I am a 67-year-old woman who discovered that I had a rapidly growing anal tumor this year. At first, I had no idea that my life would be so dramatically impacted by this diagnosis. The doctors explained it was going to be a tough experience to go through, but that they were optimistic that I would have a very positive outcome. Throughout the therapy, I met with Katelyn, my Radiation Oncology nurse at the Mayo Clinic in Phoenix, to discuss what to expect and how to prepare for the most common side effects of the radiation treatment. Hearing the side effects was very upsetting, but coping with the side effects was made somewhat easier because Katelyn prepared me for them. She started out every appointment with a discussion about how I was feeling and what symptoms I was experiencing. She listened with compassion and came back with several suggestions on how I might lessen the pain of some of my symptoms with skincare suggestions, improved management of constipation symptoms, and ways to deal with both urinary and fecal incontinence. Discussing these symptoms involved talking about extremely personal and intimate details that most people wouldn’t want to ever talk about. However, when you are dealing with these issues, you need someone who makes you feel comfortable discussing them. Katelyn always made me feel comfortable in asking any questions and in discussing incredibly intimate details of my symptoms. At times, I would start to feel a bit emotional about the topic, she always responded with compassion and a tissue, but most importantly with a suggestion that I could work on to help me through the toughest part of the treatments. I’m so thankful that Katelyn was there for me every step of the way.