Nerissa Balland | Healing After Cancer Through Creativity

Visual artist, author, and therapeutic arts practitioner Nerissa Balland shares her experience of being diagnosed with metastatic melanoma while five months pregnant and caring for a toddler. She recounts navigating surgery, childbirth, lymph-node removal, immunotherapy, a recurrence, and an oral chemotherapy she could not tolerate. She ultimately chose a closely monitored “watch and wait” approach and, at the time of this conversation, had lived with no evidence of disease for eight and a half years.

Nerissa also discusses the often-overlooked emotional aftermath of cancer. After interviewing more than 100 young mothers facing cancer, she identified common struggles involving identity, isolation, asking for help, and processing what they had endured. Those conversations inspired her book, Canvas of Courage: The Art of Healing, Hope, and Gratitude for Young Mothers Facing Cancer. She explains how creative practices—from painting and photography to movement, baking, and knitting—can help regulate the nervous system and give expression to experiences that are difficult to put into words.

The conversation explores why healing is an evolving process, how therapeutic arts differ from clinical art therapy, and the importance of offering cancer patients specific, practical support. Nerissa’s central message is powerful: you are not broken—you may simply need the right space and support to process what you have lived through.

Learn more about Nerissa’s book, artwork, workshops, and free Creative Reset Guide at nerissaballand.com

The Cancer Liberation Project is sponsored by thekarlfeldtcenter.com