Patients Poem by Aaron Jackson

When the tests came in the level of severity was,
Quite shocking, what I suspected to be a level two,
Came back as level four and the chances for her to live
Drastically dropped. But I didn't know, well I didn't know
How to tell her this. And it's not like I haven't treated
Patients like her before, but this case was different.
It's especially difficult when she's only a young adult with
Hopes and dreams and a semi-optimistic future.

The three words, you have cancer, are so much
harder to tell someone than you think it'd be, and
it seems like a pretty difficult thing to do.
It might not have been the most ethical thing to have
done but when she came to next appointment I
Prepared myself with the tests and I sat her down
And said, you're all set, the tests came back negative
And you look like you're all good. I don't know what came
Over me to lie to a patient like that but, I did