--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'll never go so far to call cancer a…" description: "\"I'll never go so far to call cancer a gift. It's a really terrible disease. It's taken the lives of so many of my fellow friends in the oncology unit. ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/522/suleika-jaouad-6310_cancer_i-ll-never-go-so-far-to-call-cancer-a-gi_219155.jpg" --- # I'll never go so far to call cancer a gift. It's a really… ![“I'll never go so far to call cancer a gift. It's a really terrible disease. It's taken the lives of so many of my fellow friends in the oncology unit. But like any life-interrupted moment, there are silver linings.” quote by Suleika Jaouad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/522/suleika-jaouad-6310_cancer_i-ll-never-go-so-far-to-call-cancer-a-gi_219155.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/522/suleika-jaouad-6310_cancer_i-ll-never-go-so-far-to-call-cancer-a-gi_219155.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/522/suleika-jaouad-6310_cancer_i-ll-never-go-so-far-to-call-cancer-a-gi_219155.jpg) > “I'll never go so far to call cancer a gift. It's a really terrible disease. It's taken the lives of so many of my fellow friends in the oncology unit. But like any life-interrupted moment, there are silver linings.” [Suleika Jaouad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suleika-jaouad/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Even in devastating illness, moments of unexpected insight and gratitude can emerge, offering personal growth despite suffering. **In simple terms:** Hardship can reveal hidden blessings. Key Takeaway Seek meaning amid adversity. Themes resilience gratitude healing Mood hopeful reflective Type inspirational personal When to use this quote - hospital work - patient support groups - personal reflection - caregiver conversations Key Concepts existential growth psychology of illness Questions to Reflect On - How can you honor loss while embracing hope? - What practices help you notice silver linings? A Different Perspective Finding positivity may overlook the depth of grief and systemic issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cancer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cancer/) [Cancer Gift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cancer-gift-974501/) [Friends Oncology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friends-oncology-2243028/) [Gift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gift/) [Moment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moment/) [Never](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/never/) [Oncology Unit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oncology-unit-2243030/) [Silver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silver/) [Silver Lining](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silver-lining/) [Silver Linings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silver-linings-324003/) [Terrible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/terrible/) [Terrible Disease](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/terrible-disease-344065/) ## Related quotes > [“Silver linings abound: I always knew I loved my son, but you certainly get a “perspective-check” when you go through a parting like that.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-kozak/silver-linings-abound-i-always-knew-i-loved-my-son-but-you-certainly/) [Rob Kozak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-kozak/) > [Picking from previous works I've watched, I really liked Jennifer Lawrence's 'Silver Linings Playbook.' It made me want to play that kind of role…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bae-suzy/picking-from-previous-works-i-ve-watched-i-really-liked-jennifer/) [Bae Suzy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bae-suzy/) > [Hey listen, I already have a complete list of silver linings. It's the goddamn cloud that's killin me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-l-parker-jr/hey-listen-i-already-have-a-complete-list-of-silver-linings-it-s-the/) [John L. Parker Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-l-parker-jr/) > [There are several silver linings on the horizon. The current account deficits in Spain and Portugal are declining because they have become more competitive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-schauble/there-are-several-silver-linings-on-the-horizon-the-current-account/) [Wolfgang Schauble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-schauble/) > [“The happiest of lives are woven with silver linings.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-hoadley/the-happiest-of-lives-are-woven-with-silver-linings/) [A Hoadley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-hoadley/) > [“Many dreams come true, and some have silver linings”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/led-zeppelin/many-dreams-come-true-and-some-have-silver-linings/) [Led Zeppelin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/led-zeppelin/) > [“I suppose it should bother me to be so hated but, without it, I wouldn’t have the delight of torturing them with my presence.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliza-crewe/i-suppose-it-should-bother-me-to-be-so-hated-but-without-it-i-wouldn/) [Eliza Crewe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliza-crewe/) > [“Most people lose the ability to see silver linings even though they are always there above us almost every day.