Between Scans reflects our experience of living with a rare cancer and the uncertainty that follows treatment. Our lives became measured in three-month intervals—scan, results, breathe, repeat. The steel doors open and close, symbolizing the tension between what is visible and what remains hidden. By opening the doors, viewers cross a threshold from observation to witness, confronting the hidden realities of living with a rare cancer.
The materials carry their own language. Chain represents the weight of uncertainty, while the slate fragments—Structural Fatigue and Emotional Load—give form to burdens that are often unseen. The mesh both obscures and protects, echoing the invisible realities of living with a rare cancer.
We created this piece as an act of storytelling and advocacy. Rare diseases are often discussed through diagnoses, treatments, and survival statistics, while the psychological burden of living with a rare cancer and the uncertainty of recurrence receive far less attention. Through this work, we advocate for mental health care to be recognized as a fundamental part of cancer care—including the spaces between treatments, appointments, and scans—because the emotional burden of living between scans is not separate from cancer care; it is part of it.
Category: 3D Material Art
Rare Disease: Sinonasal Mucosal Melanoma
(Patient and Caregiver)
Birth Year: 1965 & 1971
