Breast cancer in the media

It’s harsh but not unbelievable. I had a staff member with bipolar for 12 months (would have happily kept her longer if it had been possible) and while her relations in her immediate team were happy and easy, attitudes from other staff ranged from overwhelmed to hostile. Some were just unable to cope with their own feelings of emotional sympathy and over association with her perceived difficulties (perceived rather than real), others were perpetually agitated that she would do something wrong and everyone would suffer. I assume it can be the same with cancer. I didn’t leave work, never looked or really felt ‘unwell’ and had a cheerful, slightly ‘take the piss’ environment (which I encouraged and enjoyed) about my treatment, so I have no personal experience of such difficulties. But it seems as much attributable to modern work pressures and assumptions, as to lack of thought or empathy.