On My Way Home: A Hospice Nurse's Journey with Terminal Cancer

Joyce Hutchison, a pioneer in the hospice movement who twice chronicled her work as an oncology nurse in the popular books May I Walk You Home? and Now That You've Gone Home, reveals her own journey with lung cancer as her death approaches. Hutchison shares not only the heartbreak and pain she experienced in these last years of her life, but also her continued sense of God walking with her during these challenging times.

When Joyce Hutchison received the diagnosis of stage-four lung cancer, she couldn’t believe it. “I have worked in oncology, hospice, and palliative care for thirty-five years. It makes no sense for me to have cancer―especially terminal cancer.” As she shared the painful news with her children, endured the hardships of chemotherapy, and coped with weakness and exhaustion, she came to the realization that she wanted to share this journey with others, “to assist those in . . . the most difficult stage of life.”

In sixteen brief chapters Hutchison gives an account of the physical, emotional, and mental challenges of each step: when chemo made her dreadfully sick, when her emotions fluctuated wildly in a matter of minutes, how she felt when people told her she looked so good. She shares how her sense of humor helped her cope with the weariness of yet another procedure and the isolation that accompanies cancer. Her account includes not only the story of her illness, but also how she responded when her second husband left their marriage and when her daughter was diagnosed with cancer, too.

Despite her suffering, Hutchison held fast to faith. Supported by her family and friends, she tells how she experienced God’s love in a new way. A foreword and afterword by Joyce Rupp, Hutchison’s writing partner on her two previous books, provide context for the book and relate the circumstances of Hutchison’s death on May 7, 2016, and the Mass of the Resurrection that followed.

Joyce Hutchison (1940–2016) was Iowa’s first hospice nurse and an expert on care of the dying. Hutchison served as palliative care coordinator and hospice educator for Iowa Health Hospice and Home Care in Des Moines. A registered nurse, her clinical experience included work as an oncology nurse, home care nurse, and residence team director of a hospice facility. A member of the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization and the Oncology Nursing Society, she also frequently presented workshops on care of the dying and hospice. She served as a Stephen minister.

She is the coauthor, with Joyce Rupp, of two bestselling books, May I Walk You Home? and Now That You’ve Gone Home. She was the mother of three and grandmother of nine.

Joyce Rupp is well known for her work as a writer, retreat leader, and spiritual midwife. She serves as a consultant for the Boundless Compassion program. Rupp is the author of numerous bestselling books, including Praying Our Goodbyes, Open the Door, Return to the Root, Jesus, Friend of My Soul, and Jesus, Companion in My Suffering. Her award-winning books include Boundless Compassion, Fly While You Still Have Wings, and Anchors for the Soul. She is a member of the Servite (Servants of Mary) community.