2020 PPP magazine

2020 Paint the Paper Pink Lincoln Daily News October 2020 Page 29 home, so she works as much as possible, which helps her feel productive and “normal.” He said that Stacy will have her surgery and will also have a biopsy of her lymph nodes to assure the cancer is not spreading. Jim said he’s comforted by the advances that have been made in treatment. He said when his first wife was diagnosed, the plan of action began with surgery. For Stacy the rounds of chemo before surgery are intended to knock down the cancer, or reduce the size of the cancerous mass, making it more likely that the lumpectomy will enable surgeons to get the entire mass removed without radical surgery. The changes that Jim spoke about are the key to furthering the survival rate of all cancer patients. Today, research on treatment methods is ongoing for more than 70 types of cancer. With each advance, the likelihood of survival can increase. Years ago, no one ever said that a patient was “cured” of cancer and the popular terms were “remission” and sometimes “vacation,” which meant the cancer was taking a break but would surely come back. Today, the words warriors want and do hear more and more often are “cancer free.” Please join Lincoln Daily News in sending out a prayer that Jim and Stacy will be hearing those words very soon. [Nila Smith]