SURVIVORS

Sybil Redmon

Pancreatic cancer - Stage IV

In October 2011, there were a number of changes on the horizon for my husband Max and I. I'd gotten a big promotion at work and our daughter was getting married. We were enjoying teaching Sunday school and were planning on taking some awesome vacations. Life was very good.

Overall, I’d been a healthy person. I saw my doctor once a year for my annual physical and rarely had a cold. But as I was helping my daughter plan her wedding, I was experiencing some health issues. I had pain between my shoulder blades and the pain seemed to progress to a burning in my abdomen. I thought it might be acid reflux. I couldn't keep anything down. I went on a total liquid diet for weeks and dropped a significant amount of weight. Doctors at my local hospital determined something was wrong with my gallbladder, so they removed it. But following the surgery, I had complications that led to jaundice. Another doctor performed surgery to insert a stent to relieve the jaundice. But when he went to put in the stent, he discovered a mass in my pancreas. The doctor biopsied the mass and when I came out of the fog of the anesthesia, I received the news I had pancreatic cancer.

Because of my deep faith, I wasn't terribly afraid. I don't look at it as brave. It's just that cancer can hit anybody. Cancer doesn't discriminate. My only real fear was for my husband. I was afraid he would fall away from his faith, and I didn't want that to happen. That spurred me to do whatever I need do to overcome the cancer.

I received chemotherapy for months at a hospital near our home in Montgomery, Alabama, but I felt I wasn’t getting the treatment I deserved. That’s when friends from church recommended we look into the new Cancer Treatment Centers of America (CTCA) hospital in Newnan, Georgia, near Atlanta.

I called CTCA and spoke with a representative who talked to me about their hospitals and what they offer. CTCA had a lot more options than my hometown hospital. That was the beginning step to getting our feet in the door of CTCA, and it was a turning point in my cancer journey.

Chris Parrish

Pancreatic cancer - Stage IV

I don’t consider myself special or anything like that. I just do what I have to do to live. And that’s exactly why I when I was diagnosed with stage IV pancreatic cancer in June 2008, I came here to beat it.

How it all began…

I was working out four times a week and in great shape. I had always been on the go and eating whenever I could find time. Friends noticed that I had lost a lot of weight, but I just thought it was due to my active lifestyle. During this time, I was constantly having stomach problems. My doctors recommended over-the-counter drugs and thought nothing of it. For a month, I also had constant diarrhea. Again, my doctors found nothing wrong.

Then, one day during my workout, I was stretching out on a Pilates ball and I noticed a bump protruding under my left ribcage. I knew something was not right. I had also been very tired, having a hard time eating, and in general, not feeling good. I just hurt. I went to my internal medicine doctor and had a MRI and CT scan. Four days later, the physician assistant told me that I had a mass in my pancreas and lesions on my liver. Holding back tears, I asked if they could take them out. But she said they couldn’t. The physician assistant mentioned that I should see an oncologist, and that was the first indication that she was talking about cancer. She never even said the word “cancer.”

It then took me two weeks to get into an oncologist near my home outside of Bangor, Maine. In that time, I did so much research on pancreatic cancer. When I got to the oncologist’s office, I was told they would put me on a chemotherapy regimen I knew from research I had done had only a 2 percent survival rate. I went over a list of other treatments I had read about and asked if they offered them. They said “no” to most of the treatments. I asked why other hospitals could do these treatments and they couldn’t. They just said they had what they had.

My sister and I then went to a bigger hospital on the East Coast for a second opinion. They advised me to do what I was recommended at the hospital at home. It was a waste of time.

A few weeks passed by and then I remembered another place I had always seen commercials for, Cancer Treatment Centers of America (CTCA). I checked it out and made a phone call. I spoke with Karen Rivera, a lovely lady who is an Oncology Information Specialist at CTCA. She was an angel. She provided me with information about CTCA and the treatments they offer. CTCA had what I was looking for and I was interested. Unfortunately, because I had selected an insurance plan through work that had a lower level of coverage, I didn’t have the flexibility to treat out of network at CTCA. But my managers and the benefits team at the company I work for helped me select another insurance plan. It would allow me to come to CTCA for treatment, helping cover my treatment costs.

I called Karen back and we got the process rolling. Karen helped make travel arrangements for my mom and me to come to CTCA at Midwestern Regional Medical Center in Zion, Illinois. So we flew to Chicago early that August. I’ll never forget, a limo picked us up at the airport. I had never been in a limo before, so that was cool. The driver took us to the hospital and as soon as my mom and I walked in the front doors, I knew this was the place I needed to be. That day, I met with my nurse navigator Roxanne and she explained how things would go for my evaluation and consultation. I first met with Dr. Glynis Vashi, who is an intake physician at the hospital. Then I started all of the testing—a bone scan, CT scan and PET/CT scan to make sure the diagnosis I received was accurate and that the cancer hadn’t spread anywhere else. Next I met with all of the people who would provide me with integrative oncology services. Then I met with my medical oncologist, Dr. Robert Levin. We discussed my treatment options. Everything was coming together the way I needed it to. My treatment plan was in place and I was ready to fight.

