Yes! I have to get tested every 3 months, and I was originally told my cancer definitely *will* become active again at some point in the future (they've softened that a bit to "possibly" since my PSA has remained undetectable for 4 years now).

The secret sauce for me was adding a couple of pleasant things to the test. First, there's a little hole-in-the-wall Indian cafeteria in the medical building across the street from the clinic that makes the best masala chai in the city: they start by roasting the spices in the pan once you order, then gradually add the tea and milk. And second, my cancer originally paralyzed me, so walking the 1.5 km to the clinic at the hospital where I spent a month in bed staring at the ceiling feels like a kind-of vindication.

So while I still get nervous a couple of days before each test, I also think of test day as masala-chai day and celebrate-being-able-to-walk-again day. Obviously, your "treats" will be different, but try to figure out something positive you can add. Do you have a favourite restaurant or cafe near the clinic? A fishing spot on the way home? A store where you can buy more kitchen gadgets or shiny tools you'll never use? 😉 Make that as big a part of the ritual as the test itself, and it won't be quite as hard — the stress will still be there, but it will be manageable.

Also, consider this: if you're getting tested only 1x/year, you're in a good place. When they're worried, you move to a 2–4x/year test schedule. So when you're heading in, think to yourself "I'm still in the LOWEST monitoring tier. Another successful year completed!"