まいど、前立腺がんと戦うニッチャラです。
みなさん、5yearsというサイトをご存知ですか？
5yearsは「日本最大級のがん経験者コミュニティ」で、様々ながんの患者さんやそのご家族などがそれぞれの経験をシェアしあえる交流サイトです。
私は前立腺がんが分かって色々と情報収集している頃に、このサイトをみつけ登録していました。
今回こちらのサイトが5周年記念のオフ会を開催するということで、ニッチャラも行ってきました
会場は東京プリンスホテル
立派な会場です。
大きな丸テーブルが会場内に配置され、ビュッフェ形式の食事も用意されていましたよ。みなさんとお話したり、写真撮影したりでゆっくり食事するという感じではなかったですけどね
参加者はざっと90人ほど、本当に様々ながんの患者さん、元患者さんが大勢いました。
8割くらいは女性の方かな～。男性は少数派、女性はみなさん積極的です
私が着席したのは、こちらのテーブル。
なんとこのブログの読者さんにもお会いしました
代表の方のご挨拶に始まり、参加者全員が前で1人30秒の自己紹介をしました。
いやー、本当にがんの種類によって、体験されたこと、ご苦労されたこと、当たり前ですけど全くちゃいますね…
部位によっては放射線の副作用の影響が大きく、治療後の生活がとても大変になられた方もいました。病気って比較するものでは決してないですが、今自分が置かれている状況はまだまだ幸せやな、頑張らなあかんな～と思った次第です。
そして、この日のメインイベントはクリスタルの贈呈式です。
「がん」から○年を生きたお祝いの品として5years事務局から○年と刻まれた「クリスタル」がプレゼントされるのでした。素敵な計らいですよね
こんな風にリアルに同じ病気で戦っている方々とお話したり、情報交換できるのはええねー。
前立腺がんオフ会もいつか開催してもええかもな
ほな！
リコピン人参パウダーにご興味ある方はこちらから
English version
[33] 5years Offline Event
Hello, I am Nichara, fighting Prostate Cancer patient.
Hey everyone, are you familiar with 5years website?
5years is the "largest cancer survivor community in Japan," where patients and their families can share their experiences on various types of cancer.
With over 21,368 registered members, 5years is Japan's largest cancer survivor community. It serves as a platform for patients and families to address various issues related to cancer and is one of the support activities operated by the nonprofit organization 5years.
I found and registered on this site when I was gathering information about prostate cancer.
This time, they organized an offline event to celebrate their 5th anniversary, so I also attended.
The venue was the Tokyo Prince Hotel, quite an impressive place. There were large round tables set up inside, and buffet-style meals were available. Although it wasn't exactly a leisurely meal with chatting and photo-taking with everyone, it was still a great experience.
Roughly about 90 folks showed up, and man, there was a real mix of cancer patients and survivors.
I'd say about 80% were women. Guys were definitely in the minority, but the ladies were all pretty outgoing.
I sat down at this table, and guess what? I even bumped into some readers of this blog!
The event kicked off with a greeting from the organizers, followed by each participant getting up and giving a 30-second introduction.
Man, it's really something how experiences and struggles vary depending on the type of cancer, huh? It's obvious, but it hits you differently when you hear it firsthand...
Some folks really bore the brunt of radiation side effects, making life after treatment incredibly tough. Illness is never something you want to compare, but it definitely puts things in perspective. Makes you think, "I'm still lucky where I'm at. Gotta keep pushing through."
And then, the main event of the day was the crystal award ceremony. As a celebration of living "X" years after cancer diagnosis, the 5years organization presented each individual with a crystal engraved with the number of years survived. Such a thoughtful gesture, don't you think?
It's really great being able to chat with and exchange information with others battling the same illness in real life like this.
Maybe someday we'll have a prostate cancer meetup too. That could be really nice.
Well then!