Community Corner

Brookline Cancer Survivor to Walk in Boston Marathon Jimmy Fund Walk

By Allison Epstein

At 19 years old, Brookline’s Jillian Chan was told she had Hodgkin’s lymphoma. She was a first-semester freshman in college. More concerned with academics, boys and social activities, she could not fathom being diagnosed with cancer at such a young age, let alone the possibility of facing her own mortality.

On Sunday, Sept. 8, Chan, now 33 and a cancer survivor, will lace up her sneakers and take pride in her stride as a first-time participant and co-captain of Team One-to-One for the 25th anniversary of the Boston Marathon® Jimmy Fund Walk.

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Chan was inspired to take part in the annual charity walk and form Team One-to-One, a new Walk team, by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute’s One-to-One program, which connects cancer survivors, caregivers and family members with individuals who are facing a cancer diagnosis for the first time. The goal of the program is to give patients and their families dealing with cancer a source of comfort by linking them with someone who has been there. Chan is a volunteer for the program who wishes she had someone to talk to when she was diagnosed as a teenager.

“When I was first diagnosed, I didn’t know kids my age could have cancer because at the time I felt invincible,” says Chan. “The One-to-One program is so important because there is nothing like talking to somebody who has been in a similar situation to provide you with hope and guidance. I know what it’s like to be bald at 19- and 20-years-old. I know what it’s like to shut down many aspects of your life and go into survival mode. This is the first year I feel comfortable really owning my cancer experience, accepting that cancer will always be part of my life and doing something to pay it forward to Dana-Farber, an institution I credit with saving my life.”

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In 1999, Chan was initially misdiagnosed multiple times and after he grandmother insisted a doctor order her a chest x-ray, it was finally discovered she had cancer. Her parents contacted Dana-Farber that same day where she underwent a biopsy that indicated she had Hodgkin’s lymphoma and immediately began treatment. After undergoing nine months of chemotherapy and six months of radiation, Chan has been in remission ever since. A team of doctors at Dana-Farber, Brigham & Women’s Hospital & Mass General Hospital continue to monitor her health. Three years ago, she was placed on tamoxifen, a blocking agent used to treat or prevent breast cancer, because female Hodgkin’s lymphoma survivors are at a very high risk for breast cancer.

“Cancer really affects every single aspect of my life,” says Chan. “I always say that I will never be the same girl that walked into Dana-Farber the very first day I heard my diagnosis. Now, I really try to focus on my health and giving back. My experience has ignited a spirit of volunteerism in me. I wouldn’t wish cancer on anyone and I will do anything to prevent others from going through what I went through. This is why walking in the Boston Marathon Jimmy Fund Walk for the first time this year is so important to me.”

Team One-to-One is a new Walk team representing eight walkers who are Dana-Farber patients, One-to-One caregivers, friends and family, including Chan’s husband, Matt, 32. The team will walk in honor of a 13-year-old boy named Cory and a 16-year-old girl named Michelle as part of Dana-Farber’s Walk Hero Program, sponsored by Sun Life Financial, which matches Dana-Farber patients with Walk teams, providing an inspiring opportunity for walkers to connect with children and adults who are being treated for cancer. Currently, Team One-to-One is accepting new members. The team hopes to raise $20,000 for the Boston Marathon Jimmy Fund Walk which supports lifesaving adult and pediatric patient care and cancer research for all types of cancers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.


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