Today’s Woman / Cancer Supplement 2018
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Facing the Cancer Storm
By Julie Engelhardt and Tiffany White Photos by Hollie Colwick
Imagine what it would be like going for your first mammogram, at age 40, and being told you have breast cancer. Or, having your doctor inform you that although you’re in remission for one type of cancer, you’ve been diagnosed with another. Or, you’re only 19, the mother of a baby girl, and are told you have Stage IV ovarian cancer? You’re given the news that due to radiation or chemotherapy treatments, you will face physical changes, and most likely, lose your hair. For many women, that is a huge fear — the thought of going bald is at times more frightening than the cancer diagnosis. Enter Heidi Fuller, a cancer survivor herself who provides women who have cancer with love, support — and new hair through her business, Awakenings Boutique: Wigs, Healing,
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Recovery, Gifts.
TIFFANIE BALLARD (also pictured on previous page) was diagnosed
last year at 19 with Stage IV ovarian cancer. She underwent a bone marrow transplant, and in her words, “the transplant did well in the sense of turning my body into a whole new thing.” She is not in remission. There are two very important people who have helped Tiffanie through her cancer storm. They are her mother and her 1-year-old daughter. “My mother has helped a lot, but having a child who depends on me has also helped,” she says. Tiffanie’s advice to people who want to help cancer patients is very solid and comes from the heart, as well as from her own experiences. “One thing people need to know is to understand the feelings of those who are personally going through having cancer,” she begins. “I’ve noticed that the family tends to make it about themselves. They make it seem like it’s not just the person going through it; it’s that they’re going through it, too. They need be able to put their feelings and anger and disappointment aside and focus on that person going through the issues.”
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Cancer Supplement 2018 / TodaysWomanNow.com
These are the women she has helped through their own “cancer storm,” as Heidi has dubbed the diagnosis and treatment.
These women are the
Real Faces of Cancer.
l Having an optimistic outlook has helped CASILEE KIDD BOYD, 44, face the hardships of cancer — including hair loss. “I identify with my hair. I had a lot of it, and I felt like I kind of lost my identity.”
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Casilee (also pictured below right) says the strong presence of cancer support organizations in the community alleviates the stress and anxiety that cancer survivors often experience. Casilee was diagnosed with stage IB invasive ductal carcinoma breast cancer in February 2018 and says her treatment plan — a combination of modern medicine with holistic healthcare — has been beneficial. Relying on her faith, family, and friends has been another important factor in how she copes with the disease.
Heidi Fuller, left, owner of Awakenings Boutique, provides a listening ear and added spunk to help other women with cancer to keep going.
Today’s Woman / Cancer Supplement 2018
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Facing the Cancer Storm
“HAVING KNOWLEDGE MADE IT LESS SCARY.” l LISA HARRIS, 51, was diagnosed in
2017 with triple negative breast cancer, Stage IIA. She has undergone two rounds of chemotherapy, a lumpectomy on her left breast, 21 radiation treatments, as well as six months of ongoing treatments of Xeloda, a medication that interferes with the growth of cancer cells. The surgery removed the cancer, the chemotherapy successfully shrank the cancer cells, and the radiation was used to kill any present radical cells. She says that one of the most positive things she did, besides being surrounded by her support group, was to learn all she could about her cancer. “Having knowledge made it less scary,” she says. “I was OK. It was in my body, yes, it’s invaded me, and it’s going to come out.”
l MARTHA REDMAN, 58, didn’t believe she would lose her hair — even though her doctor said it would happen. She was diagnosed with stage IC fallopian cancer in January 2018 and had been getting chemotherapy treatments for three weeks when the hair loss began. “I thought, ‘Well, I am not going to lose my hair. I have a lot of hair. I am not that person.’” When she saw that her hair was falling out, Martha decided to shave her head. Martha also learned about the value of making her health a priority and says divine intervention led to her discovering the cancer. Since the diagnosis, Martha, who is a realtor at Semonin Realtors, says she is more driven to succeed. Her cancer has been in remission for six months. “Don’t feel sorry for yourself, because everybody has something they are dealing with. Live life as you would normally live it. Don’t stop living your life. You need to get up every day.”
