The JAX AYA is more than a charity fund: it’s a community where I have found an empathetic, non-judgmental environment. Getting cancer in your lifetime is devastating, but young adults have nearly everything taken from them. Their peers move on, while they battle incredible challenges. In this lonely experience, the AYA group provides you with a village. I became inspired by the young survivors, who gave me hope that soon, I would be in their shoes: back to “normal”. I was able to laugh about the medications we hate or the unique experiences that make us resilient. And now that I’m out of treatment, I get to show others that the pain is temporary, but the friendship, the community and the resilience is forever.
Through Jackie Aziz’s courage, and the kindness of the Aziz family, Montreal has a place for young cancer patients to find community.
