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Carolyn Rushton
submitted by Marilyn Rushton

I was a university student when I found out my sister Carolyn had cancer. Needless to say, I was shocked and very concerned for her. Throughout my life, Carolyn has always been there for me. When I was a child, she often looked after me (and 2 of my other siblings) when both our parents had to work on a Saturday. Carolyn is not only a caring sister, but a generous one as well. She is always thinking of others. When I was a student starting out on my own, she helped me to equip my first kitchen with the necessary items. Then when I entered ministry and lived in Manitoba, she would send a care package each Christmas. Her generosity continues to this very day. Carolyn is also the creative one in our family.
We are blessed that both she, and my brother, Arn, are cancer survivors. They both have made our lives and life of our family richer through who they are and how they care for others. Marilyn Rushton
 
It is hard to believe that in July 2002 I will celebrate 25 years of being a cancer survivor. It seems that only yesterday I was sitting in my doctor's office in Huntsville, Ontario getting the news that he was sending me to Orillia to see a gynaecologist for a second opinion on my annual pap smear. Within two weeks I had seen the doctor in Orillia and was scheduled for surgery (D&C); this type of surgery meant an overnight stay in hospital for out of town patients. After the surgery and my recovery, the doctor advised that he wanted me to stay an extra night as he had removed some abnormal cells from my cervix and the results would be known the next day. The results were positive for cancer. I went through all the emotions and thoughts of 'why was this happening to me' but knew that there was nothing I could do; it was in the hands of God and the doctors.

An appointment was booked for me at the Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto and again within two weeks I was seeing a team of doctors at that facility. I was given the choice of radiation treatment or surgery and I opted for surgery. I was admitted to the Toronto General Hospital a few weeks later and underwent a complete hysterectomy as a small tumour was found in my ovaries. Six weeks after surgery I returned to the Princess Margaret Hospital for the first of many, many check-ups. I was most fortunate that surgery removed all the cancerous cells and did not have to undergo either chemotherapy or radiation as a follow-up measure.

I continued to have regular check-ups at Princess Margaret Hospital every three months, then every six months and finally annually until I reached ten years of being cancer free. During this time I had regular mammograms in conjunction with my monthly self breast examinations. After my older brother, Arn, had surgery for colon cancer, my doctor added bi-annual colonoscopy to my list of preventative cancer tests.
I consider myself a very fortunate person that the early detection of my cancer ; prompt medical attention and follow-up have made me a survivor of this disease which touches every family in some way. Carolyn Rushton