This paper approaches phenomenological and sociological notions of the ‘lived’ body for the purpose of creating a dynamic perspective on embodiment in Conceptual Metaphor Theory. Contrary to what many metaphor scholars believe, here it is argued that those sensorimotor experiences that appear to be basic, have indeed more complex and deep socio-cultural meanings. Whilst our conscious awareness is commonly directed towards the world, and our physical reactions and sensations seem to be natural, when impairment, such as disability or illness, our body unexpectedly calls our attention and is perceived as alien. In these occasions bodily experience turns to be not just the source, but also the target of metaphorical mappings. Here it is demonstrated that the notion of dynamic embodiment becomes useful when applied to the example of visual and verbal cancer metaphors.