Over the past eight years, the Sunshine Room on the 11th floor of the Victoria General has provided  hundreds of patients with an escape from all the ugliness of cancer. 

"It's where the people are so nice and the room is cheery," explained Donna Loughran, whose sister, Muriel Boutilier, is about to start her third round of chemotherapy for small cell cancer. "I can't imagine not having this place," added Muriel, who has been visiting the room for the past few weeks for Reiki therapy, which she finds helps to boost her energy before treatment. 

Reiki therapy is just one of the many services offered at the Sunshine Room, which resembles more of a spa than a health centre.  This modest size room with yellow painted walls and lots of natural sunlight, has a  'salon' - a section of the room where patients can get a haircut and pick up one of the handmade wigs that line the wall. Tucked away in the corner is a private therapy room with a massage table, and across the hall is an office that's been transformed into a make-shift yoga studio that feels as Zen as the real thing. There is also a team of 70 dedicated volunteers, who spend time in the room with the patients, providing everything from pedicures to companionship. 

The establishment of the Sunshine Room was a shared dream of many that came to life thanks to a legacy gift left by A. Wallace Murray who lost his own battle with cancer, but wanted to give other cancer patients an oasis of peace and support. 

Photo: Cancer patient, Muriel Boutilier (middle) with her aunt, Sylvia Brown (left) and sister, Donna Loughran (right) at the Sunshine Room.