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Stories of Courage & Hope Abstracts by Tom Swartz and Bruce Shriver
In this issue:
Doctorate helps complete cancer victim's journey
Cancer never stood a chance against patient's zest for life Cancer wormed its way into Darren Carlson's face, taking his right eye, the roof of his mouth and his right cheekbone. It couldn't destroy his sense of humor. In the middle of his battle with leiomyosarcoma last year, Carlson taped Frankensteinlike bolts to his head. He suggested calling a high school fundraiser the "Darren Carlson Thank God It's Not a Memorial Golf Tournament." And when it became clear that he'd lose his eye, he changed his Shrine clown name from Zipper to Darr, the eye-patched pirate. Each new surgery removed more of Carlson's face. But he found reasons to be relieved with — and joke about — what remained. The 45-year-old Omahan has refused to hide, returning to work as an estate-planning attorney within three weeks of one of his toughest surgeries and sharing details of his illness on his joke-filled Web site. The cancer is gone. He figures he has a 50-50 shot at keeping it that way. "At this stage, I won, and I won big," he said. For more of this inspirational story, click on the above link.
Unborn twins 'kicked out cancer' A mother who found she had a tumor while pregnant was saved by her unborn twins' kicking, doctors have said. Michelle Stepney developed a tumor but was only diagnosed with cervical cancer when she was taken to hospital with a suspected miscarriage. But doctors found her twins' kicking had dislodged the tumor. Mrs. Stepney, from Cheam, south-west London, refused to undergo chemotherapy and a hysterectomy which would have meant the termination of her twins. She has been nominated for a Woman of Courage Award by Cancer Research UK. "I couldn't believe it when the doctors told me that the babies had dislodged the tumor," she said. "I'd felt them kicking but I didn't realize just how important their kicking would turn out to be." Mrs. Stepney, who also had a five-year-old son called Jack, said she opted to have her life-saving operation after the twins were born. "I owe my life to my girls, and that's why I could have never agreed with a termination," she said. "It was a very difficult decision to make. We wanted to make sure what we did was right by Jack but we did not want to do what was wrong by the girls." Doctors at the Royal Marsden Hospital gave Mrs. Stepney limited chemotherapy. The twins, Alice and Harriet, were delivered by caesarean section 33 weeks into the pregnancy. They were healthy but born without hair because of the cancer treatment. Mrs. Stepney had a hysterectomy four weeks later, and has been given the all-clear. She said she had relied on the support of her husband Scott, 36. "I couldn't have got through it without him," she said, adding: "The twins were also a huge support. They kept me strong throughout it all."
'You obviously have to fight it' The closet door and the shelves in the living room are covered with "Get Well" cards. They are small signs of good wishes from dozens of people hoping and praying for 16-year-old Brandon Burke. Near the shelves of cards Brandon sits on a couch, resting under blankets after another round of chemotherapy. Last November, Brandon was diagnosed with Ewing's Sarcoma, which began as a tumor on his leg, just below his knee that then spread to his bone marrow. Sitting on the couch in the living room of his family's home in Jackson Township, Pennsylvania, Brandon almost laughs at the idea of not fighting as hard as he can. "You obviously have to fight it," he said. "You have to keep a good attitude and do everything you can." Despite a difficult road ahead — with rounds of chemotherapy at Lehigh Valley Hospital every two weeks until June or July — Brandon and his family take strength from each other and the community that Brandon was so involved in. "Just look at the (get well) cards," said Sherry, Brandon's mother. "He's in 11th grade now and we got a card from his third-grade teacher." To read more of this story, click on the above link.
Brandon Jones, 22, plans to graduate from Pittsburg State University in the spring, and he doesn’t intend to let anything stop him. Not even cancer. The PSU senior, a construction management senior, has been battling Ewing’s sarcoma since he was 19. Now facing his third recurrence of the disease, Jones was recently accepted for a study involving a new type of antibody treatment. This will require him to travel to Omaha, Neb., every week. “I had been scheduled for a study in Houston, Texas, but the one in Omaha opened up, and it’s a lot closer to Pittsburg,” Jones said. “I don’t have classes on Fridays, so I’ll go to Omaha, get my treatment and come back.” This is the second phase of the study, he said, and the new treatment looks promising. “In the first phase, which had to do with establishing dosages, three of the patients involved had their cancer eliminated completely,” he said. “This second study will look at side effects, and I don’t know much about that.” To read more of this story, clink on the above link.
