Testimonials at The Cancer Institute at Alexian Brothers Hospital Network
Early Detection Saved My Life!
My name is Martha Swierczewski, I
am a wife, mother, grandmother, retired teacher and as of August 29, 2006 a
lung cancer survivor. As someone who had
smoked for a number of years, I worried about being at risk for lung cancer.
When I visited an Alexian Brothers facility for knee therapy, I saw a brochure
for the Breathe Easy Lung Screen, a diagnostic test that could detect lung
cancer at a very early stage. Even
through I was healthy and had not symptoms of any kind, I decided that I should
have this test.
I had my
first scan on May 1, 2006. Within a week I received the test results from my
primary physician's nurse and from Alexian's thoracic oncology
coordinator. The scan revealed a small,
non-specific density-a nodule. I was
devastated by the news and frustrated with the radiologist's recommendation to
wait three months before being retested.
Three
months to the day August 1, 2006 I had my second lung scan. Once again the
thoracic oncology coordinator called me with the results. She gently informed me that the nodule has
grown slightly and had characteristics consistent with cancer. Aware of my
acute distress, she sensed that I wanted to be aggressive with my
treatment. With my approval, she
arranged a consultation for me with Dr. Molly McAfee, head of Alexian's
Thoracic Oncology Program.
Dr. McAfee discussed my risk
factors with me and the nature of the nodule.
She informed me that I could either wait another three months, at which
time a biopsy might be more viable, or I could have the nodule removed as soon
as possible. I told her that I wanted to
deal with it immediately. Within weeks,
with my family's support and encouragement, Dr. McAfee preformed a
video-assisted thoracoscopy-a state of the art surgical approach to cancers of
the lung. A pathologist was present and
confirmed that the nodule was malignant.
With that finding, Dr. McAfee continued with a procedure to remove the
upper lobe of my left lung.
Today, my
prognosis is excellent and it is due to early detection. My advice is that you must be your own
advocate and trust your intuition. If you are a former smoker or are at risk
for any reason, have the lung screen
