Heather Von St. James

I was speaking with a friend of mine recently about writing, as she's writing a urban fantasy short story, and the subject of blood types came up. You see, I always remember my blood type, B Positive, because that’s how I always strive to be. Unfortunately, sometimes I fall short of my goal. Today is one of those times.

Shannon's House-- or "Cancer Camp".

“Cancer Camp” is what my sister affectionately refers to the days we spent at Shannon’s House that cold February in 2006. We had a room on the first floor toward the back. It was a small room with two mostly comfortable twin beds, a huge closet and a private bathroom. I had packed a fleece blanket that my mom had made for me and brought it with to use in the hospital, and I was so glad to have it with me while I was at the house. It was a little piece of home that I had while healing. She had also made my sister one, and so we both had our blankets from mom with us for “Cancer Camp”

Dr. David Sugarbaker and I.

On April 24th, I had my bi-annual check up in Boston with Dr. David Sugarbaker. It’s been 6 1/2 years since my diagnosis. It has been 6 years and 3 months since my subsequent surgery to have the tumor and my lung taken out—wow! I get giddy when I think about it. The few weeks before my appointments I usually suffer from what I call “Scanxiety,” or this anxiousness that comes before the scans to see if “it” came back.

This past weekend I traveled to Los Angeles, California to attend the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization's international conference, “Asbestos: An International Public Health Crisis”. From March 30 to April 1, I was surrounded by renowned experts and other asbestos victims and survivors like myself. It is an amazing event that brings us together to share our experiences and learn about how we can help spread awareness and education about the disease and learn about new treatment options.