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Survivors
Survivor Story: Garry Pollow
I want to invent a new word. As the word “survivor” means “one who lives through an affliction”, my new word would mean “one who thrives after an affliction”. I’ll let you know when I come up with it. I have lived with pancreatic cancer for a long time. I say this because by the time of diagnosis I found that I had been living with these asymptomatic, slow growing tumors for many years. I have neuroendocrine (islet cell) pancreatic cancer that has metastasized to my liver. After my original diagnosis in February of 2008, I...
Survivor Story: Michael Carter
Having grown up in Alabama, I am well acquainted with the month of August. With its meteorological extremes of heat, haze, humidity and a dearth of rainfall, I have grown to despise it, longing for the more reasonable temperatures and lower humidity brought on by the advent of fall. However, in 2002, I acquired another reason to loathe the eighth month of the year, for on August 6th, I was forced to come to grips with my own mortality when I was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. I really can’t describe my reaction to the consultation with the...
Survivor Story: James Moore
In August 2008, I noticed I was losing weight. After I ate, I would get sick. After describing my symptoms to the doctor, he thought I had acid reflux. My weight loss continued and I developed a cough. I went back to the doctor; he decided to do blood work and found the enzyme levels were high in my liver. Then, he did a CAT scan and informed me that I had a mass at the head of my pancreas the size of a golf ball. Following that, in January 2009, I had a biopsy done. The doctor told us he had done many of these biopsies before and that the mass was cancerous. ...
Survivor Story: Francis Flatau
I am a SURVIVOR. I was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2007 and underwent surgery and chemo and radiation. I am now cancer free. I play tennis as much as I can; sometimes as many as eight or ten times a week in the summer. I walk three miles a day four or five days a week and go to the gym to work with a trainer three times a week. I am looking forward to my 75th birthday this summer. Last summer I participated in the National Senior Olympics and hope to qualify again in my state games this fall.
Survivor Story: Donnie Burns
My life dramatically changed on January 10, 2005, when I was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. I was a 68-year-old non-smoker, non-drinker. I was also very active, running an average of 30 miles a week. Knowing so little about this type of cancer, my family encouraged me to go to a larger teaching hospital to have a procedure call the Whipple. The surgery was a success! My doctors contributed my remarkable recovery to my active lifestyle, which was definitely an asset. Pancreatic cancer is not an easy diagnosis to live with. As of January 10, 2010, I...
Survivor Story: Earlene Jornt-Girman
In 1994, sixteen years ago, I was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. That November, I had an eight and a half-hour surgery. My surgeon was so elated that he pushed me into ICU himself, talking to me all the way as I tried to awaken. I shall never forget the words: “Hurry and wake up, there has been a miracle!” For the next month, I recall the many professionals, my dear family, my support groups back home praying – and their emotional outbursts when I finally returned to the schools I had developed over the last 40 years. I learned the fullness...
Survivor Story: Marcie Reber
My name is Marcie and I am a nine-year survivor of a rare type of pancreatic cancer called neuroendocrine, or islet cell, carcinoma. Because its treatment options are vastly different than those for the most common pancreatic cancer, adenocarcinoma, I am sharing my story to help others with a rare diagnosis through their journey. I am an operating room nurse and have always enjoyed taking care of patients. It was not until I became sick that I truly understood the fear and loneliness one feels when faced with a cancer diagnosis. At the age...
Survivor Story: Deborah Veney
I am a pancreatic cancer survivor and I am celebrating being three-and-a-half years cancer free! My journey began on April 24, 2006. I had been having intermittent, annoying pain on my left side that I thought resulted from exercising, maybe a pulled muscle, and some fried chicken which I don't normally eat. The combination of the two caused quite a bit of pain one evening. I called my doctor and he suggested I go to the emergency room. After extensive testing, I was told that I had a "suspicious lesion" on my pancreas and I should see a surgeon after release...
Survivor Story: Scott Nelson
When I turned 50 in 2004, I decided it was time to start doing a better job of monitoring my health. Up until that point, I had rarely seen a doctor and had never been in a hospital. Among other things, I started working with my doctor to find the right prescription medication to reduce my cholesterol. This included quarterly blood tests. In between two of my quarterly tests, I felt slightly sick to my stomach for an extended period of time. I moved up my next test and went in to see my doctor. He saw an unusual blood test result and sent me for an...
Survivor Story: Jennifer Peelman
Two years ago, my life abruptly stopped when a visit to the ER for suspected food poisoning resulted in a week long hospital visit because a tumor was found on my pancreas. I had been working in oncology research for five years at that point and was fortunate enough to be able to have a trusted colleague and friend become my own personal oncologist. I was diagnosed with a rare neuroendocrine tumor and surgery was the only option for me. I had surgery in December 2007 to remove half of my pancreas and all of the local lymph nodes. My...
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