Welcome to The Globe’s new series, What’s In My Cart?, where we’re asking Canadians how they stock their kitchens. To share your thoughts, fill out this form or e-mail reporter Daniel Reale-Chin at: realechin@gmail.com
During Catherine Penny's treatment for small-cell lymphocytic leukemia, her diet became bland, and consisted of potatoes, bananas, some cheeses, yogurt and Ensure for protein.Illustration by Kat Frick Miller
Prior to her cancer diagnosis in 2019, Catherine Penny describes her diet as colourful, diverse and well-balanced. The 71-year-old says she ate salads daily, consumed a wide variety of fruits and vegetables, and got her protein from high-quality fish and meats.
But when she started undergoing treatment for small-cell lymphocytic leukemia, a type of blood cancer that affects white blood cells, her body started reacting to certain foods. Soon after taking her first combination of cancer-treatment drugs, known as FCR, Penny had a mixed berry and starfruit smoothie that made her extremely sick.
“It was the first time I felt sick throughout the treatment,” says Penny. Then, while picking up her pills at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre’s outpatient pharmacy, the pharmacist explained she should no longer take her usual supplements – CoQ10, vitamin E, vitamin C and lutein, which she had been taking for more than 15 years. The antioxidants might have adverse effects on her while undergoing therapy, she said.
After that, her diet became bland, and consisted of potatoes, bananas, some cheeses, yogurt and Ensure for protein.
“I was scared to have antioxidants after that smoothie made me sick,” says Penny.
Having finished treatment more than two years ago, she is now slowly reintroducing antioxidants, colourful fruits and vegetables, and her beloved salads into her diet once again. Penny still receives routine tests to monitor her cancer at Princess Margaret every three months, with the hope that soon, those check-ins will scale down to every six months.
Here is how Penny shops for groceries.
How I save money: I shop on seniors’ day at my local grocery store, which cuts 10 per cent off my bill. My neighbour and I also share groceries often. It’s cheaper to buy in bulk, but sometimes that quantity is too much for one person, so we split what we buy.
How I splurge: I go to the Danish Pastry House a couple of times a month and get myself a treat. It became a ritual as a special treat anytime I needed to do a hospital visit.
The hardest shopping habit to keep up: I try to eat produce that’s in-season, but living in Canada, some things are hard to find year-round or at all. I usually buy fruits and vegetables labelled “Foodland Ontario.”
How I’ve changed my eating habits recently: I’ve begun eating more antioxidant-rich foods again, since my oxidizing treatment ended. I avoided antioxidants throughout my treatment after the pharmacist at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre told me not to take supplements while going through treatment, since they wouldn’t interact well with the treatment. Extending that to my diet seemed like a smart thing to do.
Five items always in my cart:
- Gluten-free loaf of bread – Gemaro Bakery – $7.99: Gemaro is a great local bakery near me. They make gluten-free products that I really enjoy, and I probably buy a French white bread once a week to eat. They also have a really good prepared pizza and bagels.
- Canned salmon – Gold Seal – $3.99: Canned salmon is so versatile. I eat it in a sandwich, on a salad or with hot vegetables. I also make a Niçoise salad in the summer when green beans are in-season and top it with the canned salmon or tuna.
- Gluten-free chocolate cake – Danish Pastry House – $4.95: I started rewarding myself with a slice of chocolate cake from the Danish Pastry House kiosk at Toronto General Hospital when I’d go down for a treatment. I probably have a slice a couple times a month.
- Cherry tomatoes – farmers’ market – $4.50: I make a nice tomato salad when they’re in-season, with a mix of cherry, beefsteak and any other tomatoes I could find at the farmers’ market. I also make myself a well-aged (45 to 90 days) striploin steak a few times in the summer as a treat. I have cherry tomatoes with it.
- 2% plain yogourt – Hewitt’s Dairy – $3.99: Hewitt’s makes exceptional yogurt and they’re based in Ontario. It’s rich and creamy and I usually eat it with sliced strawberries, peaches, apricots, hemp hearts and pistachio seeds, or whatever fruits and seeds I can find.
This interview has been edited and condensed.