Surviving Cancer/Sustaining Self VI: Privilege, Care, and Support

In previous posts in this series, I described several coping strategies that sustained me throughout my prolonged treatment for acute myeloid leukemia. Here, I describe how my healing and recovery occurred in a larger context that was unusually privileged and highly favorable for my successful outcome. 

First, my employer provided excellent health insurance that covered virtually all my major expenses. My longevity in my position earned me a year of paid sick leave, covering the period from the onset of my disease to my retirement date. 

After retiring, I maintained a version of this same good health insurance and began receiving a significant pension. Thus, I had the good fortune to not have to worry about financial constraints on the decisions I made and the care I received. (My privilege should be everyone’s right in an “advanced,” industrial nation, but that’s a whole other talk show.) 

There was an interpersonal aspect that worked in my favor as well. As a highly educated, professional white male, I was taken seriously and treated respectfully by everyone I encountered. When I responded in kind, all my interactions with medical personnel were congenial and productive. This helped give me the confidence to be my own advocate. 

My self-advocacy reminded me of a friend (who is a registered nurse) who believes every hospital patient needs an advocate to represent their needs while navigating the complexities of hospital care. If they are unable to play this role themselves, a caregiver advocate should be assigned to them. 

Another positive factor was the quality of care that I received throughout my treatment within two major hospitals. There were, of course, too many forms to complete, some silly bureaucratic impediments, and some truly awful hospital food. But when it came to the important things, the care I received was superb. My doctors and nurses consistently combined skill and expertise with compassion and empathy in ways I will never forget or could ever repay. Suffice it to say, my stereotypical views of the medical profession have been forever transformed into a profound appreciation. 

Alongside that care, it would be impossible to overstate the benefits of the social support I received from my spouse, relatives, friends, neighbors, and colleagues. Through their hospital visits, phone calls, emails, get-well cards, gifts, and the key lime pie my wife and her sister smuggled into my room, I was continually reminded of how many people were pulling for me, praying for me, thinking of me, and sending me positive vibes. 

I am deeply grateful for my privileged status, excellent care, and social support. And I’m acutely aware that others without my privileges may not receive the same level of care. For me, these privileges made it much easier to implement the various coping strategies outlined in previous posts. But the inequalities of privilege are also a reminder that however much we may try to control our destiny, outcomes are always intertwined with larger forces beyond our control.