A Stem Cell Transplant Survivor

I was originally diagnosed with breast cancer on Valentine's Day 1985. I went to Mayo Clinic in Rochester for a mastectomy. That was followed with chemotherapy spreadover 15 months. In the fall of 1993 I felt a lump in my right chest. After several visits to different doctors, physical therapists, a chiropractor and an orthopedist, I still didn't know what was wrong and was told I should return to Mayo. On February 14, 1994 I was again diagnosed with cancer: metastatic cancer that had spread to the bones of the legs, spine and chest.

I worked with Mayo for seven months trying experimental drugs, to no avail. Mayo said they really didn't have anything else to help me and suggested I go home and get my affairs in order. I wasn't ready to give up so I went to the University of Iowa Hospitals for further tests. They felt they might be able to help me with a bone marrow transplant but I would need to go through extensive chemotherapy to get rid of the cancer cells before a transplant could take place.

After 8 months of chemo they said I still had too many cancer cells in my bone marrow. They, too, said I should go home and get my affairs in order. I was convinced that a bone marrow transplant was the only thing that would help me survive. With encouragement to continue my search from my Waterloo oncologist, Dr. Nadipuram, I went to M.D. Anderson in Houston TX for a week of tests. They could not help me. My insurance company then said if I was going to continue getting medical opinions, I had to go to one of their network hospitals.

They sent me to the University of Illinois Hospital in Chicago.From there, I was referred to the University of Colorado Health and Science Center in Denver for a new procedure that cleanses the stem cells and was being performed there.

Upon acceptance into this program, I flew out to begin my two-month stay. I was in Denver for two months. The procedure was pretty grueling and I didn't feel like my old self for nearly a year. But after that year I have been able to live life pretty much as I used to.I do know what living each day to the fullest is, and I try and make the most out of every day. The doctors told me that I could expect to live three or four years, but it is over ten years now and I am still very much alive! One of the important things I have learned is that you are your own health advocate and it is important to be informed of the things available to you in health care (see the Iowa Breast Cancer Resource Guide - Third Edition).

You need to fight for yourself. I was very fortunate to have a supportive family and friends to keep me going, and faith that God wasn't through with me yet. Since that time, I have had an opportunity to work on the breast cancer golf tournament, Reach for Recovery and with Iowa Breast Cancer Edu-action. I have had the opportunity to tell my story and listen to many other cancer patients. My hope is that I am helping others cope with their treatment and showing them there is a light at the end of the tunnel.