THE SCENT OF WORDS “In illness words give out their scent… if at last we grasp the meaning, it is all richer for having come to us…” Virginia Woolf On Being Ill (1930)

One of the things I’ve heard many patients speak about is how their diagnosis resulted in what felt like an identity crisis—it seemed to change “who they were” nearly instantly, and in a very fundamental way.

As the year 2017 is coming to a close and a new year is approaching I find myself thinking about what has passed and what’s to come.

  Each month I receive an online newsletter from “Cancer.Net”.  The newsletter provides approved information to help patients and families make informed healthcare decisions. A recent issue titled “What is Tumor Board?” catapulted me back in time.

  A colleague recently forwarded a New York Times article, “The Appointment Ends. Now The Patient is Listening.” The author Paula Span notes new efforts to help patients understand their health status by recording appointments.