I am a Stage 4 cancer patient at Columbia’s Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center (HICCC). I was first diagnosed with bladder cancer in 2010. In July of 2025, I was at HICCC for another round of chemotherapy, platinum-based. Ms. Henry was my designated nurse. We never previously worked together, but her kindness and caring professionalism were notable from the start.

Finding a workable vein for the IV after all these treatments was tricky, but Ms. Henry’s good humor and experience calmed me down. Little did I know that these traits would be so important later that day. After several hours on the IV chair, I noticed swelling in the back of my hands, blotchy skin, and a general sense of being suddenly unwell. Unbeknownst to me at the time, I was experiencing a fairly severe allergic reaction to the platinum in the chemotherapy. I was able to stand up at take a few steps towards Ms. Henry, and all I could say was “Jen, I think I am in trouble.”

Ms. Henry came rushing over and immediately recognized that I was having an intense allergic reaction, and she called for help and administered steroids and antihistamines to control and negate the allergic reaction. I don’t know how to thank Ms. Henry enough. Her quick thinking saved me from going into shock, saved me from potential organ damage, etc. I would shout Ms. Henry’s name from a mountaintop if I could. Please consider me on a mountaintop as you read this narrative. I am very lucky to have been under the care of Ms. Henry’s care, compassion, and experience at that harrowing moment.