2020 Cancer Awareness

October 2019 A Special Supplement to

TEG

October 2020 A Special Supplement to

TEG Delgado stays positive through diagnosis, treatment Page 2

W.S. & E.C. Jones Breast Care Center brings excellence to local care Page 3

Cates keeps faith through unexpected diagnosis Page 4

Perez-Tamayo brings wealth of experience, knowledge to Central Care Cancer Center Page 6

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Tuesday, October 27, 2020

DELGADO STAYS POSITIVE THROUGH DIAGNOSIS, TREATMENT

By Ryann Brooks

brooks@emporia.com

Amy Delgado was no stranger to mammograms, so when the mother of three went in for a routine scan in July 2019, she didn’t think too much of it.

But, this time Delgado’s doctor felt a lump.

After a biopsy and other testing, she was diagnosed with BRCA negative stage, triple-negative invasive ductal carcinoma.

She was 48 and there was no history of breast cancer in the family.

“It was a surprise to me as it was to everybody else in the family,” she said. “I feel like God gave to me because he knew I could handle it compared to the rest of the people in my family.”

Breast cancer is the second most common cancer affecting women in the world, with an estimated 3,577,264 women living with female breast cancer in the United States in 2017. Approximately 15% of new cancer diagnoses in 2020 will be breast cancer, according to cancer.gov statistics.

Delgado said she hadn’t felt the lump prior to her diagnosis. While she did selfchecks, she was not “fanatical” about it.

When it was pointed out to her, Delgado couldn’t believe she hadn’t noticed it before.

“It was right on the top and I’m like, ‘How did I miss that?’ because it was very evident as soon as she pointed it out,” she said. “It was so evident, but I never noticed anything. I think I’m a busy, active person so I just didn’t pay attention the way you should, and thank heavens for me, it was an early diagnosis because I was on a yearly schedule.”

While she was angry at first, Delgado said she turned her anger into positivity and put her faith in God and her doctors to get her through.

Delgado had a lumpectomy and a port placed by Dr. Tim Harris and started treatments shortly afterward. While she had been urged by some to seek treatment outside of Emporia, Delgado opted to stay local at the Central Care Cancer Center. She listened to her gut, she said, and her gut told her that staying local was the right decision.

Surprising facts about cancer

✦✦An estimated 1.8 million new cancer cases will be diagnosed in the United States in 2020, and 606,520 people will lose their lives to cancer in 2020. ✦✦Seventy percent of all deaths from cancer occur in low- and middleincome countries. ✦✦There are more than 100 types of cancer, and any part of the body can be affected. ✦✦Eighty percent of all cancers in the United States are diagnosed in people 55 years of age or older. ✦✦On average, 617 Canadians will be diagnosed with cancer every day, and 228 will die from cancer each day. ✦✦Prostate, lung and colorectal cancers are the most commonly diagnosed cancers in men. Breast, lung and colorectal cancers are the most commonly diagnosed cancers in women. ✦✦Roughly 67% of Americans diagnosed with cancer survive five or more years after diagnosis.

✦✦Between 30 and 50% of cancers are preventable. Tobacco use is the single largest preventable cause of cancer in the world. ✦✦Between 1991 and 2017, there have been two million fewer cancer deaths for the most common types of cancer in the United States. ✦✦Lung cancer and colorectal cancer account for 14% and 12%, respectively, of new cases of cancer in Canada. ✦✦Maintaining a healthy body mass index, exercising regularly and eating high amounts of fruits and vegetables are some ways to reduce cancer risk.

“I am confident that they know what they’re doing,” Delgado said. “A friend of mine is a nurse practitioner that had [breast cancer] and she would have went here, but she wanted to go where she could just be the patient. ... She said that’s the reason why she went out of town; she wanted to just be taken care of. She said she would have went here in a minute, if she would have been more comfortable that way.”

Staying local also allowed Delgado, a hairstylist, to keep working without taking too much time off.

She did chemotherapy for 12 weeks and then seven weeks of radiation five days per week. Having to go out of town for treatments would have made it next to impossible to keep working, she said. While she did miss some work due to feeling ill, she credits her clients for being understanding throughout the process.

Delgado completed her treatments in April.

“I’m doing the mammograms every six months, I get my blood checked every three months,” she said. “I keep my port for two years because my cancer was triple negative and if it comes back the chances of it coming back are greater within two years. ... Mine was caught early, so I was pretty fortunate.”

