In July 2023, I was forced to go to the emergency room due to pain around my appendix. For several intense days beforehand, I experienced unusual bloating, abnormally dark stools and a dull pain near my appendix that felt like it had some mass. A month later after a colonoscopy, I was diagnosed with colon cancer. Three weeks later, I underwent surgery to remove the mass on my cecum which was found through biopsy to be stage 3 colon cancer due to metastasis in a few lymph nodes. This led to chemotherapy at a larger medical centre, over an hour from my rural home in B.C.
My doctor suggested applying for the Travel Treatment Fund through the Cancer Travel and Accommodation Services program of the Canadian Cancer Society. The application process was seamless, with approval and funding granted in less than two weeks. The funding provided covered my travel expenses for early morning appointments, including gas and accommodation at the lodge in Kelowna.
I want to encourage your readers who might be diagnosed with cancer to look up this program – it helped me, and I know it can help them too.
And now I am proud to say that I am a cancer survivor. This program made me feel supported in my cancer journey and gave me peace of mind of knowing I was not alone.
Carmen Caruso, Princeton, BC
