Managing the work-cancer balance

I’ve been very open with my boss about my various health issues, as I have had to take a lot of time off for all my scans, appointments, etc. She’s been very supportive. The day after my DOTATATE PET scan and metastatic cancer diagnosis on July 21st, I was in an overwhelmed, delirious state. My brain decided I would cope at work the next day by being extra bright and happy with everyone. At the end of the day, which happened to be a Friday, my boss stopped casually by my desk to ask if I got my scan results in. I had been planning to tell her on Monday so she wouldn’t have to worry all weekend, but I didn’t have it in me to lie or to brush her off. So, I asked if she had a moment we could talk in her office.

I broke down crying as I told her. She was so kind and understanding, and saying things like “Whatever you need, we will support you.”

It was what I needed to hear in that moment.

I’m incredibly grateful to have a boss who is so compassionate and accommodating. In 2015, the last time I had abdominal surgery, I still had my old boss who was a very hands-off, detached manager. Although at that time I was able to take the time off I needed, it makes such a different having a boss who says helpful things like “How can I support you through this?” and “Let’s look at your workload together to see how we can temporarily distribute it to your co-workers.”

After my diagnosis and talking it over with my boss, I decided to write an email to our whole department (about 15 people). Although I know that my boss would respect my privacy as much as I wanted, I felt more comfortable with my co-workers knowing the reason why I would be out on medical leave for six weeks. My absence is going to affect them, as they will have to pick up extra work while I am gone. I debated for a long time about how much to tell them, because although I am not shy about talking about my cancer, talking about bodies in general is not something that is appropriate for work. So, I decided to tell them my cancer had metastasized and that I was going in for “aggressive surgery”. I didn’t really want to get into the details about the hysterectomy, etc. as that like that might be TMI for some people.

A few of my co-workers did approach me privately to express their condolences, and I did share with them the details of what my surgery will entail. I thought that perhaps others might be curious as well, and honestly that was one reason I decided to start this blog. That way if any colleagues or people from my professional world want to know the nitty gritty, it’s documented here but no one is forced to read it in a work setting.

One last note about my job: a pleasant surprise I discovered recently is that WA state has a program where if you have a qualifying medical event, the state will pay you up to 90% of your salary for up to 12 weeks. That way you don’t have use your sick leave. I’m enrolling in this program for the time I will be at home recovering from the surgery, and will save my sick leave for all the follow-up appointments I know I’m going to have. I have a lot of sick and vacation leave built up (it rolls over every calendar year) from working at the same organization for 15 years, which is a definite perk to being a long-term employee!