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/most-people-lose-the-ability-to-see-silver-linings-even-though-they/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [Our biggest learnings come only from the biggest blows, hence, I'd request one and all to look out for the silver linings and focus…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rituparna-sengupta/our-biggest-learnings-come-only-from-the-biggest-blows-hence-i-d/) [Rituparna Sengupta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rituparna-sengupta/) > [“Silver linings, kids. I'm full of them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-schwab/silver-linings-kids-i-m-full-of-them/) [Victoria Schwab](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-schwab/) > [With 'Silver Linings,' I didn't feel - I was thinking of certain things, but I just said, 'Let me go with it.' You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-de-niro/with-silver-linings-i-didn-t-feel-i-was-thinking-of-certain-things/) [Robert De Niro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-de-niro/) > ['Hard Times' does not romanticize the Depression, but at least a few of Mr. Terkel's subjects managed to find silver linings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-cohen/hard-times-does-not-romanticize-the-depression-but-at-least-a-few-of/) [Adam Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-cohen/) > [My tag line for 'Silver Linings' is this: It's about a man who thinks his life is a movie produced by God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/my-tag-line-for-silver-linings-is-this-it-s-about-a-man-who-thinks/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [When I wrote 'Silver Linings,' I thought I was writing a book about the Philadelphia Eagles and male bonding, but when the book came…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/when-i-wrote-silver-linings-i-thought-i-was-writing-a-book-about-the/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [I don't want to stay in the bad place, where no one believes in silver linings or love or happy endings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/i-don-t-want-to-stay-in-the-bad-place-where-no-one-believes-in-silver/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) ## More by Suleika Jaouad > [With a Catholic mother and a Muslim father, I've always had a great interest in religion, but I've never practiced one myself. After I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suleika-jaouad/with-a-catholic-mother-and-a-muslim-father-i-ve-always-had-a-great/) [Suleika Jaouad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suleika-jaouad/) > [It felt like 10 years, but I was actually in treatment for three-and-a-half years. I finally finished in April. Two years ago, I had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suleika-jaouad/it-felt-like-10-years-but-i-was-actually-in-treatment-for-three-and-a/) [Suleika Jaouad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suleika-jaouad/) > [There are days when I even long for the paralegal job that once upon a time made me so miserable. It wasn't the perfect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suleika-jaouad/there-are-days-when-i-even-long-for-the-paralegal-job-that-once-upon/) [Suleika Jaouad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suleika-jaouad/) > [When I finally returned home after my five-week hospitalization, I could feel the stares of strangers on my bald head and thinning eyebrows. Everywhere…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suleika-jaouad/when-i-finally-returned-home-after-my-five-week-hospitalization-i/) [Suleika Jaouad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suleika-jaouad/) > [The bone marrow transplant procedure itself can be dangerous, but it is swift, which makes it feel strangely anti-climactic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suleika-jaouad/the-bone-marrow-transplant-procedure-itself-can-be-dangerous-but-it/) [Suleika Jaouad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suleika-jaouad/) > [Even amid the shock of my diagnosis, I held onto the hope that I'd be able to make the most of my down time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suleika-jaouad/even-amid-the-shock-of-my-diagnosis-i-held-onto-the-hope-that-i-d-be/) [Suleika Jaouad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suleika-jaouad/) > [I think often when we talk about things like cancer, the kind of final act at the end of the story comes with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suleika-jaouad/i-think-often-when-we-talk-about-things-like-cancer-the-kind-of-final/) [Suleika Jaouad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suleika-jaouad/) > [Before my diagnosis with leukemia, two years ago at the age of 22, I'd always excelled at making resolutions. But I was never as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suleika-jaouad/before-my-diagnosis-with-leukemia-two-years-ago-at-the-age-of-22-i-d/) [Suleika Jaouad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suleika-jaouad/) > [Like a lot of other young people, I never thought about health insurance until I got sick. I was 22, and my adult life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suleika-jaouad/like-a-lot-of-other-young-people-i-never-thought-about-health/) [Suleika Jaouad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suleika-jaouad/) > [And there came a point in my treatment where I couldn't see that end in sight. And that was the most challenging, I think,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suleika-jaouad/and-there-came-a-point-in-my-treatment-where-i-couldn-t-see-that-end/) [Suleika Jaouad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suleika-jaouad/) > [But no conversation between doctor and patient can magically turn an uninsured patient into an insured one. Doctors are just as helpless as patients…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suleika-jaouad/but-no-conversation-between-doctor-and-patient-can-magically-turn-an/) [Suleika Jaouad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suleika-jaouad/) > [Cancer magnifies the in-betweenness of young adulthood: You're not a child anymore, yet you're not fully ready to live in the adult world, either.