With a strong support system at home with her husband, Mason, and their three children, Delgado said she is one of the lucky ones. She recommends journaling experiences to remember what you are going through during the experience, to remember the rough days. It helps to remind you, she said, of how good the good days really are.

“Just let it go and let God do what he needs to do,” she said. “Just be positive, because it can — and will — be okay. Even in the worst of times, you’ll be okay. Because a few days later, you start to feel better and it’s all good again.”

Tuesday, October 27, 2020

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W.S. & E.C. JONES BREAST CARE CENTER BRINGS EXCELLENCE TO LOCAL CARE The Emporia Gazette

Before Newman Regional Health’s W.S. and E.C. Jones Breast Care Center was founded in Feb. 2012, women who had abnormal mammograms sometimes found themselves waiting a week or more for a biopsy.

According to Director of Imaging Jim Crump, Newman Regional Health used to only offer such needed biopsies once every two weeks.

Now, the comprehensive center is a one-stop shop for breast care needs.

It’s equipped with digital mammography and stereotactic breast biopsy systems as well as a team of technologists, radiologists, surgeons and oncologists waiting to assist women in need.

In 2017, the center conducted just less than 1,700 mammograms, he said. Of the women who had these screenings, a little more than 20 tests came back with some form of breast cancer, many in the early stages, according to Crump.

Much of the tissue biopsied at the Breast Care Center doesn’t turn out to be cancerous, but Lead Technologist Amber Peak said this is ideal.

“You want to biopsy 80 percent benign so that you’re catching everything,” she said.

If there’s a chance a lump might be cancerous, it’s getting biopsied — better safe than sorry.

Though the odds are against cancer in this case, it’s a scary experience. Until the lab results come back, according to Crump, everyone’s convinced they’re sick and in need of a comforting atmosphere.

Newman Regional Health also provides this, offering those who need one a hand to hold and a shoulder to cry on during the process. The Breast Care Center has a small staff, and women who go there for medical procedures will often find themselves working with the same people every time they come in. This minimizes the number of people who see a patient in a vulnerable state.

Uncomfortable though the process may sometimes be, mammograms can and do save lives.

Crump said early detection of any cancer, including breast cancer, improves the chance that the cancer can be treated.

Crump has been in the field for 30 years and recalls what cancer survival rates were like before certain modern screening procedures came into existence.

“There was a point when certain types of cancer, you just didn’t have a chance,” he said.

But this doesn’t need to be the case for women with breast cancer, if they have the chance to be screened early on and treated right here in town, if need be.

“Now we’re doing so much better with the early diagnosis and good treatment regimens,” he said.

Early detection often equates to a better outcome.

The Breast Care Center was designed to provide comprehensive care, Crump said — to provide the full circle of treatment for women in need of breast care right here in Emporia.

“Here in town, we have surgeons, we do mammography, we do biopsies here and then for those patients who have abnormalities or end up with cancer, there’s also the cancer center,” he said.

It should be said that mammograms and breast biopsies, while they’re no picnic, are significantly different — and less uncomfortable — than they used to be. Using digital technology, today’s mammograms require less pressure than those in bygone days. Biopsies, too, are less painful than they were in the not-sodistant past.

“Years ago, when you had a biopsy, you had to go to surgery and be put to sleep,” Peak said. “You’d wake up with an incision and a big divot or dent in your breast.

Just from the biopsy.”

The biopsy system at the Breast Care Center today doesn’t require the patient to be put under — local anesthetic is used — and patients come away with a nick that won’t scar rather than a cut.

According to Dr. Timothy Harris, “it stings a little bit.”

Women are able to go about their days after the procedure, going back to work and holding or even nursing their children if need be. They may be a bit sore, but it’s nothing a little over-the-counter medicine can’t take care of.

The process used to constitute a major surgery.

Also, the results come in fast, Harris said. He’s been

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in the field for a long time and recalls when it took weeks for people to hear what they needed to hear.

Now, according to Harris, it’s a process of about a week — maybe 10 days — typically to get results.

“The nice part is that you find really early — really, really early problems,” Harris said. “We see a lot of what’s called ductal carcinoma in situ, which just means if cancer is stage one through four, this is stage zero. It’s non-invasive — very easy to treat.”

If a breast cancer diagnosis is received, he recommends people stick to advice from experts.

“When you have a diagnosis of cancer, you’re gonna have 10 different people telling you what to do,” Harris said.

