Pink Monday: Leen Hendrickx went back to work 2 times

"I would advise anyone returning to work to take it slow and dose it."

In September 2013, I myself felt a lump in my breast. Like a thunderclap, the diagnosis soon came that I had an aggressive tumor. Consequently, the sky fell on my head. I was happy and had a family with three young children, the youngest of whom was only three years old. Now what? I immediately went into fighter mode. I had to go under the knife immediately for an amputation, and chemotherapy, radiation and hormone therapy followed. Because my tumor was also HER2 sensitive*, I had to receive herceptin every month for one year. It was all more than worth it, because everything turned out to be gone in the end. I went back to work as a claims administrator at a large insurance company. Even though a lot had changed, I tried to continue living with a positive outlook. I generally felt very good. Only when my checkups came up, I went to the hospital with a very small heart.

* HER2 = In some cancers, tumor cells are hypersensitive to certain growth factors. In so-called HER2/neu-positive breast cancers, this is because on the cell wall there are particularly high numbers of HER2/neu receptors. These receptors can bind proteins (epidermal growth factor) that stimulate cell growth. Because there are so many receptors, the cell receives too much growth signal and will grow uncontrollably. Source: https://borstkanker.slingeland.nl

Amazing

That scare eventually turned out to be justified. Five years later, at the last check-up, it turned out that my tumor marker**, had suddenly skyrocketed. An additional scan revealed that I again had several tumors, this time in my brain. If the hospital floor had been a swamp, I would have sunk in amazement. After all, I wasn't experiencing symptoms like dizziness or headaches, even the doctors thought that was strange. How could this be?

** Tumor marker = a certain substance found in the blood in (breast) cancer.

For the second time, I had to stop working. When I got cancer for the first time, I personally called my manager at work. Although he was very understanding, this time I informed him by text message. I was having a very difficult time. This time I was very deep and felt so bad. The cancer had struck incredibly hard, but I would strike back even harder. I had to go under the knife again. The largest tumor was successfully removed; the smaller metastases eventually went away by radiography. Meanwhile, I am receiving a new type of immunotherapy every three weeks: perjetta and herceptin. I also continue to take tamoplex and receive monthly injections of zoladex. The side effects of the therapy are not minus, but stopping is not an option for me. Difficult or not, I want to stay one step ahead of this terrible disease every time.

Everything has changed

According to the oncologist, it is only a matter of time that the cancer cells would reappear. I try not to think about that too much and continue to live my life as I am doing. When I was first diagnosed with cancer, a lot changed for me, but now everything has changed. I realize that all too well. I do see that science keeps evolving and people will discover new, even more effective treatments. I hope I can still benefit from that. I am being monitored very closely and so far everything is still very good. Of course I experience dark days, days when I am struggling emotionally. Then I think about what I will have to leave behind if things end badly. But my family helps me recover. Then I look at my children, from them I draw new strength and energy. My three beautiful children are everything to me.

My view of life

The period I was home, I focused entirely on my health. On the days when I felt well, I went for walks and enjoyed my family, parents and friends immensely. My illness has not changed my outlook on life to any great extent. More often now I can just sit in the garden, relaxing, without doing anything specific. I enjoy, watch and listen to nature and the sounds outside.

I let things get to my heart less. My work is currently of lesser priority, my life is more important now! I no longer take my work home with me. Because I work in a huge company and have been working in constantly changing places in recent years, only a small minority of my colleagues knew how sick I was. As a result, there were only a few people I occasionally heard from during my absence from work.

During and after my first cancer, I personally sought contact with my then colleagues. I would visit them, but that was because the group around me was closer at that time because I had a permanent place in the company then. The contact with my dear colleagues then was also more intense. Now, during and after my second absence, things are much more impersonal. Other than my manager and a handful of colleagues, who did send me occasional messages, I did not have much contact with my work environment. Out of sight, out of mind, I guess. I certainly don't blame them.

Second Pink Monday

On May 2, I returned to work with a double feeling, half-time this time. The treatments had left me very tired. It was all much heavier and more emotional than the first time. Especially the first two weeks of my return to work were exhausting and hard. Driving to work already required a lot of effort. Every day I drive 15 minutes by car to the train station, after which I travel 25 minutes by train. From there it is another 15-minute walk to my work.

The first day was very exciting. I was extremely nervous and afraid of side effects. My oncologist had warned me about possible memory and concentration problems. I suffered from that especially the first two days. Afterwards, everything went very smoothly. My person in charge surrounds me with the best care. I am not overloaded with work. I only get a new assignment when I have finished the previous one. I can take my time to go through my e-mails and feel absolutely no pressure. Regularly, I am also allowed to work from home. I advise anyone who starts working again to take it easy and dose it.

Uncertainty in resuming work

The thing is, I was very much left in the dark by my employer about important issues in my eventual return to work. I felt inadequately informed about the possibilities of possible insurance, working half-time, more flexible hours and the financial consequences. It is unfortunate that when you are so sick yourself and have so many worries, you also have to figure out everything yourself about returning to work and that there are no proper procedures for people with cancer or another serious illness who want to return to work. The research is an additional burden to everything you are already going through and it also requires a lot of time, time that has become your enemy and that you would rather spend with your loved ones. Even my manager often ran into a wall of ignorance when he wanted to help me in a well-intentioned way.

P&V Insurance, the company where Leen works, organized this year's Pink March from May 1 through May 31 in conjunction with Pink Ribbon. We also asked her what she thought about this and what she thinks is important about walking.

It is positive that my work is committed to breast cancer patients . I unfortunately did not participate in it myself this year because I had too many other things on my mind. I only started working on May 2 and was still finding my way. I was very tired in the first weeks and working on my recovery, but next year, when hopefully everything is stable, I will definitely participate in the Pink March. My son, who only recently joined the same company, did register. I am very proud of that.

I walk half an hour a day from the station to work and back. I live near a forest and I love going for walks with my friends, laughing and talking, preferably when the sun is shining. The contact with nature gives me new energy and I feel fitter. I understand that exercise plays an essential role in recovery and reduces the risk of relapse. After my first cancer, I did oncore rehabilitation. That has not been suggested to me this time. I don't know if I could have done it because the fatigue after radiation was enormous. In addition to walking, I try to eat healthy as much as possible, drink lots of water and get enough sleep, and I am doing very well.