Patricia Marchant Interview Write Up
What is your relation to cancer?
“I am a lung cancer survivor. Both my parents had cancer (lung and pancreatic), as well as my brother (leukemia), who is also a cancer survivor.”
How long did you have the disease? What stage was it?
“I was diagnosed in January of 2013; I have been in remission since September of 2013. From what I hear, they never say you are cured, they say you are “NED,” which stands for No Evidence of Disease. I have been NED since September of 2013 and I believe I will continue to be NED. My cancer was Stage 3A non small cell lung cancer (adenocarcinoma).”
What were your first thoughts after the diagnosis?
“I was ashamed, because I was a smoker. That feeling continued until Dr. Huberman, my oncologist, told me that I had the “non-sympathetic cancer.” He said that people who smoke never get cancer, and people who never smoke get cancer. We don’t get to pick what we get.”
Did your daily life start to change? How so?
“Yes, big time. After the diagnosis I had numerous tests and doctor’s appointments. Lucky for me, my family and friends were so supportive. My daughter took charge of scheduling. I had to have 30 radiation treatments and 12 chemo treatments. My family took turns driving me into my treatments. They started in February of 2013 through March 2013. My granddaughter made me a countdown calendar and every day when a treatment was done we threw away the day. When the chemo was finished I had to wait six weeks for surgery. Truly, my whole family’s daily lives changed.”
What was it like for you to leave your job?
“When I told my employers, I basically told them that I understood if they had to hire someone else to perform my duties while I was out. They said that I would always have a job with them, and allowed me the flexibility to come in when I could. This meant weeks of not working at all, and other weeks when I would only work for 2-4 hours per day. As much as I wanted to continue with my daily routines, the effects of the treatments took their toll on my body and I simply couldn’t do what I always did.”
What would you say was the worst moment of your experience with cancer?
“The lowest point of my journey was when we went to go see my thoracic surgeon, Dr. Gangadherin, and he gave us some scary news: we might not be able to continue with the plan to have surgery. There was a “spot” on my hip that had appeared on a scan and they needed to confirm that the cancer had not spread before moving ahead with the surgery. This was a setback that I was not prepared for, and it required me to have another MRI and biopsy. In the end, I was cleared for surgery and it was scheduled for May 16. During the surgery, my doctor performed a lobectomy, meaning that he removed the upper lobe of my right lung (the part that contained the cancer). It was major surgery, and I was in the hospital for six days.
Recovery from surgery was slow and difficult, but my progress climbed steadily upward. That summer, I had two follow-up chemo treatments, one in June and the other in July. By September, my daily life had mostly returned to normal.”
Did your thinking about how you lived your life change?
“No. I have no regrets!”
Did you decide to live your life in a different way from that point on?
“No, I mostly live my life now as I did before. I did make a bucket list; however, of the seven things on it I have only done one -- to do a 5K walk with my family, which we did on November 1, 2014. The significant changes I have made are that I no longer smoke, and I exercise regularly -- I walk two miles or more every day!”
Has your experience with the disease shaped your thoughts about how you live your life today?
“No.”
What insights on life do you think you have gained from your experience with cancer?
“I would not wish cancer on anyone, ever. It makes me especially sad when I hear about little ones or young people going through it.”
Is there anything else you would like to share about your experience?
“If someone had to get it, I’m glad it was me.”
“I am a lung cancer survivor. Both my parents had cancer (lung and pancreatic), as well as my brother (leukemia), who is also a cancer survivor.”
How long did you have the disease? What stage was it?
“I was diagnosed in January of 2013; I have been in remission since September of 2013. From what I hear, they never say you are cured, they say you are “NED,” which stands for No Evidence of Disease. I have been NED since September of 2013 and I believe I will continue to be NED. My cancer was Stage 3A non small cell lung cancer (adenocarcinoma).”
What were your first thoughts after the diagnosis?
“I was ashamed, because I was a smoker. That feeling continued until Dr. Huberman, my oncologist, told me that I had the “non-sympathetic cancer.” He said that people who smoke never get cancer, and people who never smoke get cancer. We don’t get to pick what we get.”
Did your daily life start to change? How so?
“Yes, big time. After the diagnosis I had numerous tests and doctor’s appointments. Lucky for me, my family and friends were so supportive. My daughter took charge of scheduling. I had to have 30 radiation treatments and 12 chemo treatments. My family took turns driving me into my treatments. They started in February of 2013 through March 2013. My granddaughter made me a countdown calendar and every day when a treatment was done we threw away the day. When the chemo was finished I had to wait six weeks for surgery. Truly, my whole family’s daily lives changed.”
What was it like for you to leave your job?
“When I told my employers, I basically told them that I understood if they had to hire someone else to perform my duties while I was out. They said that I would always have a job with them, and allowed me the flexibility to come in when I could. This meant weeks of not working at all, and other weeks when I would only work for 2-4 hours per day. As much as I wanted to continue with my daily routines, the effects of the treatments took their toll on my body and I simply couldn’t do what I always did.”
What would you say was the worst moment of your experience with cancer?
“The lowest point of my journey was when we went to go see my thoracic surgeon, Dr. Gangadherin, and he gave us some scary news: we might not be able to continue with the plan to have surgery. There was a “spot” on my hip that had appeared on a scan and they needed to confirm that the cancer had not spread before moving ahead with the surgery. This was a setback that I was not prepared for, and it required me to have another MRI and biopsy. In the end, I was cleared for surgery and it was scheduled for May 16. During the surgery, my doctor performed a lobectomy, meaning that he removed the upper lobe of my right lung (the part that contained the cancer). It was major surgery, and I was in the hospital for six days.
Recovery from surgery was slow and difficult, but my progress climbed steadily upward. That summer, I had two follow-up chemo treatments, one in June and the other in July. By September, my daily life had mostly returned to normal.”
Did your thinking about how you lived your life change?
“No. I have no regrets!”
Did you decide to live your life in a different way from that point on?
“No, I mostly live my life now as I did before. I did make a bucket list; however, of the seven things on it I have only done one -- to do a 5K walk with my family, which we did on November 1, 2014. The significant changes I have made are that I no longer smoke, and I exercise regularly -- I walk two miles or more every day!”
Has your experience with the disease shaped your thoughts about how you live your life today?
“No.”
What insights on life do you think you have gained from your experience with cancer?
“I would not wish cancer on anyone, ever. It makes me especially sad when I hear about little ones or young people going through it.”
Is there anything else you would like to share about your experience?
“If someone had to get it, I’m glad it was me.”
Grace Connelly Interview REcording
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File Size: | 6292 kb |
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Sherri Ziomek Interview Recording
Part I
20150519_222017.m4a | |
File Size: | 8361 kb |
File Type: | m4a |
Part II
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File Size: | 9608 kb |
File Type: | m4a |