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suleika-jaouad/cancer-magnifies-the-in-betweenness-of-young-adulthood-you-re-not-a/) [Suleika Jaouad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suleika-jaouad/) > [I get along well with my medical team and I have a tremendous amount of respect for them. But the idea of discussing my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suleika-jaouad/i-get-along-well-with-my-medical-team-and-i-have-a-tremendous-amount/) [Suleika Jaouad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suleika-jaouad/) > [For the better half of my early 20s, I was Bubble Girl. When I found out I had leukemia at 22 my world suddenly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suleika-jaouad/for-the-better-half-of-my-early-20s-i-was-bubble-girl-when-i-found/) [Suleika Jaouad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suleika-jaouad/) > [It took me a long time to be able to say I was a cancer patient. Then, for a long time, I was only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suleika-jaouad/it-took-me-a-long-time-to-be-able-to-say-i-was-a-cancer-patient-then/) [Suleika Jaouad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suleika-jaouad/) [Explore all 99 Suleika Jaouad quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suleika-jaouad/) ## More Cancer quotes > [Women still, when they have breast cancer, go to work; they still lead their lives. They have to. I just did what I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-potter/women-still-when-they-have-breast-cancer-go-to-work-they-still-lead/) [Monica Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-potter/) > [If one truly has lost hope, one would not be on hand to say so.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-bentley/if-one-truly-has-lost-hope-one-would-not-be-on-hand-to-say-so/) [Eric Bentley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-bentley/) > [Racism is a cancer. You cannot ignore it and it'll go away. If you ignore cancer, it simply metastasizes and consumes the whole body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daryl-davis/racism-is-a-cancer-you-cannot-ignore-it-and-it-ll-go-away-if-you/) [Daryl Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daryl-davis/) > [Historically, more people have died of religion than cancer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-francis/historically-more-people-have-died-of-religion-than-cancer/) [Dick Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-francis/) > [“Our kind of love can go into remission, but it's always waiting to return. Like the world sweetest cancer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/our-kind-of-love-can-go-into-remission-but-it-s-always-waiting-to/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [Bollywood is a cancer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-banerjee/bollywood-is-a-cancer/) [Victor Banerjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-banerjee/) > [You should be angry. You must not be bitter. Bitterness is like cancer. It eats upon the host. It doesn't do anything to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/you-should-be-angry-you-must-not-be-bitter-bitterness-is-like-cancer/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [When people go get chemo, they're not injecting themselves with will - I have lost various loved ones to cancer, and I certainly don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-c-hall/when-people-go-get-chemo-they-re-not-injecting-themselves-with-will-i/) [Michael C. Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-c-hall/) > [“the doctor hesitated before breaking the news to her. "those aren't stars. it's cancer." - forty years a smoker”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-lovelace/the-doctor-hesitated-before-breaking-the-news-to-her-those-aren-t/) [Amanda Lovelace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-lovelace/) > [I loved you to the moon and back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-swift/i-loved-you-to-the-moon-and-back/) [Taylor Swift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-swift/) > [The risk of developing carcinoma of the lung increases steadily as the amount smoked increases. If the risk among non-smokers is taken as unity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-doll/the-risk-of-developing-carcinoma-of-the-lung-increases-steadily-as/) [Richard Doll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-doll/) > [I would do away with super PACs. I think it's a cancer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-conrad/i-would-do-away-with-super-pacs-i-think-it-s-a-cancer/) [Kent Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-conrad/) > [Aging is like enlightenment at gunpoint. Before I had cancer, I lived my life for my art. After I had cancer, I lived my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-halprin/aging-is-like-enlightenment-at-gunpoint-before-i-had-cancer-i-lived/) [Anna Halprin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-halprin/) > [If you are a white male, you don't deserve to live. You are a cancer, you're a disease, white males have never contributed anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noel-ignatiev/if-you-are-a-white-male-you-don-t-deserve-to-live-you-are-a-cancer/) [Noel Ignatiev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noel-ignatiev/) > [The way I look at it is, cancer research is absolutely nonpartisan. Cancer is very democratic in the sense that it attacks people regardless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-h-koch/the-way-i-look-at-it-is-cancer-research-is-absolutely-nonpartisan/) [David H. Koch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-h-koch/) [Browse all 3,177 Cancer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cancer/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I'll never go so far to call cancer a gift. It's a really terrible disease. It's taken the lives of so many of my fellow friends in the oncology unit. 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