Power of Faith Amid Cancer & Loss
- “Jesus, Take The Wheel” singer Carrie Underwood, 40, took to social media this week to pay tribute to country music icon Toby Keith, who died peacefully in his home this week after a years-long battle with stomach cancer. She called the “Red Solo Cup” singer a “true blue COWBOY” and is sure he’s in heaven watching over his loved ones.
- Keith’s stomach cancer journey began in 2021. Since his diagnosis, he had undergone treatment, which included chemotherapy, radiation, surgery, and immunotherapy. Last summer, he revealed he was feeling pretty good and nearing the end of cancer treatments.
- He passed away on February 5 surrounded by his loved ones.
- “It’s important to reach out in a simple prayer to God, even if you’ve never prayed before, you don’t know what to say, a heartfelt plea, ‘God, help me, be with me,’” Pastor Evans tells SurvivorNet. “You can reach out to God, and you can reach out to people, your friends and family, and say, ‘I can’t do this on my own. I need you.’ “It’s in that willingness to be open and to receive that we can find something deeper that we never would’ve encountered without this hardship.”
- Coping with grief after the loss of a loved one, or after a diagnosis of a disease like cancer, can be helped by seeing a psychiatrist, counselor, or oncological social worker. You don’t have to suffer through your grief alone. Seek outside support when you’ve lost someone close to you.
In the wake of Keith’s passing on Monday night, Underwood took to social media to offer some reassuring words and pay tribute to her fellow country star, dubbing him a “true blue cowboy.”
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Underwood wasn’t the only musician to pay tribute to the iconic “Red Solo Cup” singer-songwriter, as country star Zach Bryan wrote on “X,” formerly Twitter, “Too many rides in my old man’s car listening to Toby Keith. Really hard thing to hear. Rest in peace friend we love you.”
Singer Dolly Parton also took to social media following news of Keith’s passing, writing on Instagram, “It’s always hard when we lose our brothers and sisters in country music.
“Toby Keith was one of the greats in every way. He will be missed but his music and legacy will live on.”
RELATED: Can Turning To Faith Help You During A Cancer Journey? Some People, And Studies, Say Yes.
Fans, friends, and loved ones took to social media to pay tribute to Keith following his passing and the statement which was shared on his Instagram announcing his death, which read, “Toby Keith passed peacefully away last night on February 5th, surrounded by his family.
“He fought his fight with grace and courage. Please respect the privacy of his family at this time.”
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Remembering Toby Keith’s Courageous Stomach Cancer Battle
Keith’s stomach cancer journey began in 2021. Since his diagnosis, he had undergone treatment, which included chemotherapy, radiation, surgery, and immunotherapy. Last summer, he revealed he was feeling pretty good and nearing the end of cancer treatments.
After his diagnosis, he stepped away from the big stage to focus on his health. After nearly two years of battling the disease, the he revealed he was “feeling pretty good” in an interview with Country Now.
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“Basically, everything is in a real positive trend. You never know with cancer, so you have to prepare,” the country singer continued.
Treatment options for stomach cancer may include surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, targeted therapy, and immunotherapy. Your care team will decide the best treatment option depending on your overall health and the maturity of the cancer.
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Keith’s treatment has involved chemotherapy and immunotherapy. Chemotherapy involves cancer-killing drugs given to patients orally or intravenously. Immunotherapy is a cancer treatment method that uses the body’s immune system to fight cancer cells. We do not know what kind of chemo or immunotherapy he received leading up to his death, but we’re inspired by the determination to fight the disease and live life to the fullest up until his passing.
Keith’s final performance was at the Park MGM Las Vegas in December.
Why Faith Offers Cancer Patients Hope
A study published in “Cancer” includes data that found “69% of cancer patients reported praying for their health” compared to “only 45% of the general U.S. population.”
Cancer psychologist Dr. Andrew Kneier helped co-author “Coping with Cancer: Ten Steps toward Emotional Well-Being.” He also co-authored a column published by Stanford Medicine with Rabbi Jeffery M. Silberman, director of spiritual care at Danbury Hospital in Connecticut.
The two add more context to the impact faith has on cancer patients.
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“A person’s faith or spirituality provides a means for coping with illness and reaching a deeper kind of inner healing.” Kneier and Silberman said.
“Coping means different things to different people: it can involve finding answers to the questions that illness raises, it can mean seeking comfort for the fears and pain that illness brings, and it can mean learning how to find a sense of direction at a time of illness. Religious teachings can help a person cope in all of these dimensions,” Kneier and Silberman continued.
WATCH: How Faith Helped a Three-Time Cancer Survivor Through her faith helped her during cancer.
New York City Presbyterian Pastor Tom Evans tells SurvivorNet about the importance of finding ways to cope with the complex web of feelings you may be experiencing after a challenging health diagnosis, such as cancer.
“It’s important to reach out in a simple prayer to God, even if you’ve never prayed before, you don’t know what to say, a heartfelt plea, ‘God, help me, be with me,’” Pastor Evans told SurvivorNet.
“You can reach out to God, and you can reach out to people, your friends and family, and say, ‘I can’t do this on my own. I need you.’ “It’s in that willingness to be open and to receive that we can find something deeper that we never would’ve encountered without this hardship,” Evans continued.
WATCH: Turning to Faith During a Cancer Journey.
The Power of Prayer
Prayer can be a powerful tool following a cancer diagnosis. According to a 2015 National Health Interview Survey, 69% of cancer patients reported praying for their health compared to 45% of the general United States population.
MORE: Cancer Survivor Monica Layton Shares How Church Was Her Biggest Support System
There’s even research that suggests faith plays an important role for patients and their loved ones when deciding on a treatment path.
Researchers for a study published by the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s Journal of Clinical Oncology interviewed 100 patients with advanced lung cancer, their caregivers and 257 medical oncologists. They asked the participants to rank how certain factors influenced treatment decisions.
Those factors included the cancer doctor’s recommendation, faith in God, the ability of treatment to cure the disease, side effects, a family doctor’s recommendation, a spouse’s recommendation and their children’s recommendation. And the results revealed that although all groups ranked the oncologist’s recommendation as most important, patients and caregivers ranked faith in God second while physicians ranked it last.
Another study even suggests there’s a link between prayer and life expectancy. Research published in The Journal of Medicine and Life suggests that “religious beliefs and religion belongings can be a real relief and can have an excellent effect on the future of the patients” and there is “a significant relationship between praying and life expectancy.”
The researchers say that “patients can overcome their illness through praying, and they can also triumph cancer through self-confidence and control it, by getting more knowledge of their disease and become more hopeful about their future.”
Coping with Grief
Grief is known to “come in waves,” and never fully leave you, after a loved one has died. To grieve is to have fully loved someone, and that’s a beautiful thing but the process of grief, can be full of missing, longing, and sadness.
Coping with grief after the loss of a loved one, or after a diagnosis of a disease like cancer, can be helped by seeing a psychiatrist, counselor, or oncological social worker. You don’t have to suffer through your grief alone. Seek outside support when you’ve lost someone close to you.
Dealing With Grief After a Cancer Diagnosis
Contributing: SurvivorNet
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