Patti Bondor: Fighting Cancer And Keeping The Chickens Happy

Patti Bondor grew up in Michigan, but frequently spent summers in New England. Her favorite stop while traveling through the Northeast was Vermont, because “that was where I could finally get Moxie and maple sugar candy.”

She spent much of her professional life working various jobs in TV production, including master control operations, satellite systems, and, the ultimate in cushy gigs, “watching movies for Sky Latin America.”

Bondor, who lives in Barton with her husband Andy, had been a recreational cannabis user much of her life. Then, she started taking medical cannabis to soothe her arthritis, with 10mg capsules she procured from Champlain Valley Dispensary. Bondor says that they helped relieve the pain in her joints, and allowed her to open and close her hands “without any crunching.”

She’s attempted growing her own on a few occasions, but other than one plant in a greenhouse which shot to the skies, didn’t have a lot of success. “I used to tell people,” she says, “I had a black thumb.”

Then, in November 2018, she was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer. Familiar with various medical cannabis products, she tried the Rick Simpson Oil protocol, without success. “I took ¼ gram,” she says, “and it was too overwhelming.”

Still, cannabis has not been without its value for dealing with cancer. Balms have eased her neuropathy, vape pens have helped keep her spirits up, and suppositories allowed her to more easily manage side effects from chemotherapy, which, according to Bondor, “can be really horrendous. More people die from chemo than anything else.”

When asked if she has any advice for patients considering using medical cannabis, Bondor urges people, if they have cancer, to try Rick Simpson Oil, noting that while it didn’t work for her last fall, and doesn’t always work for every patient, “it has worked for many people.” Bondor, herself, plans to try using RSO again.

Bondor also suggests people not fear or be discouraged by experimentation. “You have to just sort of try different things and see how they work.”

Despite her self-described black thumb, Bondor also sees good reason to continue growing. “When I pull sucker leaves, my chickens get very happy.”