What the clinic being here has meant.

In her own words Kim Perry Township · Stage 4 metastatic breast cancer

Diagnosed in May, Stage 4 by June. Kim’s oncology team is at RVH in Barrie, a long round trip, so she moved her infusions to the Huntsville clinic. Her treatment will not end.

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A Journey No One Prepares For

Hi, my name is Kim. I’m 55 years old, a wife to an amazing husband for 37 years, a mom of two adult children, and a Nana to two beautiful grandbabies. I live my best life on a beautiful 3 acre wooded property in Perry Township, Ontario, while currently fighting a battle with Stage 4 breast cancer.

Who would ever imagine how quickly life can flip upside down in a single instant?

On March 22, I found a lump on my right breast. Knowing in my heart that something wasn’t right, I contacted my nurse practitioner to arrange a physical examination. I was able to get in to see her quickly on March 24, just before heading out on vacation. She ordered a mammogram and an ultrasound for when I returned, which were completed on April 30 at Huntsville Hospital.

A few short days later, the phone rang. The mammogram showed a suspicious lesion, and they wanted to do a biopsy.

On May 7, I underwent an ultrasound-guided biopsy, followed by an agonizing week of waiting for the results to reach the clinic. Then came May 14. My phone rang at 8:30 in the morning. Deep down in my gut, I felt that this call wasn’t going to bring good news. I hesitated to answer it, but I did.

In that exact moment, my life changed forever.

The biopsy confirmed invasive ductal carcinoma. At that point, we were still waiting on the hormone receptor status to know the full scope of what we were dealing with. Things began moving at a whirlwind pace. I was referred to a local surgeon on May 25 to discuss next steps, and following an examination, I was referred by the surgeon to the oncology team at RVH in Barrie.

My first consultation was on June 4. Everything was moving so fast I could barely catch my breath.

After doing some research on what treatment would look like, I decided that getting a port (port-a-cath) inserted would be a wise choice to avoid fighting with my veins every time. My oncologist set up the appointment, and the port surgery was done on June 17. I’ll be honest, I went back and forth wondering if it was the right call, but after having access to it a few times since, it was undeniably the best decision.

On June 15, I had an echocardiogram to make sure my heart was strong enough for treatment. On June 18, I met with my oncologist again to discuss the hormone receptor results and outline my treatment options. That was the day I learned my cancer was triple positive: ER+, PR+, and HER2+. Because of the triple-positive status, my oncologist wanted to investigate further and ordered a CT/PET scan, which was completed that same day.

On June 25, my life completely shattered.

The PET scan revealed that the cancer had spread outside the breast to my bones, with small lesions on my spine. That diagnosis changed everything. Learning that my disease is now incurable meant my treatment plan shifted to a maintenance approach, and I will be on hormone therapy for the rest of my life.

With this new reality, I made the decision to move my infusions closer to home. Instead of making the long round trip to Barrie every week, I chose to receive care at the chemotherapy clinic at Huntsville Hospital. It was the best decision by far. Not knowing how my body would react to the infusions, having a much shorter drive home made all the difference. Beyond the location, the clinic feels deeply personal, and the nursing staff are second to none in their compassion and professionalism.

Cancer doesn’t just affect me, it deeply touches and affects everyone who loves me. And standing up for local, compassionate care is a fight we must win together.

Fighting for Local Care: The Threat of Centralization

Now, another dark cloud looms over our care. There is a proposal to move and consolidate the chemo clinic to Bracebridge, a decision that will have a devastating impact on patients, particularly those coming from northern communities.

For residents who already drive 45 minutes to an hour just to reach Huntsville in good weather, moving the clinic means an additional 30 minutes of driving each way. When you are weak, nauseous, and completely exhausted from life-sustaining treatments, an extra hour in a car, especially navigating treacherous winter roads, is a grueling and unfair burden.

Crucially, this plan ignores the immense toll placed on our caregivers, the family members and loved ones who drive us to treatments, sit by our side, and hold our hands through every single procedure.

Forcing them to take on additional travel time and mounting gas expenses creates an undue physical and financial hardship on the very people keeping us afloat. They are forced to take even more time away from work and family responsibilities just to ensure we can access essential care.

