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Cancer Care Chronicles
September 5, 2024

Persons With Cancer Rather Than Cancer Patients—Semantics Matter

Author Affiliations
  • 1Division of Medical Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital, Bacolod City, Philippines
  • 2Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Medicine, University of St La Salle, Bacolod City, Philippines
JAMA Oncol. 2024;10(11):1499-1500. doi:10.1001/jamaoncol.2024.3642

“Doctor, I’m not really comfortable every time you do your rounds with your interns and residents and I hear them discussing things about me as if I am a study material rather than a human being. I hear them say ‘Bed XX’ or ‘Case XX,’ and some young doctors refer to me as ‘The Lung Cancer Lady,’” said Annabelle, a patient with metastatic lung cancer who came into the oncology clinic for her maintenance immunotherapy. “It’s painful to hear them refer to us as if we’re living cancers and not living people. I hope you can do something about this,” she added.

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1 Comment for this article
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personal perspective as a cancer patient
Ronald Louie, MD | Univ of WA
My career was in pediatric oncology, and included time doing marrow transplant, eventually leading a clinic at a children's hospital. I used to jokingly call myself "The Chief Poisoner," and published something about that.

I am now a cancer patient myself, hepatocellular carcinoma, being treated by liver cancer gastroenterology and interventional radiology with a goal toward liver transplant. I suppose they might call in oncologists if they think a checkpoint inhibitor regimen would be helpful.

The point is, I am treated with respect whatever they call me. I'm sure it's no different for non-medical liver
cancer patients. Just as the labels and categories of treating "providers" (those even allowed to order chemotherapy, another label that rankles some people) have changed , the important thing is to get the job done in a humane way. But certain labels are utilitarian, especially at the end of life, care that we used to provide before hospice was available.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST: None Reported
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