When Jen Gibson's 90-year-old mother Anne went to the doctor after noticing pain in her shoulder, she was given life-changing news – she had stage IV cancer and would need to start treatment immediately.

As her mom’s primary caregiver, Jen found the ups and downs of Anne’s treatment overwhelming, and she needed to find support to keep herself strong and well in order to help her mom. Fortunately she reached out through CancerConnection.ca, the Canadian Cancer Society’s (CCS’s) online support community, funded in part through the gift of Support for Cancer Caregivers. She found a wealth of support and advice from people going through similar experiences.  

“The most important thing was that nobody judged me for anything I would say,” says Jen. “They all understood how emotional and difficult it was, how helpless you can feel as a loved one and a caregiver.”

Thanks to your generous support, Jen got the help she needed – making all the difference in her caregiving journey.