--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When my mom was first diagnosed with…" description: "\"“When my mom was first diagnosed with cancer, I learned the word \"malignant\" and heard the word \"spread\" and knew the word \"hope\" was a mirage, a fanta..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/beb/matt-blackstone-75271_bad-jokes_when-my-mom-was-first-diagnosed-with-can_1815333.jpg" --- # When my mom was first diagnosed with cancer, I learned the… ![“When my mom was first diagnosed with cancer, I learned the word "malignant" and heard the word "spread" and knew the word "hope" was a mirage, a fantasy that would only make things worse. But then I learned the word "remission," and the doctors loosened their ties, cracked bad jokes (said her…” quote by Matt Blackstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/beb/matt-blackstone-75271_bad-jokes_when-my-mom-was-first-diagnosed-with-can_1815333.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/beb/matt-blackstone-75271_bad-jokes_when-my-mom-was-first-diagnosed-with-can_1815333.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/beb/matt-blackstone-75271_bad-jokes_when-my-mom-was-first-diagnosed-with-can_1815333.jpg) > ““When my mom was first diagnosed with cancer, I learned the word "malignant" and heard the word "spread" and knew the word "hope" was a mirage, a fantasy that would only make things worse. But then I learned the word "remission," and the doctors loosened their ties, cracked bad jokes (said her blood type was B-positive, so we should be optimistic, too), and they increased the odds of her survival to fifty-fifty, like she was something to wager on in Vegas. I slept well and ate well and celebrated on the inside. My kidneys shook pom-poms, my liver did an Irish jig, my small intestines did the worm. The future was bright with a likely chance of sunshine--and then it was over.”” [Matt Blackstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-blackstone/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Hope can feel false during illness, but remission offers a realistic chance that can restore optimism and improve wellbeing. **In simple terms:** Remission revives hope. Key Takeaway Focus on tangible progress, not false hope. Themes illness hope remission Mood hopeful reflective Type inspirational personal When to use this quote - patient support groups - clinical communication - psychological counseling - family discussions Key Concepts Coping mechanisms medical optimism Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance realistic expectations with optimism? - What role does humor play in coping? A Different Perspective Remission may be temporary; hope can still be fragile. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bad jokes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-jokes/) [Blood type](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blood-type/) [Cancer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cancer/) [Cancer Learned](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cancer-learned-2149332/) [Diagnosed Cancer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/diagnosed-cancer-295859/) [Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hope/) [Luck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/luck/) [Malignant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/malignant/) [Malignant Heard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/malignant-heard-2149334/) [Word Malignant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/word-malignant-2149333/) ## Related quotes > [I don't live in the city, I don't work in a high-risk environment, and I am not a smoker. So it was never anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-reeve/i-don-t-live-in-the-city-i-don-t-work-in-a-high-risk-environment-and/) [Dana Reeve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-reeve/) > [As someone who has had cancer, I learned that you don't have to die. Look at me. Because of early detection, I'm fine. I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-jackson/as-someone-who-has-had-cancer-i-learned-that-you-don-t-have-to-die/) [Kate Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-jackson/) > [Viewed from the summit of reason, all life looks like a malignant disease and the world like a madhouse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/viewed-from-the-summit-of-reason-all-life-looks-like-a-malignant/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Words are most malignant, the most treacherous possession of mankind. They are saturated with the sorrows of all time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-sullivan/words-are-most-malignant-the-most-treacherous-possession-of-mankind/) [Louis Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-sullivan/) > [“There is no such source and cause of strife, quarrel, fights, malignant opposition, persecution, and war, and all evil in the state, as religion.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-is-no-such-source-and-cause-of-strife-quarrel-fights-malignant/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“He answered with a smile. The darkest and most malignant I had ever seen, too strong to be voluntary. The door, I thought. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-oyeyemi/he-answered-with-a-smile-the-darkest-and-most-malignant-i-had-ever/) [Helen Oyeyemi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-oyeyemi/) > [The disease of jealously is so malignant that is converts all it takes into its own nourishment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/the-disease-of-jealously-is-so-malignant-that-is-converts-all-it/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [“Like so many of life's varieties of experience, the novelty of a diagnosis of malignant cancer has a tendency to wear off. The thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/like-so-many-of-life-s-varieties-of-experience-the-novelty-of-a/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“The late Alan Gregg pointed out that human population growth within the ecosystem was closely analogous to the growth of malignant tumor cells within…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marston-bates/the-late-alan-gregg-pointed-out-that-human-population-growth-within/) [Marston Bates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marston-bates/) > [Crack'd in pieces by malignant Death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/crack-d-in-pieces-by-malignant-death/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [The jealous man's disease is of so malignant a nature, that it converts all it takes into its own nourishment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/the-jealous-man-s-disease-is-of-so-malignant-a-nature-that-it/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [“I've come to realize that resentment is malignant. That it starts small and