Chadwick Boseman accomplished so much! And yes, he accomplished so much while he was also dealing with cancer. I am deeply saddened by his passing. Nevertheless, there is a message going around that I would like to challenge, and it has to do with cancer.

In highlighting Chadwick& #39;s accomplishments, some Tweets have explicitly or implicitly suggested that Chadwick was courageous and resilient. I certainly don& #39;t deny that he was any of these things. However, cancer patients cannot be held to that standard.

Here& #39;s what I mean. Many cancer patients are unable to live life as they used to. And that doesn& #39;t make them less courageous or strong. This is the reason why I resent words like "battling, fighting, overcoming" when we talk about cancer.

Nothing about cancer is a reflection of a person& #39;s character. Nothing. There& #39;s no "right way" do be a cancer patient. When we say "battling cancer" we make everything about the patient& #39;s mindset. As if, defeating cancer requires a simple mindset shift. That& #39;s a harmful message.

We can celebrate Chadwick& #39;s life without making his accomplishments a standard against which we judge other cancer patients. Let& #39;s stop with the ableism.