Cam Emmons was a successful West Coast executive, juggling a killer work schedule when cancer hit him at age 48. The father of two teenagers was told by his doctors that he would be lucky to live one year.

His cancer was discovered after he had a grand mal seizure at home in his kitchen. “Fortunately, it happened in my kitchen and my wife was with me. Can you imagine if it had happened one hour earlier when I was driving 120 kilometres an hour, taking my son to the airport? We would have all been dead.

“They did a CAT scan and found a golf ball-sized tumour over my right eye,” he recalls. Surgery removed his tumour, but it left more than just a physical scar on Cam. “I couldn’t work anymore. I couldn’t do sports anymore. My memory was affected. It was a total change of my life.”

Despite the poor prognosis, his doctors recommended chemotherapy and radiation treatments so that he would at least live until Christmas. Cam survived that first year. “They’ve told me, don’t count on too much, you’re still lucky to be alive.” In fact, Cam has more than surpassed his doctors’ expectations. In June 2007, Cam will mark his ninth anniversary since his cancer was first diagnosed.

While Cam’s doctor has told him that there’s no rational explanation for his survival, Cam credits his faith and the incredible support he’s received from his family and friends. “It’s a much better life now. I enjoy people so much more now.”

Cam says that his cancer experience brought him closer to his family. During her summer vacation, Cam’s 20-year-old daughter drove him to all 33 of his radiation treatments. “We’d chat about life. We’d laugh a bit and we cried a bit,” recalls Cam. “It was a relationship that we’d never had before. It was a gift.”

Cam, who lives on his disability pension in South Surrey, British Columbia, now spends most of his time volunteering for different causes. He plays cards twice a week at the local seniors’ centre. As well, he keeps fit delivering groceries to seniors. In addition, Cam volunteers for the Canadian Cancer Society’s CancerConnection program, providing peer support to other people with cancer. “It’s given my life a sense of value,” says Cam.

In recognition, he has received a local volunteer award and the Canadian Cancer Society’s Medal of Courage, granted to an outstanding individual who in his or her personal battle with cancer has exhibited outstanding and unusual courage and has significantly helped in furthering the mission of the Canadian Cancer Society.