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The story
A thread appeared on 5ch’s “Anything Goes Live” board (a general live-discussion forum), started by a poster who says they’ve been diagnosed with peritoneal dissemination (cancer that has spread through the lining of the abdominal cavity) and given one year to live. They asked, “If you were told you had a year left, how would you spend it?” Despite declining stamina and dietary restrictions, the original poster said they’d like to visit every boat-racing stadium in the country, and they agreed with another commenter’s suggestion to revisit places they’d once lived. Meanwhile, the poster explained that they’ve only told family and their boss at work about the diagnosis, keeping it from friends because “I don’t want to worry them” — a decision that drew both support and concern that friends might later be hurt to learn they’d been kept in the dark. The thread also touched on euthanasia, with opinions split.
What people said
Isn't there something more meaningful to do with it?
Of course I'll still jerk off too
Wait, you've got a year left?
Yeah, one year. Peritoneal dissemination.
If I still had the strength, I'd want to go hiking with someone I love — man or woman, doesn't matter — and take in some great scenery
Yeah, my stamina's really dropped.
Can't do anything too strenuous anymore.
Part of it's that I had my whole stomach removed so I can't eat much, but honestly my strength's just been dropping ever since treatment started
Ah, that sounds nice.
Seems like it'd bring back a lot of memories
And if you have someone important to you, talk with them as much as you can
Honestly, I still haven't told the people around me about the diagnosis. I don't want to worry them, and I want them to just treat me normally
Well, I love boat racing, so I want to visit every racing stadium in the country. I figured that since I'm going to die anyway, winning money wouldn't feel exciting since it's basically meaningless now — but turns out gambling's still fun regardless
Funny how it's always the guy who says that who ends up winning lol
Might be better to just tell people, otherwise they'll wonder what you're even up to
I'd like to try visiting Heiwajima (a boat racing stadium in Tokyo)
lift the junk food ban and just eat all the delicious stuff you want
I don't have a stomach anymore so I can't really eat much. Sorry, even though you went to the trouble of suggesting it
Won again today on Oki-Doki (a popular pachinko/slot machine model)
Nice lol
Makes me want to go buy tickets together with you lol
Are you a gambling addict or something? Let's go grab a meal
I think it'd be nice to just say "let's hang out, it's been a while" and spend time together without ever mentioning how long I have left
Surely you've at least told your family though, right?
Well yeah, I've told my family. And the higher-ups at work too.
Well yeah, I've told my family. And the higher-ups at work too.
Would you really spend all that money just to travel overseas for an easy death?
since "yomei" (remaining life) sounds just like "yome ii" (great wife!) lolol
I'm single. Glad I'm single, honestly.
You should just go. It's genuinely fun. I don't know where you live, but go check out whichever boat racing stadium is nearest you
Is that because you want to live even one extra day?
Honestly I'm 38 right now, and I feel fine dying whenever.
Not that I actually want to die, mind you
Then that's plenty, honestly — the people who'd really be sad are basically just your family anyway
Honestly, I'm seriously torn about it.
I keep worrying that once I can't move anymore and finally tell people, they'll think "why didn't you tell me sooner," stuff like that
I don't believe in an afterlife at all, so it doesn't feel exciting to me
That's a "waku-chin" then! (a pun on waku-waku, "exciting," and wakuchin, "vaccine")
That's the Sea of Japan side (lit. "the back of Japan," a dated term for that region) — probably fewer stadiums there since the Sea of Japan gets rough waves and the transport links aren't great
Ah, the Sea of Japan side. Lake Biwa Boat Race Stadium might be close by
Background and Key Points of the Discussion
Peritoneal dissemination is a medical term for cancer that has spread to and seeded the lining of the abdominal cavity, causing recurrence or metastasis; treatment approaches vary widely depending on the primary cancer site and stage, and a full cure is often difficult. The poster’s mention of declining stamina and being unable to eat much after having their “entire stomach removed” reads as a concrete detail consistent with an actual treatment history. What divided the thread was the question of when, and to whom, to disclose a terminal prognosis. The poster told their family and their boss at work, but kept it from friends, citing a wish not to worry them and a desire to be treated normally. This drew both sympathetic responses — that telling close family is enough — and concerned ones, worried that friends might later be hurt to learn they’d been kept in the dark. The topic of euthanasia also came up, but there’s background here that doesn’t come through in the comments alone: euthanasia is not legal in Japan, so-called “euthanasia tourism” — traveling to countries where it is legal, such as Switzerland — is an actual, documented practice.
*This article is compiled as an excerpt and summary of the 5ch (“Anything Goes Live” board) thread “If You Were Told You Had a Year Left to Live, How Would You Spend It?.”
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