Residents in South Muskoka have alternative options relatively nearby in Orillia and Barrie. Shifting the entire burden of travel onto North Muskoka and Parry Sound residents isolates a vulnerable population that has far fewer regional alternatives.

Centralizing care should never come at the expense of patient well-being, caregiver support, and equitable access.

Our community members who are fighting for their lives, and the caregivers walking beside them, deserve to receive care without the added trauma, physical exhaustion, and financial strain of extra travel.

Kim · Perry Township

In his own words Austin Magnetawan · Multiple Myeloma

Austin drives 40 minutes to Huntsville for weekly infusions, up to five hours in the chair. He already travels two hours to a Regional Cancer Centre and over three to Princess Margaret.

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I'd Rather Be Fishing

My name is Austin Toth, and I am fighting Cancer. I was diagnosed six months after I retired from Correctional Services in 2021 after 32 years as an Ontario Public Servant. My diagnosis is Multiple Myeloma. I am on what is known as my second line of treatment.

My first line of treatment was 6 months of Chemo and Stem Cell Transplant in Feb 2022, which put the Myeloma to sleep for approximately 24 months. I started my second line of treatment in December of 2024 to again put the Myeloma to sleep. The second line of treatment meant hospital visits once per week for infusion (IV). I sat in a chair for up to five hours receiving treatment. After the three weeks I would get two weeks off to let my body recover.

The side effects of these treatments include a continual upset of your digestive system, nausea and diarrhea, continual tiredness, anxiety and shortness of breath. I have had three major reactions to the cancer treatment which required immediate administration of a high dose of Benadryl into my IV. I am still on this line of treatment and it will continue until it no longer works.

When I was diagnosed with Cancer I had two options: I could attend the Northeast Regional Cancer Centre located in Sudbury or Royal Victoria Hospital (Barrie). Our system works that when you make that choice you are tied to the hospitals associated with the Cancer Centre. In my case I went to Royal Victoria Hospital (RVH), which has ties to Princess Margaret in Toronto and Huntsville Hospital, the Oncology Clinic. If I had chosen to attend Sudbury Regional Cancer Centre I would be able to access services in Parry Sound and Ottawa Cancer Centre.

The treatment I have received from Princess Margaret, RVH and Huntsville has been, in my humble opinion, EXCEPTIONAL. To put it bluntly, they saved me.

The Health Care Professionals have been comforting, knowledgeable, kind, supportive, the list can go on and on.

The Oncology (Cancer) Clinic in Huntsville is staffed by the best health care professionals I have come across. As a patient they make me feel secure, lessen my anxiety and create a calming, peaceful environment to have treatment. They are very knowledgeable and professional when dealing with each patient, but they take it another step and get to know us as individuals. It has allowed me to concentrate on the battle with cancer.

I also want to add that the staff at the Huntsville Cancer Clinic ensure that cancer patients' caregivers are doing okay. Cancer patient caregivers are the unsung heroes in a lot of cases, ensuring appointments are made, driving patients everywhere, while making sure everything back home is running smoothly.

I live in Magnetawan. I already have to drive two hours to access a Regional Cancer Clinic and over three hours to access Princess Margaret. My treatments at Huntsville are 40 minutes away. There have been times when Leah has to pull over and I have to relieve myself at the side of the road, as my digestive tract is very upset. To add another thirty minutes, and in the winter a lot more, is extremely difficult for cancer patients, especially when the current cancer clinic is such an excellent service.

All we want is equitable access to health care. Keep the oncology clinic in Huntsville for all cancer patients in the Huntsville Hospital catchment area.

I'd rather be fishing than attending hospital for treatment, I'd rather be fishing than attending all the council meetings to keep the clinic in Huntsville, I'd rather be fishing than writing my story for a web page. I'd rather be fishing, especially with my grandchildren!

Austin · Magnetawan

Full story below

“Cancer doesn’t just affect me, it deeply touches and affects everyone who loves me. And standing up for local, compassionate care is a fight we must win together.”

Kim · Perry Township

Full story below

“I’d rather be fishing than attending hospital for treatment, I’d rather be fishing than attending all the council meetings to keep the clinic in Huntsville. All we want is equitable access to health care.”

Austin · Magnetawan

Helpful to include: your first name, your township, roughly when you were treated, and how far you travelled. Please tell us if you would rather not be published at all, we will still count you.