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Facing the Cancer Storm
l The joy of being alive is clearly evident when you speak with 54-year-old MARCIE PUCKETT LOWE, a 23-year cancer survivor. At the age of 31, Marcie was diagnosed with multiple myeloma. The doctors gave her a maximum of three years to live. She has had three stem cell transplants, which when combined with chemotherapy, have helped her beat, as she puts it, ‘the dragon,’ but she is not in remission. Marcie says that every journey is different, in spite of their similarities, but it’s important to take care of yourself all the time. “Be kind to yourself. Listen to yourself. Pay attention to you, and don’t feel guilty for needing to take care of what you need,” she says. “I still feel I’m here for a reason. I haven’t fulfilled that ultimate purpose. To the degree that I can, I want to make a difference until I am no longer able.”
l Friends, family, her husband, and a great deal of support from other caring people have enabled 50-year-old LEIGH RAE KMIEC to weather through her cancer storm. In 2017 she was diagnosed with Stage I breast cancer, and after 16 days of chemotherapy treatments and 20 days of radiation treatments, her oncologist gave her the good word that she is cancer free. Leigh Rae is also grateful to the medical staff at the James Graham Brown Cancer Center. Every year they bring their mobile mammography van to the Kentucky State Fair, and that mammogram is how she discovered she had breast cancer.
LEIGH RAE’S CANCER WAS DETECTED ON A SCAN FROM A MOBILE MAMMOGRAPHY VAN AT THE KENTUCKY STATE FAIR. 6
Cancer Supplement 2018 / TodaysWomanNow.com
Facing the Cancer Storm l MARIJANE BEELAND, 57, decided to let her hair go gray last year, but a diagnosis of stage II breast cancer in December of 2018 made coping difficult. “When I found out I had to have chemotherapy, it was twice as devastating just switching from my gray to being bald, losing my eyebrows and eyelashes, and all body hair,” she says.
l Diagnosed with stage III breast cancer in 2017, JEANINE RAYMOND, 64, became more concerned about not being able to help the people who needed her most. Jeanine had been helping her sister take care of their mom, who had been diagnosed with dementia, but when Jeanine became ill, she couldn’t fulfill her caregiving role. “Seeing other people suffer who you can’t help is so frustrating.” However, Jeanine says she is grateful for the advice she has received from other cancer survivors because she has been able to build camaraderie with them.
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“...[I] HAVE A GREATER EMPATHY FOR PEOPLE WHO GO THROUGH LIFECHANGING EVENTS.”
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Despite her diagnosis, Marijane, who is a nurse practitioner at Norton Urogynecology Center, continued working throughout treatment and says it was a good strategy for keeping her mind off the illness. Dealing with cancer also has served as a time of self discovery for Marijane. “Even though breast cancer can be deadly, I realize I will survive. There are days when I would like to stay on the couch and do nothing, but it is good that I have to go to work,” she says.
Megan, right, enjoys a fun moment with her sister Jennifer.
MEGAN BURNETT, theatre program director and assistant professor of theatre at Bellarmine University, equated wigs with characters in a play. But when she was diagnosed with stage III breast cancer this year and had to find a wig to wear, thinking of herself as a character became the solution for coping with her hair loss. “When I could see and feel my hair coming out, it almost made me nauseous. You lose a sense of the ease of yourself. I realized that it is OK. I can be a character today,” she says. And she is thankful for the insight she has gained. “This disease has opened me up to experiences and sensations and new relationships I’ve never had, and I am grateful for those relationships. I am not grateful for the nausea, but it has helped me have a greater empathy for people who go through life-changing events.”
