Illness can sometimes create an alternative reality through which one can feel like a sojourner. This piece depicts an important moment in a young breast cancer thriver’s journey where she has completed months of chemotherapy, is in remission, and can have the device that was surgically implanted into her chest to administer the chemotherapy medications removed. The procedure done by two Interventional Radiologists marks the end of this sojourner’s reality of pain and chaos, and ushers in a new journey of healing and peace.

Kari Visscher was born in a small town in southwestern Canada in 1982. Having grown up with a mother and uncle who were general practitioners, the medical profession was an integral part of her world. She straddled both the arts and sciences throughout her life eventually completing a masters degree in biomedical communications and a medical degree. Drawn to the visual subspecialties of medicine, Kari became a radiologist and is currently an adjunct professor at McMaster University. Her series of radiology paintings and associated research has been presented at international medical conferences and published in peer reviewed medical journals. She has exhibited and won awards with the Ontario Society of Artists and was a semifinalist in the figurative category of the Art Renewal Center 14th and 15th International ARC Salon competitions.