Dang Lee took care of Mr. J, who was diagnosed colon cancer, went for radiation treatment and chemotherapy. Mr. J was in denial, anger, depressive stage of grieving, he was socially isolated in his room and cried most of the time, he came out of his room only when he had his radiation appointment. He did not want to take a bath or shower because he didn't want to see his colostomy bag. He didn't want to empty his colostomy bag either. He was referred to a psychiatrist to no avail.

Dang was assigned to Mr. J on admission. Mr. J was not cooperative at all, and was always angry when he was asked to empty his colostomy bag. Dang spent extra time to listen to him about his fear of seeing the stoma. Initially he would let her empty his bag in his dark room with dim light without participating in his colostomy care, but through encouragement from Dang, he gradually gained trust and confidence in her and in himself, eventually he learned how to take care of his colostomy bag, finally he became independent in his care of colostomy bag with much encouragement from Dang.

Through Dang’s compassion, patience and perseverance, Mr. J finally came to accept his condition. He was able to care for his own colostomy and did his activities of daily living by himself. Mr. J was seen socializing with other vets. On the day of his discharge, he looked happy and was grateful to the staff especially to Dang, who helped him overcome his fear and to accept his condition and to make the best out of it.