A confident woman who had always been in control of her life, Anne Lewis discovered that the only thing she could control when she was diagnosed with cancer was how she responded to it.
Large B Cell Lymphoma was discovered by accident in Anne’ s stomach when she went to Sarah Bush Lincoln for a CT scan to assess the number and locations of her kidney stones. Patty Montgomery, PA-C, ordered the scan for one purpose but was surprised to see that Anne also had gallstones, an ulcer and cancer.
“ By the time I had my first treatment,” Anne said,“ it had moved into my neck. It was very aggressive.”
Anne was Medical Oncologist / Hematologist Abdur Shakir’ s first patient, as he had become medical director of the Regional Cancer Center not long before.“ As soon as Dr. Shakir told me I had cancer, my lip quivered slightly,” Anne recalled.“ He rolled over on his stool and said,‘ This is a good one. We can get an‘ A’ on this. It’ s treatable and you’ re going to survive this.’” His words and compassion brought her comfort and confidence in her treatment plan. Anne then had full faith that she would sail through the illness with flying colors.
While Anne took great relief in the prognosis, she struggled with not knowing exactly what to expect from the treatment. She toured the cancer center later that day and met with a nurse who outlined what she could expect.“ As long as I knew the parameters, I could see the cancer as a bump in my life,” she said.
A bit apprehensive about her first treatment, Anne saw a familiar face in the chemotherapy room and felt more at ease right away. She became reacquainted with the gentleman who, as it turns out, was fighting the same cancer. He generously shared his experience and relieved some of her concerns.
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Regional Cancer Center staff and patients, plus Anne’ s friends and family members, supported her in many and varied ways.“ I was immediately surrounded by help. My husband, Arbie, our daughter, Janelle, family members, friends, co-workers and church – just so many people – did so many things for me,” she said.“ All these acts of kindness were un-orchestrated and I was overwhelmed by the generosity of people and their support. Some days I’ d find a new scarf on the front porch, or a box of chocolates or dinner for my husband. I have a lot of kindness to repay.”
Known as the family planner, Anne wanted to keep things as normal as possible, so she continued to work full time at Eastern Illinois University and plan the family’ s annual four-day camping trip.“ We’ re not real campers, but the trip is the one time each year that my entire family gets together in the fall. We joked that so many people came that year because they thought it might be my last trip!”
Anne relied on humor to keep her treatments from becoming too overwhelming.“ My chemotherapy was an all-day event, so for each session I’ d pack a large basket of things to do. There were note cards to write, a book to read, sudoku to solve, but even with best intentions, I never ever opened the basket!” she said.“ I visited with other patients and watched the nurses in awe. They were very busy and still incredibly caring.”
Anne gained strength and perspective from others who were receiving chemo treatments.“ It was such a humbling experience. I was very lucky because I knew I was going to be okay, but some of the people didn’ t know if they were going to be okay,” she said.“ It really made me quit feeling sorry for myself and start appreciating my situation.”
Six years later, Dr. Shakir told Anne the best news of all.“ There’ s no indication in your body that you were ever sick,” he said. Anne gives that news an A +.
I was very lucky because I knew I was going to be okay, but some of the people in chemo didn’ t know if they were going to be okay. It was such a humbling experience.”
Anne Lewis
Pictured on the previous page are Anne Lewis( tan sweater) surrounded by her family; daughter Janelle Martin, son-in-law Blake Martin, husband Arbie and grandchildren Austin, Mia, Mason and Jacob.
For more information about the SBL Regional Cancer Center, call 217-258-2250 or go to www. sarahbush. org. november 2016 healthstyles 3