Read Every Second Counts Online
Authors: Lance Armstrong
Tags: #Health & Fitness, #Diseases, #Cancer, #Sports & Recreation, #Sports, #Biography & Autobiography, #Cycling
Over the next few days, I skipped every invitation, every interview, and every adventure. This time, unlike any other Tour victory, I just stayed home. I played with my children, and took them to the beach. We bought a new barbecue grill, and cooked outside in the garden and listened to Bob Marley. I perfected my frozen-margarita-making skills. I thought about seeing the Amalfi coast in
Italy
, for pleasure. For once, I didn’t think about racing.
Another finish line is out there, somewhere. But I don’t really want to find it—yet.
Afterword
I’ve said it many times before—if I had to choose between winning the Tour de France
or
having cancer, I’d choose cancer. I consider myself lucky for the experience, and because of that I feel a strong commitment to fulfill the “obligation of the cured.” That’s why I created the Lance Armstrong Foundation (LAF). The LAF is dedicated to helping the
nine million
cancer survivors who are dealing with all the same issues I am.
Today, seven years after my cancer diagnosis, the LAF is just as important to me as the day I signed it into existence. Cancer changed my life. From the moment I was diagnosed, priorities changed and focus shifted. I had lots of new challenges to meet—physically, psychologically, and socially. That is why the LAF is dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for those living with, through, and beyond cancer. Life after cancer is all about living, and the LAF wants to help make sure cancer survivors and their loved ones experience the highest quality of life possible.
Thanks to advances in medicine and science, we’ve come to a time where the odds in favor of living long past a cancer diagnosis are increasingly brighter. Unfortunately, most programs fail to recognize the particular needs of cancer survivors beyond diagnosis and treatment. I know firsthand how relevant and important these issues are, and I consider myself very fortunate to have had access to so many experts and resources to help me make informed decisions about my life after my diagnosis. The LAF works hard to create this same level of access for all cancer survivors and help fill that void in survivorship services and information.
For me, there were four things that really helped me face the ongoing challenges of cancer: knowledge, support, motivation, and hope. I want to extend these four gifts to all cancer survivors, so they too can face head-on the life changes that cancer brings. The LAF works to achieve this by providing education about the immediate and long-term challenges of managing cancer.
The LAF promotes the optimal physical, psychological, and social recovery and care of cancer survivors. We do the same for their loved ones. We focus our efforts in four areas: survivorship education and resources, community programs, national advocacy initiatives, and scientific and clinical research grants. We educate cancer survivors, healthcare professionals, and the general public about cancer survivorship issues; aid in the development of services and support for survivors; address health-policy issues to increase services for cancer survivors; and support research for a better understanding of cancer and cancer survivorship.
I’m thrilled by the success that the LAF continues to exhibit. Since I created the Foundation in 1997, it has raised more than $23 million in funding for cancer survivorship programs and grants. Our revenues have grown from less than $250,000 in 1997 to more than $7 million in 2002. In that time, we have invested our resources in many innovative cancer survivorship programs, grants, and mission-related activities and helped countless cancer survivors and their loved ones.
I invite you to join us in our important mission—enhancing the quality of life for those living with, through, and beyond cancer. With your help, we’ll continue to make a difference for cancer survivors and to awaken the spirit of hope in all of us. There are a lot of ways that you can help: volunteering, joining our Peloton Project, donating, or raising awareness. For more information, please call the Lance Armstrong Foundation at (512) 236–8820, or visit
www.laf.org
. Thanks for your support.
Also by Lance Armstrong
with Sally Jenkins
It’s Not
About the Bike:
My
Journey Back to Life
Copyright © 2003 by Lance Armstrong.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the publisher. For information, address Broadway Books, a division of Random House, Inc.
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Armstrong, Lance.
Every second counts / Lance Armstrong with Sally Jenkins.—1st ed.
p. cm.
1. Armstrong, Lance. 2. Cyclists—
United States
—Biography. 3. Cancer—Patients—
United States
—Biography. I. Jenkins, Sally. II. Title.
GV1051.A77A3 2003b
796.6'2'092—dc22
[B] 2003055580
eISBN
0-7679-1714-6
v1.0