Friends and Family,

We have fantastic news to share! Genevieve and I met with my oncologist to get my scan results, and once again, there has been no change! This may sound predictable to you, but we are stunned every time it happens. We are extraordinarily grateful!

Here is something that strikes me as odd. Sometimes I comment in a lung cancer Facebook group about one topic or another. If I mention how long I have been on Tagrisso (five and a half years, while the average is thirteen months), or I say that I am a Stage IV survivor for over thirteen years, people want to know what I have been doing to stay alive. What still surprises me is that there is only one question that they ask! Here it is:

What is my diet, and what supplements do I take?

OK, that’s two questions, but they’re really the same topic, aren’t they? The question is, what am I taking?

This is what is crazy to me: If your life depends on it, wouldn’t you want to know EVERYTHING that might help?

Perhaps they don’t ask, because it never crosses their minds that there are other things. So to help them out, I’m going to ask MYSELF these questions. Here goes:

Dann: Say Dann, why do you think you’re still alive?

DANN: I’m glad you asked, Dann! The answer is dumb luck! Lots of it!

Dann: But surely there’s more to it!

DANN: Right you are, you charming devil! There’s a BUNCH of things! Here’s a partial list of what I think helps:

  • Genevieve (Love!)

  • Loving relationships of all kinds

  • Support from all of my family and friends

  • Removing the “cancers” from your life

  • Lots of sleep

  • More dumb luck

  • Exercise!!!

  • Having a purpose and meaning in your life

  • Finding time to de-stress (meditation, exercise, a place of calm)

  • Diet

  • Dumb luck

  • Supplements and re-purposed drugs for other conditions that help fight cancer

  • Spirituality

  • Being a strong advocate for yourself

  • Attitude

  • Loving myself

  • Dumb luck

Dann: That’s a great list, Dann! Where can I read more about this?

DANN: Excellent question, Dann! There’s a great book I can highly recommend that covers all this and more! It’s called Second Wind: Thriving with Cancer. It’s well worth a look!

Dann: Anything else you’d like to add while we’re on the topic?

DANN: Once again, I’m glad you asked! I think exercise is one of the most incredible forces of nature for beating cancer! That’s why I go to the gym about 28 days a month. Get your heart rate up for at least 15-20 minutes and build up over time. Everything else is a bonus. it’s a good idea to talk with your doc first.

This post originally appeared on Dann’s Cancer Chronicles. It is republished with permission.