festers. That it grows wild and unfettered inside of you until…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-jenkins-reid/i-ve-come-to-realize-that-resentment-is-malignant-that-it-starts/) [Taylor Jenkins Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-jenkins-reid/) > [...of all the kinds of decay in this world, decadent purity is the most malignant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yukio-mishima/of-all-the-kinds-of-decay-in-this-world-decadent-purity-is-the-most/) [Yukio Mishima](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yukio-mishima/) > [So shall the world go on, To good malignant, to bad men benign, Under her own weight groaning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/so-shall-the-world-go-on-to-good-malignant-to-bad-men-benign-under/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) > [“Roman Catholicism is a broken and utterly desperate thing, capable only of malignant mischief in our awakening world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells-2/roman-catholicism-is-a-broken-and-utterly-desperate-thing-capable/) [H.G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells-2/) ## More by Matt Blackstone > [“The lunchroom is filling fast, the heavy air filled with the smell of oil. Grease, salt, a deep fryer...yup, french fries, again. I feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-blackstone/the-lunchroom-is-filling-fast-the-heavy-air-filled-with-the-smell-of/) [Matt Blackstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-blackstone/) > [“Legs are my favorite part. I never snap them off with a single bite. I nibble on them slowly as I work my way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-blackstone/legs-are-my-favorite-part-i-never-snap-them-off-with-a-single-bite-i/) [Matt Blackstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-blackstone/) [Explore all 3 Matt Blackstone quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-blackstone/) ## More Bad jokes quotes > [I wish I had never met you. There would be no need to impress you. No need to want you. No need for loving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-wish-i-had-never-met-you-there-would-be-no-need-to-impress-you-no/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you know me you know how uncool I am. I stutter, wear bad clothes, make bad jokes, make conversation uncomfortable, the list goes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-wentz/if-you-know-me-you-know-how-uncool-i-am-i-stutter-wear-bad-clothes/) [Pete Wentz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-wentz/) > [The two-party system is a bad joke on the American people; when it comes to Republicans and Democrats remember they are two sides of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-russo/the-two-party-system-is-a-bad-joke-on-the-american-people-when-it/) [Aaron Russo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-russo/) > [“in this society, things you’d think could only be bad jokes actually happen all the time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/banana-yoshimoto/in-this-society-things-you-d-think-could-only-be-bad-jokes-actually/) [Banana Yoshimoto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/banana-yoshimoto/) > [Bad jokes and gay marriage are destroying this country. But torture can save it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-stewart/bad-jokes-and-gay-marriage-are-destroying-this-country-but-torture/) [Jon Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-stewart/) > [“here was a particular kind of energy in those early days, something I've only really found in startups. The regulars - the boring 9-to-5…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yudhanjaya-wijeratne/here-was-a-particular-kind-of-energy-in-those-early-days-something-i/) [Yudhanjaya Wijeratne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yudhanjaya-wijeratne/) > [No matter how funny the bad jokes are, the jokes they create wants to build the moment with you with their effort.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/no-matter-how-funny-the-bad-jokes-are-the-jokes-they-create-wants-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A girl can tell I like her when I blush or start telling bad jokes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zac-efron/a-girl-can-tell-i-like-her-when-i-blush-or-start-telling-bad-jokes/) [Zac Efron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zac-efron/) > [When your time is GOOD Then your mistakes are taken as jokes But when your time is BAD then even your jokes are noticed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheetal-soni/when-your-time-is-good-then-your-mistakes-are-taken-as-jokes-but-when/) [Sheetal Soni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheetal-soni/) > [So this is it. You are scored on my heart, Clark. You were from the first day you walked in, with your ridiculous clothes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jojo-moyes/so-this-is-it-you-are-scored-on-my-heart-clark-you-were-from-the/) [Jojo Moyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jojo-moyes/) > [When your time is good, your mistakes r taken as a joke. But When your time is bad, even your jokes r noticed as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-your-time-is-good-your-mistakes-r-taken-as-a-joke-but-when-your/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It was a strange feeling going into a church I did not know for a service that I did not really believe in, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-palin/it-was-a-strange-feeling-going-into-a-church-i-did-not-know-for-a/) [Michael Palin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-palin/) > [I don't consider myself a comic but a performer. A comic tells bad jokes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-bernhard/i-don-t-consider-myself-a-comic-but-a-performer-a-comic-tells-bad/) [Sandra Bernhard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-bernhard/) > [Death meant little to me. It was the last joke in a series of bad jokes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bukowski/death-meant-little-to-me-it-was-the-last-joke-in-a-series-of-bad-jokes/) [Charles Bukowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bukowski/) > [My life is passed in making bad jokes and seeing them turn into true prophecies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/my-life-is-passed-in-making-bad-jokes-and-seeing-them-turn-into-true/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 43 Bad jokes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-jokes/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“When my mom was first diagnosed with cancer, I learned the word \"malignant\" and heard the word \"spread\" and knew the word \"hope\" was a mirage, a fantasy that would only make things worse. 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