| I had Wilms' tumor in 1954, at the age of 17 months.
It was a Saturday afternoon at my home in Latrobe, PA. I had taken
a nap, and Mom was putting my overalls back on me when she realized she couldn't
button them when she could that morning. There was a hard swelling
on my right side at my waist. My parents called the doctor, and took me to
the hospital. The first doctor we saw didn't think much of it, but
the young family doctor on call, Dr. Walter Hazlett, was sure it was something
serious. After the local hospital sent me home, he came to the house
to see me again, and told Mom and Dad to get me to Children's Hospital of
Pittsburgh immediately.
 Mom says
I was fine the whole time, and thought going for a ride was a good idea!
I went through all kinds of tests that night. By the time Dr. William
K. Sieber removed the kidney at 9:00am the next morning, the tumor had grown
from the size of an orange to that of a grapefruit. The cancer hadn't
gone any further... I believe it's called Stage 1 now.
I was given 6,000 rads of "deep-therapy" cobalt radiation in 45 treatments... a huge amount for anyone, let alone a toddler! I was followed by the CHP tumor clinic until
the age of 18, often being presented at lectures and the like. I saw
Dr. George H. Fetterman, the pediatric pathologist, and his secretary, Mrs.
Cooksey, so often they became good friends of ours and even came to my wedding!
I am now an active wife, homemaker, and "full-time volunteer". My husband,
Don, and I have been married almost 31 years now, and have five wonderful,
healthy children (ages 28, 26, 24, 23 and 15), and three beautiful, healthy
grandchildren (ages 8, 6 and 3)! Mom said the doctors told her I'd never
have children. We proved them wrong! My pregnancies all had some
sort of problem, but nothing that wasn't overcome. My babies were all 2-4
weeks early, and 6.5 - 8.0 pounds. (I am 4' 11".) At the end of each pregnancy,
my blood pressure went up (pre-eclampsia with the first), as it had at the
end of two years on a birth control pill in the early 1970's. I've
told each doctor about my cancer, and no one has ever acted as though it
was unusual or noteworthy! I always thought that was odd.
I have led a fairly active and normal life, and rarely have been ill except
for occasional strange problems. In 1992, chronic back problems led me to
change chiropractors and seek a second opinion from an orthopedic surgeon.
The chiropractor took x-rays (the first in many years), and the diagnosis
was radiation degeneration of the spine. At this point, I have scoliosis
(abnormal side-to-side curvature), kyphosis (exaggerated front-to-back curvature)
and lordosis (exaggerated sway-back), deformed ribs, and most of the muscles
on my right side from my hip to my chest are atrophied and/or scarred. My
whole right side has a shriveled, sunken look, and the skin there is thin
and rashy-looking. My lower spine and sacrum joints tend to lock up easily
and become quite painful, especially if I sit or stand too long. Any task
which requires the slightest forward leaning (which means most household
chores) makes the good muscles on my left side tire rapidly, and can cause
a lot of pain or discomfort. I've been prone to muscle spasms, and have often
had a rib 'go out'. (Water exercising has helped this wonderfully.) I've
had several nasty episodes of problems with my right hip joint, and a couple
of years ago a ballooning spinal disk pressed on a nerve which affected the
use of my right leg for a few months.
To handle these difficulties, I have found a well-rounded combination of
faith,
whole-food
vitamin supplements, gentle
exercises in a warm pool 2-3 times
a week, and specialized health practitioners
(chiropractor,
manual-only physical therapist, and massage therapist) who keep me functioning
on a normal basis. I have also seen a spinal specialist, who at first only
offered surgery or drugs.
I have not had any problems with my kidney over these years, except once
when I got severely dehydrated. My blood pressure has been elevated a bit
lately, but I'm not sure why. I've never used tobacco, alcohol or even routine
drugs, preferring a more natural approach to handling health problems. I
have done well, although back discomfort has curtailed many activities. I
do well with activities requiring some sitting or walking, but not bending,
stooping, and lifting. Quick movements are very unpleasant, and a long time
in any one position often becomes painful. I also must have a small soft
pillow for back support whenever I sit. I have found what I can and cannot
do, and, considering the alternatives, these are easy enough to live with.
I've come to understand that my life can go on uneventfully for a while,
as long as I work within my limitations and make sure I drink plenty of water.
Then something little will set things off and I'm in trouble. I'm grateful
that things resolve after a while, and that I'm fairly healthy in between.
Despite the cancer that could have cut off my life, I've been blessed to
live a normal childhood, marry a wonderful man, give birth to healthy children
and watch them grow, work at their schools and home school them, watch our
grown children step out into the world, see two children marry wonderful
spouses, hold our dear grandchildren, share a home business with my husband,
and still have a dynamic 14-year-old at home to keep me busy.
I've been blessed and humbled to find Wilms' tumor links, web sites, and
personal stories on the Internet, and wanted to add my own. I've tried to
add as many as I can in this site. I'll be glad to add more if I'm told of
them.
THERE'S
MORE... |