Facing the Cancer Storm
l Diagnosed with stage IV colon cancer five years ago, ASHLEY DAVIS SULLIVAN, 32, isn’t preoccupied with concerns about what will happen next. Her motto is simple: faith over fear. “Every time you start to have fear, just rely on God.” Rather than concentrating on the negative aspects of cancer, Ashley reads positive stories about cancer patients and receives encouragement from her family, faith, and cancer survivors. Seeing other cancer survivors rise above their illness gives Ashley an optimistic outlook about her life and future.
Ashley’s daughter Aubrey describes cancer as being “a stupid thing that tries to make people feel bad.”
l When AMANDA BLACKBURN, 38, began losing her hair, she learned that she couldn’t control the diagnosis, but she could control her attitude. Amanda was diagnosed with stage III colorectal cancer in 2017 and had 28 radiation treatments, two surgeries, and chemotherapy. A single mother of two daughters ages 10 and 12, Amanda says they have been instrumental in her healing, and she believes that this experience will give them emotional fortitude. “It has been really important to me from the very start to be honest with them. People want to save the kids from heartache, but I felt that it would be scarier to not be honest than to be honest.” After she received her last treatment, Amanda, who is now in remission, found another silver lining. “When my treatment was over in June, my mom, dad, the girls, and I left the Norton Cancer Institute with our car packed and drove straight to Florida and stayed there for 30 days. I thought, ‘Why not have an end-of-cancer-treatment party for 30 days?’”
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Amanda says her daughters Juliet and Olivia help get her through the tough days.
“WHY NOT HAVE AN END-OF-CANCER-TREATMENT PARTY FOR 30 DAYS?”
Cancer Supplement 2018 / TodaysWomanNow.com
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Facing the Cancer Storm Earlier this year, six weeks before her retirement as a dental hygienist, 57-year-old LISA BENSON was diagnosed with Stage II breast cancer. She is currently undergoing treatment. She confesses that she is trying to work through the scary realization that she has cancer. Lisa says she has to hang on to hope to make it through each day as best she can. Her words of wisdom to anyone newly diagnosed with cancer, “Try to get past what is now and think about getting through it. It’s going to get better.”
Karan, right, says her sister, who calls her daily, is one of her biggest supporters. Imagine what it would be like to be diagnosed with cancer not only once, but twice, in different parts of your body. This is what 63-year-old KARAN KAPP has faced. In 2004 Karan was diagnosed with Stage II breast cancer, and just this year she was diagnosed with Stage I uterine cancer. Treatments have included chemotherapy and radiation. She is in remission for breast cancer, but is still in treatment for the uterine cancer. Her advice to those facing cancer is that though it seems it’s going to be a long road, stay positive. “Don’t stress over the hair — it grows back,” she offers. “You will get through it.” The one aspect she would like people to understand about cancer is not to be afraid. “There are a lot of experts now who are trying new things, and there’s always hope that there will be a solution and that it will be gone. Find a good doctor and a good medical staff. They’ll take care of you.”
“YOU WILL GET THROUGH IT.” SARA BEAVEN LYNCH, 40, is grateful for the people in her life. The moment she received the news that she had Stage 1 breast cancer, everyone she knew rallied around her. One of the greatest hurdles she encountered was losing her hair. “The most difficult thing, especially once surgery was finished, was the outward appearance of being sick. The eyebrows and eyelashes are going, and you know it’s going to be a process to grow it in. It will take years and years, and you wonder how it’s going to look when it comes back.” Sara’s words of encouragement to anyone diagnosed with cancer are simple, yet powerful. “I recently read a quote that says, ‘Just survive.’ That’s what you do. You get through it.”
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IT’S A CELEBRATION OF LIFE! These breast cancer survivors prove strength, fortitude, and courage can keep you moving forward no matter how challenging the situation. For our sixth annual Pink Woman photo shoot, we’re celebrating these women and their ability to keep moving forward.
Photo Sponsored by:
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PHOTO: MELISSA DONALD LOCATION: The Sawyer-Hayes Community Center at E.P. “Tom” Sawyer State Park Today’s Woman / Cancer Supplement 2018
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