Joan Karnell Cancer Center @ PA Hospital

On Tuesday, July 24. I spend several hours at PA Hospital meeting with health care professionals about my treatment plan. My first appointment was with Dr David Mintzer, a medical oncologist, who will coordinate my medication after radiation. Since my cancer is estrogen receptor positive, I will be taking Anastrozole for 5 years to block estrogen development  in my body, thus starving the cancer cell’s potential growth. There are some problem side effects which I will have to be careful of, including joint pain and weakening bones.

He also explained the Oncotype test which my tumor is getting now. It will tell if I need chemotherapy which he and Dr Sataloff doubt but the test will be to check for sure. Using 21 DNA markers from 1 to 100, it analyzes the percentage of probability of future cancer development in the body. As a Stage 1 early detected lucky-as-can-be lady, my outcome looks great but we still look to be sure. If I happen to need chemotherapy, Dr Mintzer is my man!

The next appointment was with a nutritionist Debra DeMille who went over some general principles of healthy eating which I could always use reminding about-
Eat a mostly plant-based diet- whole grains, dark leafy veggies, cruciferous veggies, green, ginger and camomile tea, natural peanut butter-no trans fats, lots of fruits and veggies.
Exercise- fatigue of radiation does not respond to naps. Take a walk.

She offered the many programs the Joan Karnell Cancer Center has including art and music therapy, massage therapy, counseling, support groups, food and cooking classes. I will be taking part in some of these over the next few months.

So the up side of cancer is free massage…hmmm.