The Federal Fisheries Minister is remaining optimistic, despite being diagnosed with leukemia.
Beausejour MP Dominic Leblanc spoke publicly yesterday, saying he was diagnosed back in April by doctors at the Georges Dumont Hospital.
His treatments will begin in the near future, and he plans to maintain a normal work and personal routine.
“I decided to start the treatments now, as a way to take advantage of a bit of a lull in the Parliamentary schedule, and the doctors are confident that I will be able to maintain a normal work and personal routine. It’s a chemo-immuno therapy. You go to the Outpatients at the Hospital and you spend two mornings once a month at the Hospital and then you go home and you carry on with you life, and your commitments and your family obligations.”
Leblanc says, “This has reminded me, of a lot of people who live with much worse conditions. I will continue my normal routine, like other people who have these conditions. My situation is no different than other people who are single parents or those who are small business owners or who are professionals. If they don’t go to work, they have no income. So the doctors told me, the vast majority of people who go through these treatments, maintain most of a normal routine, and I look forward to doing that. I don’t intend to spend a lot of time at home feeling sorry for myself.”
In a statement, Oncologist Dr. Nicholas Finn said that Leblanc has a chronic form of leukemia which can be controlled but needs to be closely monitored and sometimes treated.
He says LeBlanc will receive treatments throughout the winter with only routine follow-ups expected after that.
Leblanc adds he is looking forward to the winter months in New Brunswick, “I’m hoping for a lot of snow in New Brunswick. I bought a snowmobile last year. I’ve got a big ski-doo, so if we get a lot of snow, I’ll be able to spend more time on the trails in January.”