Nathalie Rahill of Thetford is asking for the public’s help to financially support her family. The 45-year-old woman learned last August that she has brain cancer. She has to travel a lot to follow a 12-week chemotherapy treatment plan at Hôtel-Dieu de Lévis.
In an interview with Courrier Frontenac, she said she started feeling unwell last spring. “I had bariatric surgery in September 2023. Starting in April, I started to feel more exhausted. I thought it was fatigue accumulated at work as well as a lack of vitamins due to my operation.”
Things started to get worse in early July. “I went to a friend’s house and people were asking me if I was drunk. But I wasn’t. I felt weaker and my right side was acting up. I went to a clinic and was referred to the hospital. At that point, they thought I had multiple sclerosis. I waited until August to see a neurologist. I had a second MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) and on August 21, I learned that it was actually brain cancer, specifically lymphoma. It’s located in my brain stem. It’s not operable. The good news is that I don’t have metastases,” she said.
It was obviously a shock wave for her, but also for her three children, Jonathan (12 years old), Lisa (15 years old) and Jacob (17 years old), as well as her husband Éric, who accompany her and support her in this ordeal.
Nathalie Rahill began major treatments at the Hôtel-Dieu de Lévis at the end of August. “I am currently undergoing three different chemotherapies. I go back to the hospital on Monday and if all goes well, I go home on Friday for a two-week period, then I start again. I am now on my second cycle out of four. Honestly, I am responding very well to the treatments. I have a few side effects, but I am reacting well,” she said happily.
Soon, the Thetford resident will have to go to a hospital in Quebec to have stem cells collected for culture. “A transplant is planned for November with a major chemotherapy treatment that should be a fatal blow to the cancer.”
Ms. Rahill has met with three oncologists and the prognosis is positive. “They are confident that I can pull through. I am 45 years old and in good shape. I have been told that there is a 70% to 80% chance that the cancer will not come back later. That is encouraging. In fact, I have a good circle of friends who support me morally.”
A crowdfunding campaign on the GoFundMe platform is underway to help Nathalie Rahill and her family cover part of the medical costs for treatments and the many trips away from home. Since she works in the community sector, she does not have income insurance.
At the time of writing, $12,570 has been raised of a $30,000 goal. Donations can be made at: https://gofund.me/18775ae8
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