Hey Andrew,
One of my uncles back in India is 70 years old. He retired and was diagnosed with cancer, about 8 years ago. After retiring he left the city and went to his village where he started farming on a small scale, growing all sorts of fruits and veggies, esp mangoes..just to keep busy. His cancer occurs as a recurring "growth" in different parts of his body.
He has to come back to the city (Bombay) every three months to get a chemotherapy injection. Immediately after the injection, he boards an overnight train to his village. Once home, he resumes work on the farm the next morning, managing people there and is on his feet for hours at a stretch...generally keeps himself very busy. He is also very involved in the social activities in the village and a lot of people consult him for advice on various topics.
He has noticed that his WBC counts come up much faster when he is working in the village. On the other hand, he takes much longer to recover from chemotherapy if he decides to stay back in the city and rest!
He never complains, is always positive, excited and always keeps himself occupied. We feel its his awesome attitude and the 'village lifestyle' (natural, closer to nature) that keeps him hale and hearty despite the cancer. My aunt cooks fresh food all the time, by fresh I mean from freshly plucked fruits and veggies! Its as fresh as it can get! and tastes great too
The unpolluted air and naturally mineral rich well water (fyi: which he consumes without filtering) helps a ton.
Since he is busy, he never has time to cry and worry about his health and to think of stupid things. His mind is preoccupied with great plans for what to grow on the farm, how to increase the profits, how to recycle and reuse, finding solutions to various problems.....its always positive, uplifting things and all about growth and overcoming challenges
Its always insipiring to meet and speak with him. He reminds me again and again, that I need to thank God and live every day to the fullest
)