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For Central Illinois cancer patients, each case presents unique challenges

Herald & Review - 8/14/2018

Aug. 14--DECATUR -- Healthy lifestyles are not a uniform cure or prevention for cancer, something to which millions of families can attest. Organizations like the American Cancer Society have continued efforts to raise millions of dollars annually for medical research to improve treatments, screenings and the search for a cure.

Tony Holly, a community manager at the ACS, oversees local fundraisers in DeWitt and Macon Counties, most notably Relay for Life. During DeWitt County's July event, volunteers and organizers raised $12,000, exceeding their goal by 20 percent. Macon County's Relay for Life raised $120,000 this year.

In DeWitt and Macon counties, Holly said the ACS has also raised money for to pay for the hospital stays of some cancer patients and organized the Road to Recovery program, a volunteer-based initiative where people drive patients to appointments they otherwise couldn't get to themselves.

The programs, along with information on screenings and local health care services are all promoted on the ACS websites, Holly said.

"We rely on a lot of messaging to get out to the public, so I think we've done a better job of really reaching out to patients along with our hospitals and providers to really push that message to help patients," Holly said.

County health departments also provide information to residents about screenings and access to care, education that is especially needed in rural areas, said Nancy Martin, public health administrator at the Christian County Health Department.

Martin said partnerships between area hospitals, primary care doctors, and the health department have helped reach out to residents about the need for the right cancer screenings and treatment options based on an individual's medical history. It's the kind of referral that larger hospital systems in more populated areas tend to do on their own.

'You are no longer in control'

No two stories of having cancer are the same, given the countless variables of the experience: The initial prognosis, the type of cancer detected and the treatments available to fight the disease, just to name a few.

When you're first diagnosed with cancer, it's the hardest thing you can go through in life, Diann Beimfohr said.

"Because you realize that you are no longer in control," she said.

Beimfohr, 73, said she was diagnosed two years ago with Stage 4 lung cancer and was told by her doctor that she may have just two weeks left of her life.

"But I'm still here," said said, while quickly adding some perspective: Beimfohr had grown close to four other lung cancer patients at the time of her diagnosis, and they have all since died.

Cancer is not only life-threatening, the experience of treatment is often full of trials and tribulations related to dealing with one's own mortality, relationships with family and the devastating side effects of chemotherapy and other medical interventions.

Beimfohr is a regular attendee of Decatur Memorial Hospital Cancer Care Institute's "Facing Cancer Together" support group, open to all cancer patients and their families.

"I think this is one of the greatest things that ever happened in this organization," she said of the support group. "You see people here I've gone to school with, I've worked with at different times, they all have a story."

It's one of six support groups the Cancer Cancer Institute offers on a monthly basis. Others cater to patients with a specific type of cancer, and one is for children ages 5 to 15.

Leslie Roberts, an oncology social worker, has been leading such support groups for more than 20 years.

"One part of my job is that I always see people at probably the worst time of their lives, so I can't judge how you're coping because I don't know how I would be in any of your shoes," she told the group on Wednesday.

Ruth Ann Manint's husband Gerald died in May after a two-year fight with pancreatic cancer. As a caregiver still grieving, Manint said she's continued attending the group.

But Manint seemed to speak for the five-person group on Wednesday that more patients and their families should not be afraid to take advantage of the service.

"It's too bad that we can't get to more people, to let them know that what our meetings are all about," she said. "Yeah the tears do shed sometimes, but we're not here sobbing, crying away. People need to know that."

A full schedule and more information on the Cancer Care Institute's support group services can be found by calling (217) 876-4735, or visiting dmhcares.com

Messaging is key

It was a huge shock when Malory Alvarez's sister Andrea Staley was diagnosed with colon cancer five years ago at the age of 30 -- not only to her family but to the medical staff.

"Her doctor had never seen it with anybody younger than 45," said Alvarez, who since became heavily involved with the DeWitt County Relay for Life. "And she came in because she was having abdominal pains."

Alvarez said her sister's doctor said their immediate family should all get screened for colon cancer earlier than normal, out of concern that a family history of the disease indicated a genetic predisposition.

"So of the other three siblings, I was actually the only one that went in and got tested," she said. "All of my other siblings were like, 'Eh, I'd rather not find out.'"

Healthcare professionals know it can be very scary to get screened. With increasingly higher out-of-pocket expenses for medical care, many Americans have learned going to the doctor for even routine appointments can mean big bills.

"No one wants to go in and get a lung screening for care. That's terrifying," said Julie Brilley, chief planning and development officer at Crossing Healthcare in Decatur. Outreach from from neighbors and family members on social media and in conversation helps, according to Brilley. "That's personally what I have seen is making people feel comfortable."

Andrea Staley died in April after a five-year fight with her cancer.

"This year was a little bit harder to find the motivation for Relay, to get out there to do it, but it was also a good way to honor her," she said. "I think it's the small little things that will open people's eyes, to see what's going on," such as the importance of regular screenings for people who are at risk. "I know it's not easy."

For all healthcare providers, the challenge has also been messaging, to get the word out and people through the door.

"We have to be proactive and call patients," Skowron said. "It's very difficult for them to understand why they should come again, but we want to do a full screening of all conditions."

Contact Tom Lisi at (217) 421-6949. Follow him on Twitter: @tommylisi

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