!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her kids are grown. \u201cI wanted to be around for them. Now, I have four grandchildren. Two live in the same town with me and the other two are close by.\u201d Her grandchildren are understandably proud of their Nana. \u201cThey understand what I\u2019ve gone through. One grandson wrote a paper about me for his confirmation at his church. He wants to become a nurse.\u201d They\u2019ve all internalized life\u2019s important lesson, \u201cWe never say no to Nana.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In the decades since her treatment, she\u2019s faced an array of complications, spending much of her time since 2015 in and out of the hospital. A hole in her colon and the infections it brought mean that she lives with an ostomy bag. It hasn\u2019t been simple, (\u201cCancer was easier!\u201d) but she hasn\u2019t let it stop her. And things are looking up, \u201cIt\u2019s been over a year since I\u2019ve been in the hospital. It\u2019s been great.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After all these years, she\u2019s reflective. \u201cIt’s been a long time. I enjoy talking to people, knowing that I\u2019m helping them, knowing I\u2019m giving them some sort of inspiration.\u201d She\u2019s ready to step up whenever someone needs it \u201cI am there as a backup when people are in an especially bad place.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition to her work as a CHN Support Volunteer, she remains a dedicated volunteer for her local hospital and The Valerie Fund\u2019s Camp Happy Times, helping people of all ages live the fullest version of their lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her focus on positive thinking is strong (she allows herself one \u201cpity party\u201d each year on St. Patrick\u2019s Day). \u201cYou have to go through it. Don\u2019t let it control you. Don\u2019t make cancer who you are. Cancer is just a disease.\u201d<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false,"gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"html"}]},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

37 years after cancer, Edna is inspiring a new generation of survivors.<\/p>\n","protected":false,"gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"html"}]},"author":23,"featured_media":8643,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[78],"tags":[107,299,62,300],"post_folder":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nFrom belly dancers to Bermuda: finding hope after cancer. - Cancer Hope Network<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Diagnosed with breast cancer nearly 40 years ago, Edna McClure is a living, breathing billboard for hope. \u201cWhen my matches hear 37 years, the conversation is pretty much done. 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