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Luce G.'s story: we don’t find the disease any easier to deal with when our number’s called

Luce G.’s story: we don’t find the disease any easier to deal with when our number’s called

“I’ve been working with the Quebec Cancer Foundation for nearly two decades as the director of the Mauricie Regional Center and Lodge since 2005.”

Over the years, I’ve crossed paths with people facing cancer who are upset, angry, or in denial. I was also privileged to observe an incredible amount of solidarity and mutual aid, and I received thanks from countless people who found, through the Foundation, comfort, answers, an attentive ear, and a certain deliverance; these thanks also apply to you, who so generously support the Foundation’s services, whenever and however you can.

The past 20 years have flown by and if I’m still here, it’s largely due to our constant action and evolution as we perpetually strive to meet the diverse needs of a continually growing number of people. Furthermore, my history has given me a direct look and greater understanding of how critical the Foundation’s services are.

I was only 20 when my mother was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. She underwent treatment for 5 years and I’m grateful to be able to say that today, at 82 years of age, she’s as fit as a fiddle. Yet, when she received her diagnosis, in 1987, there were few if any services available to people with cancer. And I’m not even going to mention support for loved ones, an area where we’ve luckily made significant strides.

This personal experience is what evoked in me a heartfelt desire to promote the well-being of people impacted by cancer and ultimately led to my joining our movement, which reaches more and more people every year.

I’m thrilled to contribute, and hope you will do the same. Over the past few years, the Foundation has greatly improved the support available to people from the moment they receive a cancer diagnosis as well as before and during treatment. But I know that we can still do more, by notably focusing on all that comes “after”, when friends and loved ones seem to believe that the burden of cancer is a bygone, yet those who were diagnosed still approach each follow-up appointment with an entrenched fear of what may be revealed.
Like everyone, I also have loved ones, among them my godson, who has had to face cancer. My turn came in 2021, with a diagnosis of breast cancer.

I spoke of my diagnosis to no one during the first few months, when I had the feeling that I was still in control of my life. My reaction, surprisingly, was the opposite of how we recommended that people handle such news. Sort of like the cobbler’s children who always go barefoot… sad but true.

When first diagnosed, I was initially shocked and then hit by a variety of emotions; I felt untethered, then angry, which is when I realized that the support of my loved ones would be fundamental. I was lucky to know where to look for tools and resources that would help me find a certain balance, give in to the process, and take steps to reduce my stress and anxiety. Info-cancer documentalists and nurses were of great assistance, speaking with me and recommending various reading materials. I also underwent kinesiology, a service offered by the Foundation as a complementary therapy.

One thing I also learned: we may work with and help people whose lives have been upended by cancer every day, but we don’t find the disease any easier to deal with when our number’s called.

Given my work, I realized that I already knew a number of the medical professionals I was encountering during my cancer journey and quickly felt the need to venture away from my “network”. And in a way, this is what our residents do. When they first arrive at a Foundation lodge, they don’t know any of the people they will be spending time with. This gives them the freedom to let go of the need to put up a brave and strong front or to protect their loved ones by hiding their fear. Being with people who are on a journey similar to theirs makes the process and treatments somewhat easier.

So, I leaped and left my network behind, turning instead to acupuncture. The benefits I gained from this complementary therapy, including greater control over the side effects of hormonal therapy, led me to ask the professional acupuncturist trained in cancerology who worked with me if she would consider offering her services to the Foundation. This was a year ago, and her coming on board has enhanced the complementary therapies offered to the residents of the Trois-Rivières Lodge.

The Foundation is notably working hard to build more partnerships of this type as a way of extending the reach of its services beyond its regional centers and lodges, and this is so that people with cancer can benefit from our support closer to their homes and not solely near their treatment center.

I’m sharing my story to remind you that we can never offer enough support to an organization that has been concretely helping, every day for 45 years, the countless people who find themselves face-to-face with the country’s most widespread and deadliest disease.

Luce Girard
Director, Mauricie Regional Center and Lodge

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