Roger Stump

Pancreatic cancer - Stage IV

I was 52 at the time of my stage IV pancreatic cancer (pancreatic adenocarcinoma) diagnosis with metastasis to my liver. It was August 2004. I had no symptoms from the disease. I had not been sick in 20 years, not even a cold! The cancer was discovered on a routine un-dyed CT scan after receiving my second kidney stone lithotripsy treatment. I was referred to a local surgeon who ordered a biopsy of my liver.

After waiting a week for the results, the pathologist bungled the diagnosis and said I had fibrosis of the liver, only to change his mind an hour after the surgeon confronted him. Apparently he forgot to run the “SPIN TEST.” By then Hurricane Ivan was bearing down on Pensacola, so my wife and I decided to go to Tampa to see the top pancreatic cancer doctor in Florida.

After sitting in an overcrowded waiting room full of very sick people, the doctor looked at my CT scans from Pensacola for five minutes, turned around, and told me I had ONE YEAR TO LIVE! He said that chemo would only make me sick and was like deer hunting with a BB gun! He suggested a regimen of Gemzar but said that it would only slow the cancer down a little bit and give me a few extra months.

He asked me to get my affairs in order and return the following week to begin treatments. I left there determined to get another opinion, because I was convinced that this was not going to kill me!

A few days later I went to Cancer Treatment Centers of America (CTCA) in Zion, Illinois where they re-ran all the tests and told me that they could do something for me. They exhibited HOPE and common courtesy that I had not seen at the two previous facilities. After eight months they got the cancer into remission (June 2005) as verified by a PET scan; and I have been clear ever since.

My treatments consisted of FUDR and Leucovorin pumped into a mediport for four hours a day over five days. One day during the five-day session I was given inter-arterial chemotherapy (Mitomycin and Cisplatin) directly into the liver and pancreas. This routine was repeated once per month over the eight months.

After that, I returned every three months for a CT scan, blood tests and physical exam. Also they had me take an oral chemo (Xeloda) which was stopped on June 5, 2006 after another PET scan still showed no cancer! My CA19-9 test results have been in the mid 20’s for over a year now. My first CA19-9 test results in late 2004 were in the thousands!

I experienced very little side effects during the treatments at CTCA: no hair loss, no nausea, very little weight loss, no extreme platelet loss, no white blood cell loss, and very little red blood cell loss. Along with the chemotherapy, they gave me natural supplements: milk thistle tablets, green tea tablets, fish oil tablets, maitake mushroom tablets, melatonin, selenium, and vitamins A, C E and B6. Also, I changed my bad diet to include lots of broccoli and vegetables, buffalo (much leaner that beef), no fried foods, and no processed meats with nitrates (hot dogs, sausage and bacon), lots of distilled water, and no sodas.

I also asked God to reveal to me what I had to do spiritually. My answer was to get rid of unforgiveness. I went to about six people who I had held grudges against and asked them to forgive me. I also kept a mindset that God was going to deliver me from this hopeless disease. Also, the support of my wife Brenda kept me going. Without her I would not be here today.

After talking to many people at the hospital, I found that the doctor in Tampa was not alone! Doctors all over this country give a similar death sentence to their cancer patients. The mind is a powerful tool in the fight against cancer. When a cancer patient listens to and believes a negative doctor, the patient starts to program their demise. They convince themselves the treatments won’t work. Many have literally died almost to the day, the time the doctor gave them!

I thank Jesus every morning for the gift he gave me and that I never lost HOPE and the belief that I would be delivered from this scourge. I plan on living well into my 80’s - Thank you JESUS!

Jeana Churchill

Pancreatic cancer

Learning I have cancer

I’m not one to dwell on things in life, so when my doctor diagnosed me with pancreatic cancer, my first response was to attack it head on. I knew I wasn’t ready to die, but I was ready to fight. I immediately called my husband Billy, and we dove head first into researching my treatment options.

I don’t think you can ever be prepared for cancer. And there is no point to sit around and wait for things to happen. I looked at all of my available treatment options. I researched online, made phone calls and talked it over with my friends.

One of our friends recommended Cancer Treatment Centers of America (CTCA), so I called them and provided my insurance information like I had with several other hospitals. CTCA was the first one to call me back. That right there was all the confirmation I needed. They were fast, efficient and had something helpful to offer to me.

Coming to CTCA

Everything about CTCA was welcoming. Even the driver who picked us up from the airport was friendly and genuinely concerned about traveling and how I was feeling. He was the first person from CTCA that we encountered, and it was very comforting for the process to start off so well. As soon as we arrived at the CTCA hospital in Arizona, we knew we had made the right decision. We were warmly greeted as we walked in, and I met with my treatment team soon after.

