--- title: The Funny Thing About Cancer image: https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/hubfs/CC%20Magazine/100%20Stories/The%20Funny%20Thing%20About%20Cancer/The-Funny-Thing-About-Cancer-1200x630.jpg --- [![Cleveland Clinic Magazine - Giving Does Good](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/hs-fs/hubfs/CC%20Magazine/100%20Stories/100%20Stories%20-%20Homepage/CC_Magazine_BlackLogo-Mobile.png?noresize&width=224&height=38&name=CC_Magazine_BlackLogo-Mobile.png) ![Cleveland Clinic Magazine - Giving Does Good](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/hs-fs/hubfs/CC%20Magazine/100%20Stories/100%20Stories%20-%20Homepage/CC_Magazine_BlackLogo-Desktop-2.png?noresize&width=552&height=65&name=CC_Magazine_BlackLogo-Desktop-2.png)](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-100-stories?hsLang=en) [Donate](https://give.ccf.org/CCMAG) # The Funny Thing About Cancer By Samson Auble ## Share - [Share on facebook](http://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-100-stories/the-funny-thing-about-cancer&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook) - [Share on twitter](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?original_referer=https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-100-stories/the-funny-thing-about-cancer&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&url=https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-100-stories/the-funny-thing-about-cancer&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&source=tweetbutton&text=) - [Share on linkedin](http://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-100-stories/the-funny-thing-about-cancer&utm_medium=social&utm_source=linkedin) - [Share on email](mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20The%20Funny%20Thing%20About%20Cancer%20&body=Check%20out%20https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-100-stories/the-funny-thing-about-cancer&utm_medium=social&utm_source=email) Hi. I’m Sam. I do stand-up comedy and have brain cancer. I know — it’s sad. Stand-up comedy is an awful career path. Ba-dum ching!  I feel like I’m the only stand-up who jokes about a life with cancer. It’s not, “Let’s point at cancer and laugh about it.” But one of the principal rules of comedy is to write about yourself and what you know.  I was diagnosed with brain cancer in 1997, when I was 11 months old. I had surgery that year and again in 2001. I never had any radiation treatments, so I feel I missed my one real chance to get superpowers.  What I remember most is the weekly chemotherapy I had for almost four years after those surgeries. Showing up every Tuesday, sitting in the big chair, hooked up to the IV drip and watching TV, coloring stuff, eating snacks. I remember once they had a guy dressed as Spider-Man coming down the halls. That was fun.  The cancer’s still there. I get an MRI every year to monitor it. Fortunately, I haven’t had any significant issues or lasting effects.  My mom gives glowing reviews of Cleveland Clinic, but I was a kid so I was kind of blissfully unaware of everything. I remember Rita, one of my nurses from chemotherapy, stopped by my room after my third surgery in 2010, which was pretty cool. I remember Tom with Child Life Services. And I remember getting a stuffed animal at the end. The staff was the best.    *Samson Auble’s grandmother, Mary Auble, is a member of the Pyramid Legacy Society. His grandfather, John Auble, was general counsel for Cleveland Clinic and was instrumental in opening Cleveland Clinic Florida.*  ![Photo of Samson Auble](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/hs-fs/hubfs/CC%20Magazine/100%20Stories/The%20Funny%20Thing%20About%20Cancer/The-Funny-Thing-About-Cancer-950x950.jpg?width=950&height=950&name=The-Funny-Thing-About-Cancer-950x950.jpg) Photo: Courtesy of Samson Auble ## Keep Reading Explore more moments from authors Shuffle Stories ## Fall 2021 Issue A Landmark Study Seeks Cures for Neurological Diseases...Vision First Van Rolls On...The Birthplace of Cleveland Clinic...Medical Scribes Make a Difference ### [![Digital artwork of an orange head and multi-colored circles and lines](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/hs-fs/hubfs/CC%20Magazine/100%20Stories/MiniMag-Thumbnail.jpg?width=610&height=316&name=MiniMag-Thumbnail.jpg) Brain Gain](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-fall?hsLang=en) - [Story Collection](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-100-stories?hsLang=en) - [Archive](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/archive?hsLang=en) - [Contact](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-100-stories/contact?hsLang=en) - [Subscribe](https://donate.clevelandclinic.org/sign-up?hsLang=en) [Donate](https://give.ccf.org/CCMAG) [![Cleveland Clinic](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/hs-fs/hubfs/CC%20Magazine%20Template%20Assets/img/logo-cc.png?width=300&name=logo-cc.png "Cleveland Clinic")](https://my.clevelandclinic.org/) © 2026 Cleveland Clinic. All rights reserved. - [Story Collection](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-100-stories?hsLang=en) - [Authors](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-100-stories/authors?hsLang=en) - [Archive](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/archive?hsLang=en) - [Contact](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-100-stories/contact?hsLang=en) - [Subscribe](https://donate.clevelandclinic.org/sign-up?hsLang=en) [Donate](https://give.ccf.org/CCMAG) ## Featured ### [![Thumb](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/hs-fs/hubfs/CC%20Magazine/Mini%20Magazine/Thumb.jpg?width=242&height=290&name=Thumb.jpg) Fall 2021 A Landmark Study Seeks Cures for Neurological Diseases...Vision First Van Rolls On...The Birthplace of Cleveland Clinic...Medical Scribes Make a Difference.](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-fall?hsLang=en)