I like to have fun with telling people I have cancer, it's just part of my sick sense of humor. "I'm dancing with the devil." "I'm tumorific! "I gots me a fatal disease." (ok, that one may be a bit morbid) One of my favorite t-shirts says "Hug me! I'm not contagious, it's just cancer." "I'm fighting." "I'm struggling." "I'm battling." "I've got a REALLY bad case of the flu." "I'm a true Lamazza." (that one needs a little explination to those of you not in my family. You see, in my lifetime alone, my mother's family, the Lamazzas, have lost 4 people to cancer)
Of course everyone is different, but I think it's ok to empower the cancer. The truth of the matter is that the cancer does have power, lots and lots of power. BUT...what we do, how we do it, exerts even greater power. Knowing your enemy gives you more strength to fight it.
The other thing I've noticed is that my loved ones feel a greater need to use language to asuage themselves. They are the ones that need to differentiate between a "patient' and a "survivor". Personally, I know what I am, and what I'm doing. I don't care if it's called "not-so-bad-happy-smiley-day disease", I know what's going on.
What I've found very interesting as well is the log list of euphamisms that my friends and I have come up with for vomiting.
Billy