A cancer diagnosis can stop you in your tracks and turn your world upside down. For many, you’re faced with the unknown and battling an invisible enemy. While a cancer journey looks different for each patient, the feeling and relief that comes from hearing “you’re cancer-free,” is a remarkable feeling for any cancer patient.
For John Longbottom, 75, a musician from Etowah, “cancer-free” is not something he envisioned as part of his journey. Less than a month after moving to Henderson County from Florida in 2019, Longbottom found himself in a South Carolina hospital without a pulse for nearly 10 minutes. When he regained consciousness, he was told he had inoperable stage four lung cancer. John came to Pardee UNC Health Care for a second opinion and was told his cancer was in fact not as advanced as he thought and was given a treatment plan.
“I went from thinking I was going to die soon, to being told I could beat this,” Longbottom said. Following an aggressive treatment plan that consisted of six weeks of chemotherapy and six weeks of radiation therapy, five days a week, Longbottom was told he was cancer-free.
With nearly 17 million people living with and beyond cancer in the U.S. today – and more than 43 million cancer survivors worldwide – everyone knows someone whose life has been touched by cancer. National Cancer Survivors Day is celebrated each year on June 5 as a way to honor cancer survivors, raise awareness of the ongoing challenges cancer survivors face, and celebrate life.
Longbottom said a friend described being cancer-free to him as a gift wrapped in barbed wire. “It feels great, but at the same time you do feel like you’re living under a shadow,” Longbottom said. “The waiting is hard and there is always the fear that it could return, so I take it one day at a time.” Longbottom recognized that there have been enormous strides in cancer care and treatment over the last several years and that it’s important to “trust your oncologist, do the treatments, and don’t give up on your life.”
Longbottom recounted the time that he spent at Pardee Cancer Center with amazement. “I was astounded by the way I was treated by each person at Pardee; I felt special,” he said. “You walk in full of fear, and you’re treated in such a way that you feel better and confident that they’re going to do the very best they can.”
Pardee UNC Health Care has a comprehensive cancer center, providing services patients will need during a cancer journey – all under one roof. In addition to diagnosing and treating specific types of cancer, Pardee has a seasoned and highly skilled support team guide every step of the process. To learn more about cancer care at Pardee, visit www.pardeehospital.org/care-treatment/cancer/
