I like to celebrate and remember the date of my double mastectomy when I feel I was declared cancer free. I don't even like to think about the actual date I was diagnosed... the chill of those words still scares me.

In April 7th 2017 I plan to mark my 1 yr cancerversary, the surgery date of my double mastectomy. After more than a month of ultrasounds, MRIs, biopsies, although Feb 3 is when the dr. confirmed I had cancer, the nurse had called me 2 days earlier with the same info. I mark the day my life changed, when my body was changed, inside and out. It was all those days that followed where I was enveloped in the love of family and friends.I think planning for that day I will seek out ways to be that loving family member and friend, have others feel the love and support that day brought home for me.

I am right at the one year mark. It is 1 year and a few days since my diagnosis and it will be one year from my surgery on 9/24. I discovered the lump about six months before diagnosis though, so the diagnosis date, while important to me, doesn't really mean anything. It isn't the day I suddenly developed cancer and I still had cancer the day after diagnosis, I didn't start doing anything to solve my problem, we just started working on defining it. I think the 9/24 date for me is more meaningful since that is the day that I potentially got rid of all of the cancer in my body. Even that though is hard to say. I am NED right now, but I think maybe if 5 years from the 9/24 date and I am still cancer free that would be a date to really celebrate.

One's 'Cancerversary' is pretty subjective-really it's what resonates most with you. For example, in my first year, my family gave me a bouquet of flowers on the anniversary of my dx...and I was left discomfited. It just didn't sit well with me to recognize the day the Reaper took a swipe at my head. At least, that's what it felt like. Some feel strongly that this day is commemorative, in that it's the day their survivorship began, and this is legitimate, too. I chose the day I ended rads, as that was the day I could walk away knowing I had given it my best "f-u" and could walk away.

Here in Q&A, put "remission" into the search field; much will come up on this very topic. You may find some of the answers resonate well enough with you that you can pin down exactly what is to be deemed YOUR Cancerversary. 😊

((Hug))

I count the years by my bilateral mastectomy date as well. 2 years October 13th