My kids were a huge concern for me. When I was first diagnosed, Billy and I had tried to shield our kids from cancer to protect them. However, we soon decided to bring them to the hospital, where they could meet my doctors and ask questions, and see this wonderful place I had found for treatment. The doctors were great. They explained the entire treatment process to them, so that they felt included and could understand the weeks ahead, which helped to put them at ease.

Peggy Kessler

Pancreatic cancer - Stage IV

My story

“You have two months to live. Go home and get your things in order.” Those were the words I heard in July 2001. Just days before, I had walked 18 holes in a golf tournament and that evening I thought I might have food poisoning. After a few days, I still didn’t feel any better. A friend told me that my eyes looked yellow, so I went to the doctor. I soon heard the word “CANCER”—not just cancer—but stage IV pancreatic cancer with metastasis to my liver. My first thought was, “OK, let’s get it fixed.” But my doctors replied, “You don’t understand, it is inoperable and incurable.” That’s when I was told I had just two months to live.

To relieve my pain and jaundice, a tube was inserted into my side to drain backed-up bile. They put a leg bag on me and said I would live with that for the rest of my life. The doctor told me to go home and get my affairs in order.

My family and I decided that I needed a second opinion. My sister Pam and my caregiver Jana were busy searching the Internet and making phone calls, trying to find some place that would offer hope. That’s when my younger sister Beth called and told me that her in-laws had a friend who had been treated for pancreatic cancer at Cancer Treatment Centers of America (CTCA) and that they had saved his life. Pam got on the phone right away and called CTCA’s 800-number and talked to an Oncology Information Specialist. They seemed to know exactly what we were going through, were very informative and answered all of our questions. I was scheduled for an appointment within the week. I needed to get help as soon as possible as I was losing weight, could not eat and I was in terrible pain. Not knowing I was full of infection from the insertion of the biliary tube, I was able to get some pain medication. Pam and Jana put me in a wheelchair and accompanied me on a plane to the CTCA in Zion, Illinois. The first thing I remember was entering the lobby of CTCA and seeing the tree of survivors. I said I’m going to get my name on that tree!

CTCA began treating me right away for my infection, got my pain under control and confirmed the diagnosis. I could not believe how fast they were able to do all the tests. They did more in one day at CTCA than my hospital back home did in a week. When they scheduled me for an X-ray at 10 a.m., I had my X-ray at 10 a.m. I thought, WOW, these people know what they are doing.

After three days of tests, I asked Dr. Mellijor how long I had to live. He said he could not give me my “expiration date” …that date was “in greater hands than his.” It was at that moment that I realized someone had offered me HOPE! If I was willing to fight, they would fight with me.

The doctors then explained a very aggressive treatment plan, which began immediately and consisted of five days of FUDR leucovorin with one day of intra-arterial mitomycin platinum. I spent 26 days in the hospital fighting an infection in my body, along with a collapsed lung. During my stay in the hospital, I felt like I was surrounded by friends and people who really cared and who gave me hope. Everyone was so pleasant, from the person who cleaned my room to all the nurses, doctors, kitchen staff—everyone.

Each morning at 10, the group of CTCA healthcare professionals would come into my room to see me. By doing this, they could all hear at the same time how I felt and could answer any questions I had for them. Also, as soon as I arrived at CTCA, they started me on a regimen of vitamins that I continue to take to this day. I don’t know if it was the vitamins or my prayers, but I never lost the hair on my head even with all the chemotherapy. Each time they did tests, it showed that the tumors had shrunk.

After five months, my platelets were too low to continue with the original treatment, so we went to plan B. I then started on a regimen of oral chemo, and within months, the tumor could not be seen at all on the scans. I have been off chemo since November 2002.

At present, I take Prilosec once a day and the vitamins that were recommended to me by Cancer Treatment Centers of America (CTCA). I enjoy spending my time working full time, riding my horses, camping, golfing, traveling, and being with my friends and family. Through the excellent care that I received at CTCA and the constant love, support and prayers from my family and friends, I have stayed positive and set goals for myself. I have talked to numerous patients and many of them say, “I wish I would have found CTCA right away.”

So many hospitals treat you like a number, but at CTCA they treat you like family. I was very fortunate to have found CTCA so soon after my diagnosis. I, like most people, wanted to be treated close to home, but I truly believe if I had, I would not be here to share my story. I continue to count my blessings every day and have recently taken on the opportunity of becoming South Dakota’s Team Hope Leader for an organization called the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network. I hope others that have been diagnosed with this disease and are not satisfied with what they have been told will call Cancer Treatment Centers of America. Remember there is always hope and as the song goes by Lee Ann Womack, “you have a choice to sit it out or dance”...“I Hope You Dance.”