“IS THIS your first time on the bus, Helen?”
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Stepping on board the Bathurst Radiation Bus Service, Helen and Terry Cooksley thought this confident man must be in charge.
It was Helen’s first day of radiation treatment following a cancer diagnosis and the Cooksleys were about to discover what a difference a bus load of people can make during the worst time of your life.
The man motioned for them to come on into the bus and Helen and Terry followed his directions.
“I thought he must be in charge, and when we got to Orange he said ‘come on darling, I’ll show you how things work here’’,” Terry said.
“It was then that I realised he was a patient.”
Helen and Terry have been through a lot in their 55 years of marriage, but nothing prepared them for a cancer diagnosis.
For more than 18 months, Helen had a little mark on the side of her nose that would not go away. From there, it all happened very quickly, according to Terry, numerous doctor visits, and then they received the worst possible news.
The couple still refuse to say cancer, and simply refer to it as “the ‘C’ word”.
“We couldn’t even say that word, we didn’t say it once,” Terry said. “It was quite shocking, I reckon I was worse than Helen. I thought ‘this can’t be right’.”
Helen’s treatment was six weeks of daily radiotherapy treatment at Orange Health Service.
This was when they first heard about the Bathurst Radiation Bus Service, a daily service that takes patients to Orange for their treatment, free of charge.
“I want you to know that my trips to the hospital in the bus were life changing,” Helen said.
“I have never experienced a camaraderie like that which exists on the bus.
“It puts people in close proximity to each other for the best part of an hour-and-a-half each day and, inevitably, they start to talk to each other.”
But, despite the serious illness the patients on the bus faced, often there was a whole lot of laughter on board, according to Terry.
“It was like a comedy team ... the repartee was wonderful,” Terry said.
“It made you realise that life was about helping others and you could enjoy it as well,” Helen said.
Helen’s treatment has now finished and she awaits her next check up appointment.
And the people they met on the bus? Well, the couple say they have already had one morning tea together at a cafe and they are looking forward to the next one.
Helen and Terry have extended their gratitude to her treating doctor, radiation oncologist Professor Graham Stevens in Orange.
“I was relieved I didn’t have to have an operation, I just put my trust in him,” Helen said.
“He is quite a tremendous bloke,” Terry said.
The couple have also thanked the volunteers who drive for the Bathurst Radiation Bus Service and those local businesses and groups who fund its operation.
“It’s really country people helping country people,” Helen said.
To find out more, call 6331 3322.