Lindsey Wilson is excited to be in school full time and to play softball this year. The Century High School senior is on her way to having better days ahead. Lindsey of Sykesville, Maryland is now forming non-cancerous cells after more than 10 months of battling Ewing’s sarcoma. ‘‘I’m feeling good,” Lindsey said last week inside her home, calling the battle a long one. She received the good news this month. With her IV lines out and spots on her lungs clearing up, Lindsey is now attending Century High full time and looks to get back on the mound pitching for the Century Knights softball team in the spring. ‘‘I like being able to be back and being able to hang out with my friends in the morning before classes,” she said. Lindsey and her family decided a holistic approach was best for her to get better and thinks that is one of the keys to her improved health. To read more of this story, click on the above link.
Chasing dreams in the face of cancer When you find out that you have cancer once, then your feelings for life change, but what do you do when you have to go in for treatment of your third case of the same cancer? Maplesville High School senior Jason Stone has been through his third session of chemotherapy and surgery for Osteogenic Sarcoma. He was first diagnosed with Osteogenic Sarcoma when he was in eighth grade. "I was playing football and I noticed a lump on my leg. I didn't think anything about it; I just treated it like a regular bruise or bump and kept on playing," Stone said. He finished his junior football year and in the last game was injured when a helmet came in full contact with the infected section of Stone's leg. The doctor's first thought after inspecting his leg was, they were going to have to amputate his leg from just above the knee down. Of course Stone, being a sports lover, was not very excited about the thought of living without his leg but went in for the 13-hour surgery anyway. To read more of this story, click on the above link.
David Roth had a simple Christmas; at home with his mom and dad and his older brother who flew in from New Jersey, sharing good food, playing outside with his golden retriever, Callie. He doesn't want people stressed over the holidays. There will be burned turkeys. There will be casseroles that slip and crash to the floor. There will be old anger, old resentment. None of that really matters. "It's all just noise," David says. David is about 5 feet tall and weighs less than a hundred pounds. He has thick, wavy brown hair, a dimple in his chin and blue eyes that look at you in a way a psychologist many years his senior would: piercing, studying, patient. He listens. He expresses his thoughts sincerely and with eloquence beyond his age. He feels very old. When David was 9, he went to the doctor because of an aching leg. He was diagnosed with Ewing's sarcoma. He spent a year in and out of St. Joseph's Children's Hospital. During that year, he learned of pain and God and love. He had six different types of chemotherapy, injected into him once every three weeks. He had several surgeries. He threw up so much he felt like he had a callus on his throat. The chemo gave him mouth sores that burned. He had trouble remembering things. A few good friends kept in touch, but life went on without him. David was frail and lost his hair. He made new friends in the cancer ward and at a camp just for kids with cancer. He learned not all kids survive. To read more of this story, click on the above link.
In January 2006, when she was only 13 years old, Rica Shavonne Hamilton Ada was diagnosed with cancer. The moment her doctor told her the drastic news, Ada said she didn't know what to feel at that particular instant. “I didn't know what to feel at the moment. I just kept wondering, 'Why me, of all people', 'What did I do?', I was really angry, worried, and mostly scared.” Her youthful vigor, however, served her in good stead. When February came around, she was ready to face her battle. Ada was referred to Shriner's Hospital in Honolulu, Hawaii where doctors confirmed that she had Ewing’s Sarcoma. Ada said she underwent limb surgery to remove the tumor from her right arm. After her surgery, she had to undergo a series of 14 treatments of chemotherapy and a month and a half long of radiation. “That was the worst of all my ordeals. I was feeling sick all the time, I lost my hair and I hated the fact that I was away from my family,” Ada said. As time passed, though, Ada said she came to terms with her disease. As she described it, “I started to feel comfortable with my deck of cards. I wanted to be well and strong so that I can come back home and share my story with other people,” said Ada. From Shriner's Hospital, Ada was transferred to the Ronald McDonald House, a place that she called “A home away from home.” For a period of eight months at her second home, Ada said she met many great people who helped her accept her sickness and became her inspiration. Ada explained that everyday of her life while she was in Hawaii was “always challenging. From chemo to radiation, you name it,” she said. “But in the end, I came through it with a positive attitude and results to be thankful for,” Ada said. During the trying times, Ada said her faith and the faith of her family helped her overcome her fears and gave her the strength to fight. “To my fellow survivors, young or old, male or female, always remember, there is hope out there, but it must begin with you. Believe in yourself, have faith in God, for tomorrow He will bring better and brighter days,” Ada said.
