“It’s Not Your Entire Story”: Two Cancer Survivors Share Their Journeys
Two cancer survivors are sharing their experiences with diagnosis, treatment and recovery, hoping to encourage others facing the disease to recognise that they are not alone and that a cancer diagnosis does not have to define their lives.
For Janine Cattouse, the moment she learned she had breast cancer is one she can still vividly recall. A text message from her doctor in Mérida, Mexico, confirmed what she had not expected to hear: she had cancer.
“I can still vividly remember when I got that text message from my doctor in Merida stating, ‘Janine, it is cancer.’ And I think in that moment, everything just became still,” Cattouse recalled.
She was diagnosed with stage two breast cancer in 2024 at the age of 36. The diagnosis brought a wave of emotions, including denial and depression, as she struggled to understand what it meant for her future.
Cattouse says that as she became more knowledgeable about the disease, her outlook began to change. She eventually reached a point where she was determined to fight and remain hopeful about what lay ahead.
“You reach that moment of being hopeful that this is going to just be a chapter. It’s not your entire story,” she said.
In August 2026, Cattouse celebrated her second anniversary of having no evidence of disease (NED).
Valerie Woods has also experienced the uncertainty that comes with a cancer diagnosis. Diagnosed at age 50, she says she initially struggled with denial as she underwent additional testing and tried to convince herself that the results would not be what she feared.
“I think I did go through a denial. After they tell you, ‘Oh, you need to do another test, and then we need to do another test,’ you sort of put it in the back of your head that no, it couldn’t possibly be that,” Woods said.
Woods says the support she received from other cancer survivors made a significant difference during her journey. Cattouse was among those who reached out to reassure her that she could get through the experience.
Other survivors also shared what to expect during treatment, including the challenges of chemotherapy, fatigue and other side effects.
“They know what the chemo feels like. They know what the fatigue is. They understand side effects. They even have some tips and tricks to get through some of those,” Woods said.
This month, Woods marks one year and five months with NED. She hopes others facing cancer can find the same reassurance and support she received from fellow survivors.
“Every day and every week where somebody can know that they’re not on this journey alone, and they can talk to people who literally know what they’re going through,” Woods said.
It is that same sense of support that Cattouse and Woods hope to extend to others through The Hope Hour. They want people facing a diagnosis to know that they are not alone, that support is available and that there is life during and after cancer treatment.
Woods also hopes their stories will encourage people who may be afraid of a possible diagnosis to seek medical checks early.
“Early detection makes a big difference,” she said.