When she heard about actress Kirstie Alley鈥檚 death from colon cancer earlier this month, 麻豆传媒 Calgary Senior Anchor Jocelyn Laidlaw said she was inspired to speak up about her own cancer diagnosis.
, Laidlaw spoke openly about how shocked she was by Alley鈥檚 death. Laidlaw went on leave in November after she was diagnosed with cancer, and although she was initially intending to keep some details private, now she鈥檚 opening up in order to raise awareness, hoping to inspire others to get screened and to talk more about this deadly type of cancer.
Speaking to CTV鈥檚 Your Morning on Monday, she said she has had a string of good days recently.
鈥淚鈥檝e left chemo behind for now, it鈥檒l start up again on Boxing Day,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ut yeah, I鈥檓 feeling pretty good, actually. Any day without nausea when you鈥檙e in cancer treatment is a good day.鈥�
Laidlaw has metastatic colorectal cancer. Often simply referred to as colon cancer, it鈥檚 a cancer that grows in the colon or rectum. According to the Canadian Cancer Society, it is estimated that around 1 in 18 Canadian women and 1 in 14 Canadian men will develop colorectal cancer during their lifetime and 1 in 40 women and 1 in 34 men will die from it.
Laidlaw said she thought she would never share the specifics of her diagnosis.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a 鈥榙own there鈥� cancer that a lot of people don鈥檛 like to talk about, and I include myself in that group,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t felt embarrassing and very private.鈥�
However, Alley鈥檚 death struck her 鈥� not just because of their shared diagnosis, but because Alley鈥檚 family revealed that she had only just found out about the cancer before she died.
鈥淚 was horrified, I was stunned,鈥� Laidlaw said.
Her cancer was also discovered late into its development. Often there aren鈥檛 many early symptoms of colon cancer, making it even more important to get regular screenings.
That鈥檚 the main message that Laidlaw wants to express.
鈥淚 just knew that speaking out could help someone,鈥� she said. 鈥淚f one person could hear what I went through, they might identify with the symptoms, or ignoring the symptoms, or no symptoms at all, and they might take it upon themselves to get checked, and that鈥檚 my real goal here is for other people to avoid going through what I鈥檓 going through.鈥�
She explained that she started having gastrointestinal symptoms years ago, before the pandemic hit, but that these symptoms started out so slight and built up so slowly that it was hard to connect the dots.
Last spring, she found a lymph node in her lower abdomen that was 鈥渓ike a marble, it was hard鈥�.
Her doctor believed it could be the aftereffects of COVID-19 at first, and every test that was run found nothing wrong.
As this went on, the gastrointestinal symptoms were steadily worsening over the summer. Although she was advised to simply continue monitoring the lymph node, Laidlaw decided she wanted it taken out.
鈥淚 insisted that it be surgically removed,鈥� she said. 鈥淎nd boy am I glad I did. Four days later, they called to tell me it was full of cancer.鈥�
Doctors had to frantically search for the source of the cancer, as it was clear that it hadn鈥檛 originated in the lymph nodes, but had spread there.
Days later, she had her answer: it was colorectal cancer.
She described this experience as a 鈥渘ightmare I wouldn鈥檛 wish on anyone,鈥� but added that a strange upside has been the huge wave of love and support she has received from across Canada since sharing her story.
鈥淪trangers, survivors,鈥� she said, adding that the stories from survivors have been 鈥渟o moving.鈥�
鈥淪o many survivors tell me, 鈥榶ou鈥檝e got this, you can do this,鈥� when the stats would convince you otherwise, or your own fears would have you thinking otherwise,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hose messages have been life-changing.鈥�
