The After. Conversation: Episode 3 – Cancer Comparing: Why We Do It & Why It Doesn’t Help
September 17, 2026
Featured from The After. Cancer Podcast with Dr. Leslie Waltke
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The Cancer Comparison Game
After a cancer diagnosis, many people find themselves quietly comparing their experience to someone else’s. “My cancer isn’t as bad as theirs.” “They had chemo and I didn’t.” “At least it wasn’t stage IV.” “Other people have it worse.” This pattern is incredibly common in the cancer world, and yet it rarely makes the experience easier.
In this episode of The After. Cancer Podcast, we’ll explore the cancer comparison game, why so many people do it, where the instinct comes from, and why it often leaves people feeling more isolated instead of more connected.
Hugs,
Dr. L
Reflective Prompts for Episode 3
- Have you ever noticed yourself comparing your cancer experience to someone else’s? How did those comparisons make you feel stronger or smaller? What might change if you allowed your story to simply be your own?
- What does your body need today? (Not someone else’s body but yours.)
About Dr. Waltke
Leslie Waltke, PT, DPT, is an internationally respected oncology physical therapist and a founding and current Board member of ABCD: After Breast Cancer Diagnosis. She serves as the Cancer Rehabilitation Coordinator for Advocate Health in Wisconsin, where she works to ensure people living with and beyond cancer receive evidence-based rehabilitation across the full continuum of care. For more than three decades, she has walked alongside individuals and families
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