Sister Gertrude, a nun who works in a Catholic hospital for the elderly, returns to work after healing from surgery to remove a brain tumor. Gertrude suffers from significant anxiety following her surgery, and believes that her cancer has returned, despite the hospital's lead doctor, Dr. Poirret, assuring her there is no evidence for it. The Mother Superior of the convent also dismisses Gertrude's fears as hypochondria. Sister Mathieu, who has an unspoken sexual attraction to Gertrude, believes Gertrude's worry is legitimate.