Anointing of the Sick During Cancer

A great many Catholics believe Anointing of the Sick is what happens when someone is about to die, which means they do not ask for it until the situation is desperate, and sometimes not at all. The Catechism addresses this in a single sentence: the sacrament "is not a sacrament for those only who are at the point of death. Hence, as soon as anyone of the faithful begins to be in danger of death from sickness or old age, the fitting time for him to receive this sacrament has certainly already arrived."

For someone with cancer, that language covers far more ground than a deathbed. A serious diagnosis, a major operation, a hospital admission for complications, a recurrence, a change to a more difficult line of treatment — these are all within it.

The Catechism names a specific occasion that comes up constantly in oncology: "It is fitting to receive the Anointing of the Sick just prior to a serious operation." Surgical resection, a stem cell transplant, and other major procedures all sit comfortably in that description.

It also addresses repetition, which surprises people: "If during the same illness the person's condition becomes more serious, the sacrament may be repeated," and if someone recovers and later falls gravely ill again, they may receive it again. Cancer is often a long illness with several turning points, and the sacrament is not a one-time allocation to be spent carefully.

Only a priest or bishop. This matters practically, because hospital chaplaincy teams include deacons, lay chaplains, and volunteer ministers of Holy Communion, none of whom can anoint. A lay chaplain can sit with you, pray with you, bring Communion, and get a priest called — but if what you want is anointing, say the word "anointing" and say "priest," so the request is routed correctly.

The Ethical and Religious Directives, the norms that govern Catholic health care in the United States, ask facilities to make priests available for this, and add an important provision for families: the sacrament is normally celebrated when the sick person is fully conscious, but "may be conferred upon the sick who have lost consciousness or the use of reason, if there is reason to believe that they would have asked for the sacrament while in control of their faculties."

The priest lays hands on the sick person in silence, prays over them, and anoints the forehead and the hands with oil blessed by the bishop. It takes a few minutes. Family and friends can be present, and often are.

The Catechism lists what the sacrament is for, and none of it is a promise of cure: strengthening, peace and courage to endure the illness; the forgiveness of sins if the person could not receive them through confession; union with Christ's suffering; the restoration of health if that is conducive to their salvation; and preparation for passing over to eternal life. The conditional phrasing on healing is deliberate and old.

In a hospital, call spiritual care or chaplaincy directly rather than asking a nurse to pass it along, and ask when a priest is next on site — many hospitals have one for a set number of hours, with an on-call arrangement overnight. If you are at home or in hospice, call your parish office; parishes are used to this request and will usually come. If you are travelling for treatment, the nearest parish to the cancer center will very often have a standing arrangement with it.

If the situation is deteriorating quickly, say so plainly when you call. That is not being dramatic; it is the information the person on the phone needs to prioritize the visit.

You do not need to be Catholic to arrange this for someone you love, and you do not need to explain your own beliefs to anyone. Hospital chaplaincy departments handle requests like this constantly and will not ask you to justify it. If you are unsure whether the patient would want it, that uncertainty is worth saying out loud to the chaplain, who is trained for exactly that conversation.