He said it’s wise to trust in one’s doctors, and that Newman Regional Health can provide almost all the services a breast cancer patient will need short of reconstructive surgery.

But other than that?

“We can take care of it at home,” Harris said.

Women need to have mammograms once a year after the age of 40, along with seeing their regular physician for other needed screenings. Women with personal family histories of breast cancer should start having such screenings even younger — and consult their primary physicians or their OB-GYN about further steps they can take to catch cancer early.

Even very young women should conduct monthly breast exams on themselves.

“The American Cancer Society is still recommending 40 to start,” Peak said.

“The saddest thing you see is the people who come in without being treated for years and years and years and then come in and they have a problem that maybe, if it had been found earlier, might be preventable,” Crump said. “It’s not worth putting off just because you don’t want to know if it’s bad or not.”

The Breast Care Center does screening mammographies from 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.

To schedule a mammogram or for more information, please call the centralized scheduling department at Newman Regional Health at (620) 343-6800.

2101 West 6th • Emporia

1111 Industrial Rd. E M P O R I A

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Tuesday, October 27, 2020

CATES KEEPS FAITH THROUGH UNEXPECTED DIAGNOSIS

By Ryann Brooks

brooks@emporia.com

Susan Cates didn’t think much of it when she got a call from Stormont Vail in Topeka to schedule a diagnostic mammogram back in Nov. 2018.

Cates figured there had been some kind of mix-up — she had just gone in for her regular mammogram. But, she soon found out that there had been an abnormal finding on that regular test. Cates was 62 when she was diagnosed with ER/PR positive HER-2 negative invasive ductal carcinoma breast cancer.

“Before the biopsy I remember the nurse explaining to me when they get the results, ‘I will call you and say, yes or no, but I won’t be able to answer any questions because the doctor likes to go over that stuff,’” Cates recalled. “So when she called, of course she said yes, which I was prepared for as much as one can prepare for it. But, of course, I wanted to ask all of the questions.”

Cates would have those questions

answered by Dr. Tim Harris who performed her biopsy and subsequent surgeries. Learning she had breast cancer was a shock, even though she had been expecting the diagnosis. Cates had no prior history of breast cancer in the family and did not feel the lump despite doing regular self-checks.

“I have mammograms every year,” she said. “I couldn’t feel anything and I do my self exams. … We don’t have a history of that in our family, but as soon as [the radiologist] showed that something wasn’t right, I knew. But you know, I’m a very positive person, and I knew it was going to be okay because prayer is very powerful.”

The hardest part, she said, was the waiting between each step.

“You just want things to happen now and it doesn’t work like that,” Cates said.

Cates had surgery to remove the lump.

Soon after, it was discovered that doctors had been unable to remove all of the tumor, even though it was small. She went back in for another surgery to remove the margins.

She opted to keep her treatments local,

Did you know?

People who have cancer often suffer from weakened immune systems, which can make it hard for their bodies to fight off disease. That means it is essential for newly diagnosed cancer patients or those going through treatment to avoid others who are ill, such as those with influenza or even the common cold. Family members also will need to take precautions to help protect their loved ones from contracting contagious diseases. According to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, heightened risk for cancer patients has occurred in the wake of COVID-19. Cancer patients are urged to speak with their doctors regarding their concerns about COVID-19. Practicing good personal hygiene and embracing social distancing policies may help cancer patients avoid viruses, including COVID-19. Cancer patients may want to ask others to do their food shopping and run errands for them to minimize their contact with potentially ill individuals.

working under the care of Dr. Elshami Elamin at the Central Care Cancer Center.

Elamin explained that, because of her test results, they would want to do an aggressive treatment of chemotherapy and radiation.

Cates, who retired from USD 253 last year after a long career in early childhood education, said she wore a combination of head scarves and brightly colored wigs when she lost her hair. Her preschool-aged children at Maynard Early Childhood Center, especially loved a bright lime green wig.

“The kids absolutely loved it, you know, they just thought it was the greatest thing in the world,” she said with a laugh. “But I usually just wore scarves or turbans and I was just more comfortable with them.”

Cates was glad to be able to do her treatments locally. While she did miss some work, she was still able to remain in the classroom.

“I continued to work, but I was so fortunate because my school was so supportive,” she said. “I also was fortunate

I had a lot of sick days, so I always took off the day and chemo and I took the day off. …

My principal was very understanding and just always just making sure everything is okay, and the paras in my room were like superstars. They were just excellent.”

