It ’ s given me a new lease on life , and I feel like we should be doing something good for a reason .”
he had multiple myeloma , an incurable – but controllable – blood cancer that forms in the plasma cells .
“ Who would have ever thought that we ’ d be grateful for a heart attack ?” Kathy asked . “ The tests alerted us to a cancer that we likely wouldn ’ t have found so early .”
After two stents were placed to open blocked arteries , Neil started chemotherapy . The cancer responded well , so three years into the therapy Neil underwent a successful stem cell transplant at Barnes Hospital in St . Louis . He has been cancer-free for the last three years . “ Every day that I get up , I am grateful to be alive ,” Neil said .
Sadly , Neil ’ s cancer diagnosis was not foreign territory to the couple . In 2002 , Kathy was diagnosed with ovarian and endometrial cancer . A full hysterectomy and six chemotherapy treatments later , she was cancer-free . Ten years later , endometrial cancer cells were discovered on a nerve bundle in her lower back . A St . Louis-area surgeon meticulously shaved off as many cancer cells as he could without harming the nerve that affected her ability to walk .
Again , Kathy underwent six chemo treatments and 25 radiation therapy treatments at Sarah Bush Lincoln Regional Cancer Center to rid her body of the endometrial cancer . “ I can ’ t say enough good things about the staff . They are upbeat and can answer any question we ask . I had heard terrible stories from people who underwent radiation therapy , but the staff quickly put my mind at ease . I didn ’ t have any problems at all ,” she said .
Kathy has continued to see SBL Medical Oncologists Kuppuswamy Jagarlamudi , MD , and Abdur Shakir , MD , every three months , yet , in recent months , her blood work has crept just beyond the “ normal ” range . She has said that she is mentally prepared to continue her cancer fight .
“ It is such a blessing to continue to get my care right here ,” Kathy said . “ I ’ ve had two of the same nurses since the very beginning and that ’ s comforting . They have given us so many tips and tricks to stay healthy during our treatments .”
“ We just do what we ’ ve got to do ,” Kathy added . “ We have been fortunate to have the right people in our lives when we ’ ve needed them .”
Always upbeat and bubbly , Kathy and Neil live life with a ‘ a glass half-full ’ attitude , believing that they have a greater purpose in life . “ There ’ s something we ’ re suppose to be doing . We ’ re still alive . I hate to think that we ’ re seasoned pros , but we ’ re able to help others by talking with them . I ’ ll tell them , ‘ It ’ s not as bad as you ’ re thinking ,’” Neil said . “ I make them laugh and give them a shoulder to cry on .”
Neil concedes that cancer has changed his outlook to some degree . “ I think I ’ m a better person than before . I ’ m more considerate of others ’ feelings ,” he said . “ It ’ s given me a new lease on life , and I feel like we should be doing something good for a reason .”
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It ’ s given me a new lease on life , and I feel like we should be doing something good for a reason .”
Neil Bradford
The newly constructed SBL Regional Cancer Center . For more information about the Center , call 217-258-2250 . january 2017 healthstyles 11