Silvertips' Irving is a survivor Everett Silvertips goaltender Leland Irving was in the midst of something Western Hockey League followers had never seen before. He was in a slump. Irving was letting in goals on shots he usually gobbles up like an afternoon snack. He was putting passes right onto the sticks of opponents as if he was trying to boost his assist total. He was even pulled less than eight minutes into a game. This was unfathomable from Irving, a first-round NHL draft pick who is the calmest, steadiest and most even-keeled member of the team. Observers weren't sure what to make of it. There were even whispers of a possible goaltending controversy. But on Irving's adversity scale, a rough patch in goal barely warrants mention. Adversity? Try more than a year's worth of chemotherapy at the tender age of 8. As a cancer survivor, Irving has overcome far greater challenges than giving up a few soft goals. And the way he sorted out his game heading into the playoffs bears just the tiniest bit of resemblance to the child who overcame that life-threatening disease. "I'm almost thankful for being able to experience that and come through a survivor in that situation," Irving said. "It lets you see a whole different perspective. You kind of look at life through a bigger picture, and when you come upon different points of adversity you're able to overcome them easier, it seems." To read more of this story, click on the above link.
Spirit and Support – Stronger than Every Diagnosis The association “Za Novi Dan” (For a New Day) will try to be a guide for those that have no one to ask for advice and support. It was created by chance. Young people that have directly or indirectly faced malignant diseases, and searched for answers to their questions, met on various internet forums, and then in real life. It was they who founded the association that has now officially existed for just over a month, their central gathering site for now is the web site. The site is the only place, in Croatia, where you can get accurate, understandable, useful, checked and reliable information connected to malignant illnesses. What the association is missing are doctors to answer the personal questions of the ill from the viewpoint of the profession. "During our stay in hospital hallways, we often tried to find somebody who was cured of osteosarcoma, the disease that we were battling. We are certain that one positive example and encouraging conversation would bring a much more optimistic look at the further sequence of treatment." Today, with the help of the association, our wish is to selflessly share our experiences, offer a few words of comfort and support, show that at the very hardest moments you do not have to be alone and that cancer is not the “end”. Courage, the will to get better, and a positive spirit can be stronger than any diagnosis – said Maja and Vedran. Their website (in Croatian) and its forum, was founded in order to solve those problems, through which people can exchange their experiences. Katarina and Zoran told us that when most people find out about cancer they do not look far into the future, and accept things that come to them, and live one day at a time, for a new day. My husband fell ill to synovial sarcoma, a very rare type of sarcoma of the soft tissue. Since then, a year has passed, and he is feeling well today, according to the latest tests, there is no more tumor. The disease that appeared out of nowhere, opened many questions for us that we did not get answers for, or answers we got were very hard to come by. Because, cancer is not talked about, and cancer always happens to somebody else. The moment we found out about the diagnosis and received a PHD test, I tried to find some useful information about that type of cancer. On the Croatian medical websites, I managed to find the definition of the type: a very malignant type of cancer that mainly effects children, adolescents and younger people. What was missing was stories of people that have beaten the disease. There was no fight or optimism on the Croatian websites. It was as if cancer was always a taboo topic. During our battle with the illness, we met a number of young people that were also facing a malignant disease, and are facing similar hardships and problems. The idea for the movement and association slowly formed and came from our meetings. The association’s name came from our motto “we live a day at a time, for one new day”, said Katarina. Their website offers the sick information about various types of malignant diseases, from “acute lymphocytic leukemia”, to melanomas and brain tumors. Besides that, there is information about types of diagnostics, from the basic definitions, to the way it is performed. Ways to treat malignant illnesses are listed and explained in detail, as well as experiences of people that have gone through the process of treating the illness, as well as a guide to the necessary institutions.
V5N1 ESUN Copyright © 2008 Liddy Shriver Sarcoma Initiative.
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Matthew
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