A Hamilton woman who defrauded the province of more than $200,000 in a cancer-faking scheme has been sentenced to two years behind bars.

Sarah Lucas, 33, pleaded guilty to using forged documents, fraud of more than $5,000 and identity fraud.

"The fact that you would use the tragic disease of cancer as your tool is quite frankly shameful," Justice George Gage told Lucas.

Lucas did not address the court except to say "guilty" in a softvoice when asked how she pleaded.

She waved to her mother and another supporter before exchanging hugs and tears with them and being led into custody.

The "elaborate" cancer-faking scheme started in 2013 when Lucas lied about being diagnosed with the disease, said assistant Crown attorney Gordon Akilie.

From early 2013 to July 2015, she racked up just over $219,000 in false claims from the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP), which included bogus expenses related to treatment, lodging and transportation, Akilie said.

While Lucas applied for the ODSP in 2008 and had her application approved, it wasn't until 2013 that she requested benefits for "special necessities" relating to a fake cancer diagnosis.

The defence and Crown made a joint submission seeking two years in prison, which Gage approved.

Lucas was also slapped with a DNA order and a $200,000 restitution order.

"The court should condemn crimes like this," Akilie said. "To defraud the government of over $200,000 for personal gain is shocking."

Hamilton police previously said they began investigating Lucas in August 2015 after the ODSP received an anonymous complaint and the government agency found inconsistencies in claims. She was arrested in November 2015.

Lucas, who wore a purple winter coat and sported a short, red-haired pixie cut and dark-rimmed glasses, also pleaded guilty to impersonating Toronto doctor Fred Gentili.

"This doctor never treated Ms. Lucas as a patient," Akilie said.

A secretary in Gentili's office at Toronto Western Hospital — where he is a neurosurgeon specializing in neuro-oncology — previously told The Spectator the doctor only became aware of the investigation after an ODSP caseworker contacted him in August.

Lucas forged doctor's notes for treatments between March 1, 2013 and July 28, 2015, Akilie said.

She also impersonated hotel manager Chanaka Gamaethighe, whose name was misspelled in court documents, on forged hotel receipts.

Lucas submitted letters to ODSP that were supposedly from the Eaton Chelsea Hotel, where Gamaethighe was revenue manager. She claimed she required accommodation at the hotel during her treatment at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre.

In a previous interview, Gamaethighe told The Spectator he knew nothing about the scheme but did say area hospitals had his name for reservation and billing purposes.

Defence counsel Cole Raftery said his client, who had no criminal record, came before the court with "trepidation."

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The Hamilton woman previously attended triOS College in 2012 for medical administration but did not finish the program. She was not working at the time of the fraud.

Lucas married in August 2012 but the relationship dissolved after news about the fraud came to light, Raftery said. His client has since been getting help for mental health issues.

Raftery suggested Lucas launched the cancer scheme under duress with threats from her husband.

Lucas' husband, who is no longer in a relationship with her, couldn't be reached for comment Tuesday.

Gage suggested Lucas probably didn't carry out the fraud alone.

"This is a crime that was carried out with some substantial degree of sophistication and probably with the assistance of one or more others."

Outside court, Raftery agreed Lucas wasn't the "mastermind" of the scheme.

"She's more to be pitied than reviled."