Cates said her last chemo treatment coincided with the last day of school in 2019.

“I have to admit, I was okay that I didn’t have to go back to school after that, because I was tired,” she said. After that, Cates underwent 35 rounds of radiation.

Now, she’s still doing well. Cates had a clean mammogram in Nov. 2019 and was getting ready for her next checkup in just a few weeks. She credits the support of her husband, Steven, and their children for keeping her going during the tough times.

Cates recommends those early in their journey to have faith and to remember that, in the long run, cancer is just “a bump in the road.”

“It’s just another part of life that you just grow from it and it made me a stronger person,” she said.

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Tuesday, October 27, 2020

PEREZ-TAMAYO BRINGS WEALTH Cancer warning signs OF EXPERIENCE, KNOWLEDGE TO CENTRAL CARE CANCER CENTER

By Adam Blake

adam@emporia.com

After decades of training and study at some of the world’s most prestigious academic and medical institutions, Central Care Cancer Center President Dr. Claudia Perez-Tamayo is now utilizing her experience to serve Emporia-area patients.

“I’m one of six children, and we’re all in medicine,” PerezTamayo said. “My parents were also doctors, and, in fact, my father Perez-Tamayo was a famous radiation oncologist way back in the 1950s. I thought about going into the medical field, but as all children, I particularly didn’t want to do exactly what my parents did. That’s what I ended up doing exactly.”

A member of the Kansas Comprehensive Cancer Control Panel, Perez-Tamayo completed her radiation oncology residency at the Medical College of Wisconsin. She was awarded prestigious fellowships to both the American College of Radiology and the American College of Radiation Oncology for her contributions and service through education, research and service activities in the practice of radiation oncology.

Perez-Tamayo additionally participated in the American College of Radiology Commission on Small and Rural Practices, and was appointed to the President’s Cancer Panel. Her career has also included academic appointments at the University of Michigan and the University of Kansas Medical Center.

“I wanted to continue being in academia, but I was called by … the CEO of St. John’s Hospitals. They were very committed to oncology and felt that at the time — 1989 — that there was really a need for more.”

As opportunities to expand such services ended up moving Perez-Tamayo to the Salina area, she shortly found a need for enhanced oncology services across Kansas at large, especially in the state’s more rural and underserved communities.

“Emporia was very busy, and it had a good hospital with a vast community around it, but there were really no enhanced oncology services,” Perez-Tamayo recalled. “It was all very basic... The hospi-

tal was very interested in doing better for their population. Over the years, I’ve found that when somebody or a community is really interested, it will always be a team effort and it will end up working out. So, we went ahead and built the center.”

Having now been open for 17 years at 1401 W. 12th Ave., Perez-Tamayo believes Emporia’s Central Care Cancer Center facility has been able to establish itself thanks to an emphasis on quality and experienced staff. It joins 10 other centers in the state along with a single center located in Bolivar, Missouri.

“When people feel like they have to go to a certain place because of the reputation, it’s not because of the institution that treats the patient, but the people,” she said.

“When you come from some of the best oncology programs in the country, you’re bringing that knowledge along with you to wherever you are … All the people that we have [in Emporia] are hand-picked. We’re representing the best in oncology care in the country — and in the world — and making it available here.”

In addition to hosting a team of consummate professionals in the field, the clinic also emphasizes a personal connection with each patient. And while that could entail face-to-face conversations with a variety of specialists, guided input on treatment plans or helping an individual find enhanced resources at other, larger clinics, Perez-Tomayo believes one of the biggest differences between her staff and others is simply taking the time to listen.

“We’re particular about making sure we know exactly where everything is and how to approach it...” Perez-Tamayo said. “It’s important to have that personal touch, and to let patients know they’re being treated as people and as members of a shared community.

“I always tell them, ‘You know more about your body than any test.’ So, if something doesn’t make sense to you, you need to pursue the answer. Those may not come the first time you see your primary care physician or a specialist, you may have to pursue things a bit further than normal, but you shouldn’t give up. Sometimes little things make a huge difference.”

The Central Care Cancer Center of Emporia is open from Monday-Friday between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.. For more information, call 620-342-1117 or visit cccancer.com.

No one is immune to cancer, which the World Health Organization notes is the second leading cause of death across the globe. Though cancer is responsible for more than nine million deaths per year, the WHO notes that many cases of cancer are preventable.

