When he was being treated for cancer in Nijmegen, astronomer Jordy Davelaar had only one goal: to return to New York, the city where he had just started his dream job. ‘I promised myself that I’d enjoy every little thing that I did.’

‘We think it’s cancer.’ These were the words spoken by Jordy Davelaar’s GP in Nijmegen last year. Davelaar had just started his dream job at the University of Columbia in New York, after his PhD at Radboud University. By chance, he had returned to the Netherlands so that he could celebrate Christmas with his family.

What followed was a roller coaster ride, a period filled with fear, helplessness and uncertainty. The mass that had nestled behind Davelaar’s chest turned out to be a rare form of germ cell cancer. And if you can speak of luck in such a situation, it turned out to be a form of cancer that could be treated quite well with chemotherapy. Astronomer Davelaar, who is a numbers man, knew that he had a seventy percent chance of survival.

During the chemotherapy in Nijmegen, Davelaar began to make a steady recovery. During the treatment, the large tumour shrank and disintegrated, as scans later revealed. The doctors saw no further need for treatment. Davelaar was also improving physically. Last summer, Davelaar managed to walk twenty kilometres during a challenge that enabled him to raise €4,500.00 for the Radboud Oncology Fund.

The subsequent lifting of the United States travel ban gave Davelaar the green light to return to the States. On 8 November, Davelaar walked through the arrivals hall of JFK Airport and got into a yellow cab that brought him to Manhattan. ‘Crossing the Kennedy Bridge and seeing the skyline on my left gave me goosebumps. It was just so surreal to be back.’

How are you doing now?

‘Pretty good. I’m only back in New York for a short time. I’ll be flying back to the Netherlands on 10 December (this interview took place before that date, ed.) so that I can celebrate the holidays with my girlfriend and my family. I’ll also be having another scan when I’m in Nijmegen. Hopefully it’ll be good news, but it’s still nicer to have your loved ones around when you get the results.’

‘It will take a while to come to terms with what has happened’

‘After arriving back in New York, it took me longer than usual to get over my jet lag. I’m still in the recovery phase. I tire a lot more easily. I’ve noticed that my recovery has not only been physically draining, but I’ve also felt a mental strain. It’s important now that I to listen to my body. That means that I’ve had to learn how to say ‘no’. Just like when one of my colleagues invited me to come and celebrate Thanksgiving in Massachusetts, which is five hours away. It sounded like great fun, but I’m not ready for that sort of thing just yet.’

Do you think that the events of the past year have sunk in yet?

‘Yes, I think they have. I also try to reflect on what’s happened by going back over everything in my head from time to time. Right now I don’t feel like my life’s controlling me and I’ve got more time for myself. What all of this will mean for me in the long run, and how it’s changed me as a person, that’s an ongoing process. It’ll take some time to process everything that’s happened.’

Does the city feel different now than it did before you got sick?

‘I’m focusing more closely on the things that I do, and I’ve promised myself that I’m going to enjoy every little thing that I do. I recently went to a basketball game and an ice hockey game for the first time. I’d also never been to the Met (which is the common name for The Metropolitan Museum of Art, ed.). I’m crossing all sorts of things off my bucket list, things for which I never made time before.’

‘It’s also been great to get back to the office and see my colleagues. It’s a lot better than working from your living room all the way over in another time zone. I’m now working on the thirteenth floor of the Columbia University campus. When I look out of my window I can see the Hudson.’

Are you only looking as far as your next scan, or do you dare to look further than that?

‘I’ve noticed that I’m still a bit apprehensive about making new plans. Unless my results are good, then it’ll be a different story.’

‘But having said that, I do already have quite a lot of plans for next year. Coronavirus permitting – which is the other important prerequisite besides my health – I’ll be going to California for a month or two in the spring to participate in a scientific exchange programme. When I found out about the programme, I immediately said that I’d be taking surfing lessons. Hopefully, it’ll all go off without a hitch.’

You once said that cancer undermined your confidence in your own body. Would you say that your confidence has slowly been restored?

‘I obviously have the occasional panicky thought. But I try not to drive myself crazy and I try to look at my feelings in a rational light. If the question is whether I’ve got any symptoms that may indicate that something is wrong, or whether I’ve got a bad feeling about things at the moment, then the answer is no. And that means that I know that there’s no immediate indication that the scan will suggest that anything is wrong. But obviously there are no guarantees.’