Hope, Humor, and Oprah

“I felt guilt, shame, I was crying...I mean when you can’t provide for your family anymore…” Those were the words of Michael, a 50-something man on today’s Oprah show who, with his wife, had to move out of their home and into what used to be their office, after their business crashed. That made me think about lung cancer. When Michael was asked by Oprah, “What would you do differently?” his answer was “Save more money.” Even though 15% of people with lung cancer never smoked, most who did or do blame themselves for getting cancer. Sure, many lung cancer patients could have chosen not to smoke, and Michael and his wife could have saved more and spent less. But when people are suffering through a crisis, I believe they deserve compassion and support. You can bet that having gone through this, Michael and his wife will watch their pennies carefully, just as those who lived through the Great Depression became forever frugal and resourceful. I applaud Oprah and Lisa Ling for their compelling work in showing the impact this recession is having on everyday human beings just like all of us. But today's show was not just frightening, it was also inspiring in the hope and humor it evoked.*** When Michael was asked, “So what’s it like living in your office?” he laughed. “You can get a lot of work done!” His wife and Oprah laughed with him. Then he added, “The only thing we truly miss is having a shower nearby. [They shower at a nearby health club.] But on the upside, going to the gym on a regular basis, I’ve lost 35 pounds!” “Well, Michael,” said Oprah, “I’d say that’s finding a silver lining.” It’s hard to find a silver lining to lung cancer, but, trite as it sounds, having been given the opportunity to make a difference in the world has created a beautiful silver lining for me. And I thank you for helping me help others. Now, can you please help us get Oprah to do a show on lung cancer, which is striking more women and never-smokers than ever before, but which remains the biggest cancer killer and least funded of all the major cancers? There's so much hope on the horizon - between the Bonnie J. Addario Foundation, the Lung Cancer Alliance, the National Lung Cancer Partnership, the Beverly Fund, and other organizations, I believe we can eradicate not only the shame and blame of lung cancer, but the disease itself. Always hope,rnLorirnwww.LoriHope.com Author of Help Me Live: 20 things people with cancer want you to know ***This is not meant to in any way minimize what people are going through, losing their jobs, their homes, and sometimes their hope. I made a documentary about homeless families, "In Search of Home..." and another about the mentally ill homeless, "Asylum in the Streets," so have seen close-up the horror of homelessness. It'srnunconscienable what individuals are having to endure, largely because of the greed of others. AND - lung cancer kills 160,000 people each year, including young men and women who never smoked or who took up the habit when they were teens.