Celebrating the my body started to recover, I would feel better by the hour. She was absolutely right. It was so helpful to have someone that had been in the exact same spot to guide me through that first terrible treatment. Coming from her, I knew I would get through it. W2W: Would you like to say something to your doctors/nurses/ people at treatment facilities? Jenny: It is so important with cancer that the patient feel comfortable with their medical team. And believe me, there are so many, it really is a team. When I arrived at Telfair Pavilion and got the bad news in May 2006, they had called in Wanda Jones, the patient navigator from the Lewis Cancer and Research Pavilion. She was there with me from the very first moment and she guided me every step of the way. I also appreciate how well my medical team worked together to insure we were fighting my cancer most effectively. I am so grateful for Doctors Mark Taylor, Morris Geffen, Susan Mahany, Richard Greco and all of their staff, as well as Mary Felchlin, lymphedema therapist, Michael Ard-Kelly, acupuncturist, and Island Spine and Sport, my physical therapists. We all made a great team. W2W: Is there is a thank you that you would like to publicly express? Jenny: Yes. To my husband, for putting up with me doing absolutely nothing to help him with the house or the kids for 9 months during treatment. He never once complained, he shaved his head for me, got a pink ribbon tattoo on his ankle and gave me all the emotional and physical support I needed. Also to my mother and father-in-law. My parents were both deceased before I was diagnosed and Nanny and Pop were at my side just like my own parents would have been. And to all of our friends and other family members. We could not have survived the experience nearly as well without their support. W2W: Is there a piece of advice you would give medical professionals in dealing with cancer patients? Jenny: Yes. Please embrace and encourage complimentary treatment to help deal with the side-effects of traditional treatment. Things like yoga, acupuncture, guided imagery, and physical/occupational therapy. I really struggled with nausea with my first chemo treatment, and my brother had learned that acupuncture can be helpful. He did some investigation and learned that there was an acupuncturist at the Center for Well-Being right at Candler Hospital. Acupuncture completely eliminated the nausea for me. I continued it through chemo and I never experienced the extreme nausea or severity of side effects again. I now use acupuncture to help counteract the symptoms associated with my chemically-induced menopause. My surgical choice was double mastectomy and tram-flap reconstruction, where my stomach muscles were moved to help form and provide blood flow to the new “breast” tissue. My range of motion and physical pain was profound for several weeks following View online at www.savannahwoman.sc
Survivor in You
surgery. Although I had to fight to get the prescription, I got amazing results from physical therapy and quickly learned that I was not going to be physically limited forever. This realization was a huge motivator for me both physically and mentally. I think physical therapy should be a standard for all mastectomy patients. W2W: Did something funny ever happen with your wig... a wig story, or a chemo story that made you laugh? Jenny: I was completely bald at Halloween in 2006. I decided to dress up to greet the kids that year. I wore a black “grim reaper” type of outfit, applied pale makeup, added dark circles around my eyes and put fake blood on my head. Then I sat on the front porch and handed out candy. One boy said to me, “wow, that looks real”. I told him it was real and he touched my head. Then he said, “you are really creepy!” Mission Accomplished! W2W: How has having cancer affected your relationship with your family? Jenny: I figured that I would never take my family for granted and I would never get angry or yell at them again. That was a false assumption. I still get frustrated sometimes, but have come to realize that is just a normal part of life and I still have to be a mom and a wife, not always the cancer survivor. I don’t let cancer define who I am, but I do try to keep it in mind when things are getting out of hand. It helps to reel me back in and realize that the problem at hand may not be quite as big a deal as it seems. W2W: If there is something you can tell other people going through this, what would it be? Jenny: Become an educated advocate for yourself, be an active participant in your treatment, keep a positive mental attitude, exercise to maintain your physical strength, seek out complimentary options to insure better outcomes of traditional treatment, don’t sweat the small stuff, and set a self-rewarding goal for when treatment is over (we took a trip to the Bahamas). Cancer sucks at any age, but younger women with a breast cancer diagnosis face some unique challenges that their older counterparts do not. For example, young children, a blooming career, fertility concerns, safety of pregnancy, early menopause, and dating. Plus breast cancer tends to be more aggressive in younger women and the survival rates are lower. I had moments when I felt very alone despite the wonderful support I received. So, I would like women in the area to know that there is now a local group in the community that is here to help. We are the Young Survival Coalition, and we meet the second Sunday of each month at 4pm at the Lewis Cancer and Research Pavilion. We can be reached at 912-308-3081 and 912-695-3081 or via email at yscsavannahcvg@ youngsurvival.org. Our national website is youngsurvival.org.
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