Being a cancer patient is not for the faint of heart! I’m just home from another routine CT scan. I get them every three months. The scans may be routine, but my reactions are not! Sometimes I feel stressed. Sometimes I’m relaxed. Often I’m in a pretty good mood and have enjoyable conversations with people I encounter at the hospital.

This time, I felt unusual stress in the lead-up. I don’t know why and I don’t think there has to be a reason. It’s very common for cancer patients to face “scanxiety”.

Maybe I’ve been thinking too much about this time last year: I was feeling great, went for my CT scan and was blindsided by the results which led to a change of meds. The new meds seem to be working well, and have far fewer side effects. I have no reason to suspect there will be bad news from this scan.

But still the lingering stress trudged through every day. I prayed and asked my Bible study group to pray too. That made a real difference, but even so I occasionally noted the undercurrent of stress ready to ripple through my (mostly) peaceful heart.

In the hours leading up to my scan I felt fine. Joyous even. On my way into the hospital I was thinking of a friend – a lovely person who works at the hospital and just got a big promotion. I was hoping for the opportunity to congratulate her in person, and prayed that I would run into her along the corridor by the coffee shop. There she was, right where I prayed I would see her, and it was wonderful to give her a hug and hearty congratulations!

I found myself praying for other folks in the waiting areas and happily chit-chatting with hospital staff. All was going well until I heard the CT machine from the next room saying, “breathe”. The strangest thing happened: a chill went up my spine and for that moment I was filled with dread about the procedure. I prayed and felt calm again, but that was a tough moment, and this scan wasn’t an easy one. The nurse couldn’t start the IV on the first go. He fished around and still couldn’t find the vein. (Ouch!) I prayed it would go better on the second arm, and it did. The technician was joking about a bunch of things and we were laughing together, but then suddenly he started talking about the changes to our city in recent years and the dramatic increase in gun violence. This is a subject close to my heart, and it’s hard to hear this as I’m lying on the machine about to have a test. There were a few other things that also made it hard to keep calm and relaxed.

But while I was waiting in the observation area afterwards, I became aware that other patients were having a much harder time than I was. The nurse had an even worse time finding a vein in the woman after me. She sounded extremely stressed. The man after her was worried about having a reaction to the dye, since that had happened to him before. CT scans are not for the faint of heart.

I’m thankful I made it through fairly well. Now I just have to wait for the results from my oncologist!

Thank you for standing with us! It has now been a little over four years since my diagnosis, and we give thanks that my health is so good!

There is so much I’d love to tell you about! I know there was a longer-than-usual gap between posts, and I’m sorry if you felt any anxiety about that. I was very sick and tired out through November and December and even part of January. I’m so thankful to be getting my energy back! Here are a few quick updates.

My Lung Cancer and Jelly Beans video has had over 700 views, and many of you have made donations toward lung cancer research. Thank you very much!

Here it is if you want to see it again: (pardon the look on my face at the beginning!)

I’ve recently done some fundraising to help me get to the LUNGevity Hope Summit this April. I just learned today that I have raised the full $1500. Thank you to all who have given! Your gifts are both encouraging and helpful!

A large group of us are raising money to fund research into the specific kind of cancer we have: ALK+. Together, our whole team has raised about $300,000. (I think!) We surpassed my own personal fundraising goal of $500., and I’m wondering if I set my goal too low. If you would like to make a contribution towards research into my specific kind of cancer, you can still give here: Jill’s ALK+ Lung Cancer Research Fundraiser. (This is to an American charity, so receipts will only help those who pay US taxes.)

Our pilot project for the Ottawa Lung Cancer Support Group is completed. It has been a tremendous success! This group of women connected well and we have really enjoyed spending time together. In fact, I invited them over to my home last week! Our leader is a real gift to us, and her skills and experience make a significant difference in the quality of the group. We have shared some ideas and soon the decision will be made about how to move forward to support more lung cancer patients. We are very grateful for the generous support of Lung Cancer Canada and The Ottawa Regional Cancer Foundation. If you know someone diagnosed with lung cancer in the Ottawa area, and you’d like to learn more, please be in touch – either with Lung Cancer Canada or with me.

One in thirteen Canadians will be diagnosed with Lung Cancer

I’ve participated in a few other (lung cancer) events and there are a couple of more in the pipeline. I’ll try to keep you updated better in months to come!

Thank you again for standing with us. We can’t tell you what a difference that makes!