The WHO estimates that one-third of deaths from cancer are due to five behavioral and dietary risks: high body mass index, low fruit and vegetable intake, lack of physical activity, tobacco use, and alcohol consumption. People who smoke, drink to excess and/or eat unhealthy diets can greatly reduce their risk for cancer and the likelihood that they will join the millions of cancer patients who die from the disease each year.

Learning the warning signs for cancer is another way people can reduce the likelihood that they will die from cancer. Cancer Research UK notes that cancers diagnosed at early stages are more likely to be treated successfully than those that are in the later stages.

Late-stage cancers have typically spread beyond their origination point, making treatment more difficult and survival less likely.

Early detection of cancer is vital to survival. For instance, Cancer Research UK notes that more than nine in 10 bowel cancer patients will survive their disease for more than five years if diagnosed at the earliest stage. The five-year survival rates are similar for breast cancer and ovarian cancer patients whose diseases are diagnosed in their earliest stages.

By learning some of the common warning signs of cancer, people can increase the likelihood of early detection, greatly improving their chances of sur-

viving this potentially deadly disease.

Each type of cancer has its own unique symptoms, and people with family histories of cancer are urged to discuss those histories with their physicians so they can learn the warning signs of the specific cancers that may run in their families. In addition to such discussions, men and women can keep an eye out for these symptoms, which the Cleveland Clinic notes are some of the more general indicators of cancer. ✦✦Change in bowel or bladder habits ✦✦A sore that does not heal ✦✦Unusual bleeding or discharge ✦✦Thickening or lump in the breast or elsewhere ✦✦Indigestion or difficulty swallowing ✦✦Obvious change in a wart or mole ✦✦Nagging cough or hoarseness More information about cancer is available at www.who.int.

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How the foods you eat may help you fight cancer Many people are familiar with certain ways to reduce their risk for cancer. Avoiding tobacco, which the National Cancer Institute notes is a leading cause of cancer and death from cancer, and protecting oneself from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays by applying sunscreen are two of the most widely known ways to reduce cancer risk.

But fewer people may recognize the important role diet can play in fighting cancer.

According to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, a nutritious diet can reduce your cancer risk. That makes eating right one of the easiest, not to mention the most delicious, ways to reduce your risk for a disease that is often preventable. But how exactly does diet lower cancer risk?

are necessary to determine the link between sedentary behavior and cancer risk, various studies have shown links between physical activity and reduced cancer risk. For example, a 2016 metaanalysis of 10 cohort studies published in the Clinical Journal of Sports Medicine found that individuals who were the most physically active had a 19% lower risk of stomach cancer than those who were least active. By eating healthier foods and controlling their portions, people may discover they have more energy to get up and exercise, reaping all the rewards that such activity has to offer, including a lower risk for cancer.

Healthy diets and healthy weights

Another way certain foods can help you fight cancer is by bolstering your immune system, making it more capable of fighting disease. The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, a world renowned medical center devoted exclusively to cancer patient care, notes that the fiber, phytochemicals and antioxidants humans get from consuming plants bolster their immune systems. A strong immune system is a vital ally in the fight against cancer.

The old adage “You are what you eat” is rooted in truth. And people who eat healthy foods are more likely to be healthy as a result.

The American Cancer Society estimates that excess body weight is responsible for about 8% of all cancers and roughly 7% of all cancer deaths in the United States. A healthy diet full of fruits, vegetables and lean protein can help people lose weight and keep the weight off once it’s gone, thereby reducing cancer risk.

Healthy diets and exercise Unhealthy foods and oversized portions can contribute to feelings of fatigue. Such feelings can make it hard to get off the couch and exercise.

While the ACS acknowledges t h a t m o re studies

Healthy diets and strong immune systems

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Tuesday, October 27, 2020

SCREENING SAVES LIVES! Schedule a screening today at Newman Regional Health’s W.S. & E.C. Jones Breast Care Center

If you’re uninsured or need financial assistance, please ask how Newman Regional Health can help.

Early detection saves lives – g don’t skip or delayy a mammogram.

1201 West 12th Ave., Emporia (620) 342-5222 • www.newmanrh.org

Breast Cancer Awareness Month 1 in 8 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer.

With matters this close to the heart, Newman Regional Health is here to provide: • Preventive screening • Digital mammography • Ultrasound • And more

27%

SURVIVAL

rate in advanced stage

98%

SURVIVAL

rate in early detection