What a Cancer Diagnosis Actually Feels Like
Episode Description
Helene is an elite trail runner, a high-performance physiotherapist, a coach, a wife, a mum, a daughter, a sister, a legend and now a survivor – after being diagnosed with tongue cancer.
In early 2023 Helene was on top of the world: she’d just finished top 5 at the Tarawera 100 Miler, one of the toughest running races in the country.
Life was good: Career, family, everything was lining up.
And then, just weeks later…everything changed. Helene became one of the 77 New Zealanders every day who get told they have cancer.
In this episode, we get into: + The moment she discovered something wasn’t right: a tiny sore that turned out to be aggressive cancer + The phone call that no one ever wants to receive + Recording goodbye messages for her kids before surgery + What it’s really like going through six weeks of radiation + And how she found the strength to keep moving forward when everything felt uncertain
We also talk about resilience, perspective, and why she lives by one simple rule now: don’t drop the glass balls (I’d never heard this theory before but I love it). Here’s Helene Barron.
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Brief Summary
Helen Baron shares her cancer journey, balancing family, work, and trail running while emphasizing resilience and community support.
Key points
- A New Role in Sports. Hela discusses her new role as a physio in high-performance sports.
- The 100 Mile Challenge. Hela shares her experience of training and completing a 100-mile race.
- Facing the Unknown. The speaker reflects on the anxiety of not knowing the extent of their cancer diagnosis.
- Navigating Family Conversations. The speaker discusses the emotional responses of their children upon learning about the diagnosis.
- A Powerful Declaration. In a video message, the speaker expresses determination to overcome their challenges.
- Building Community in Hard Times. The speaker shares the bonds formed with fellow patients during treatment.
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Episode highlights
- A New Role in SportsHela discusses her new role as a physio in high-performance sports.“I started a new role back with High Performance Sport.”2:38Apr 7, 2026
- The 100 Mile ChallengeHela shares her experience of training and completing a 100-mile race.“I just grinned like it was just a fun day.”13:04Apr 7, 2026
- Facing the UnknownThe speaker reflects on the anxiety of not knowing the extent of their cancer diagnosis.“The human brain doesn’t like the unknown.”24:49Apr 7, 2026
- Navigating Family ConversationsThe speaker discusses the emotional responses of their children upon learning about the diagnosis.“I don’t want you to die.”29:58Apr 7, 2026
- A Powerful DeclarationIn a video message, the speaker expresses determination to overcome their challenges.“I will get through this thing. And I may not sound like me, but I will be me.”34:16Apr 7, 2026
- Building Community in Hard TimesThe speaker shares the bonds formed with fellow patients during treatment.“We still have reunions, our cancer camp crew.”46:13Apr 7, 2026
- The Reality of Cancer TreatmentDescribing the brutal experience of radiation therapy and its effects.“Radiation of the tongue and mouth is pretty brutal.”50:04Apr 7, 2026
- The Mask of TreatmentFacing the challenges of wearing a mask during radiation therapy.“I just couldn’t ground myself in that room.”56:01Apr 7, 2026
