This does not make any sense...not to me.

[harker]

Can someone please explain this to me: "When he was advised in June that the cancer was incurable, Courtenay discontinued further treatment and dedicated his last book to his doctor, Koroush Haghighi." (News.com.au) Well, that is pretty clear. So far so good. This well known person decided to cease treatment. But then: "Author Bryce Courtenay loses cancer battle, aged 79" (The Age) If he has decided to refuse further treatment why are people saying he has lost something? I am so sick of the crap about battling cancer. It is really insulting. I want it on the record here that although I have not read one of his books I salute Bryce Courtenay for his acceptance of his life ending the way it did. He was not losing a battle in any sense of the word. He was ending life with a lot of dignity, clearly at peace. Well done, Bryce Courtenay. It get right up my nose that the mindless media machine can only deal with celebrity cancer deaths using the battle metaphor, even when it flies in the face of the facts. He chose to stop treatment. He won that battle. He didn't lose it. H

[SILLY]

I have read some of his books and enjoyed them immensely. I always hated the battling cancer terminology too ,years before I got cancer . It's never been a battle to me ,more of a struggle putting up with it's effects . I can't understand how that battle analogy caught on . It's so over-used ,as is the word "basically". People just seem to copy the "in" word or phrase ,but they're often wrongly used .

[little_stitcher]

I understand your indignation. The terminology also buys into the popular notion that death is a defeat, instead of something that will happen to everyone, regardless of whether or not they have cancer. I've never heard of anyone 'losing a battle' to heart failure, or Alzheimer's disease, so I wonder why cancer is seen as different?

[exhausted]

I am with you Harker.

[samex]

As usual Harker - right on the money. S

[Jules2]

I have read a few of Bryce Coutenay's book and thoroughly enjoyed them. ALthough enjoyment isn't probably the correct word for one of the books. Harker, I think people are simply at a loss when it comes to cancer. They can't bear to think of how it might be for those that are diagnosed so they glorify it with terminology such as "battle". Cancer is not the only thing that this happens to. For instance in the past there were massacres that occurred between australian indigenous people and they glorified that with exactly the same terminology "battle of blah blah". Julie

[harker]

That's true, isn't it. They are both euphemisms designed to cloud reality. H

[Sailor]

If any one uses the 'battle' metaphor about me when I am no longer here, I have said I will come back and haunt them! I don't mind the journey metaphor in the sense of Frost's 'The Road not Taken', otherwise I don't like that either. Cheers Sailor I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I, I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference. Robert Frost

[Jules2]

Mr Frost has got it in one, hasn't he?

[SILLY]

I've never used the word "journey" with regard to cancer ,maybe because is is too often used . I prefer to go on a journey by choice and expect it to be a happy experience . I just live with it or through it ,not original either but it's how it is to me and for me .