This article was written based on an interview with Ashleigh Moran-Dunno, patient, Parkview Cancer Institute.
Historically, I’ve always had really bad times. But a few years ago my symptoms started to get worse. I was bleeding profusely, almost to the point of passing out, and just felt like something was wrong. I was seeing a different OB / GYN, and she tried to change my contraception, thinking it was hormone related. She’s never had a pelvic exam, because of my confidence, and to be honest, I don’t blame her. I had a healthy child, had a healthy pregnancy, and breastfed. There was no indication of cancer.
I have returned there several times with the same symptoms. Eventually, when nothing was working, I decided to let my body “detox”. I started from everything. The symptoms only got worse.
I decided to go see Thomas Miller, MD, PPG – OB / GYN, in Parkview. We had a conversation, he did some blood work and he said, “Let’s take a look. On his examination, he found a fairly large tumor. I was bleeding fairly heavily and he had me come to the Parkview Cancer Institute with Dr. Iwona Podzielinski and her nurse practitioner, Lauren Tom, in less than 45 minutes.
Establish a treatment plan
It all went really fast from there. I was diagnosed with cervical cancer on August 23, 2019 and was staged 1B-3 that day. I was 27 years old. The original plan was to do chemotherapy and radiation therapy.
A few weeks later, based on my PET and blood tests, it turned out that the cancer was smaller than the team originally thought, had not spread, and was ‘there was no lymph node involvement. I was re-staged in 1B-2. It was a Thursday.
The following Monday, September 23, 2019, exactly one month after my diagnosis, I had a radical hysterectomy. It turned out that my tumor was actually bigger than expected and there was lymph node involvement, so Dr Podzielinski had to react quickly and sort it out. I had my ovaries moved higher in my stomach so that I could continue to produce estrogen.
We have returned to the original plan of care. I am in a research trial and have had seven weeks of concomitant chemotherapy, followed by radiation therapy and internal radiation therapy thereafter. Today I am in remission.
Be your own lawyer
Throughout this process, I’ve learned how important it is to do your own research, collaborate with your healthcare team, and be your own advocate. For example, I want more children someday. Dr Podzielinski helped me connect with Northwestern so I could freeze my eggs and keep that optional. The resources are there, you just have to find them and be clear about your wishes.
When I was diagnosed I had a 6 year old child. The first day was very overwhelming, but I made the decision that I was going to live and that everything would be fine. I kept that positive attitude about everything. I know it’s easier said than done, but it has helped me on my journey.
I’m not saying I haven’t had any breakdowns. I remember the day I was diagnosed. When I got off the elevator on the fourth floor of the Cancer Institute, my mother was pushing me in a wheelchair and I know I looked horrible. There was a man walking down the hall and he looked at me then looked away. He pretended to be looking at pictures on the wall. I realized that now people categorize me like cancer, not like a anybody who has cancer and who fights it. It was so disheartening.
Anyone can be healed. We have great doctors and scientists, but that’s only half of it. You have to be prepared to do the work of healing, from the inside out. Everything from your thoughts, to the exercise, to the food and drinks you put in your body. Don’t just follow treatments. Find out what else you can do to create a healthy life.
You attract what you extinguish; I really believe it. Positive energy and state of mind do a lot for you and your healthcare team, as well as for those around you.
Reflective
Whenever I talk about my trip or visit a doctor’s office, the first thing people comment on is how young I am. I never know what to say. I wondered if I had done something wrong.
But I know I didn’t cause cancer. Comments like that made me angry, but not anymore.
I am in contact with my body and what I feel. Even though the providers said it was something else, I knew in my soul that something was wrong. I’m a big advocate and believe in self-healing and holistic medicine, but when our body hits a certain point, when it’s out of control, mainstream medicine and doctors can do amazing things.
I was tired all the time and often did things like chew ice cream which I thought was maybe just iron deficiency. I never thought it was cancer. I was too young. But now I know a lot more people my age who have been there. I made so many connections. And I’m so grateful that I kept pushing for answers.
The Parkview family
I don’t think I met someone I didn’t like in Parkview. My cancer care team is amazing. Dr Miller is amazing. He’s calling to watch me. I remember this phlebotomist, whose name I wish I could remember. It happened when I was having a big blackout. Later she sent me the sweetest letter. Parkview really is a big family.
I will say it was my trip. Although I trust Dr Podzielinski for everything, I made a decision not to treat anyone as if they were above or below me. It was a group of people, and I was one of them, and together we were fighting cancer. There are a lot of things that they know, that I don’t know, but there are also things that I know and that I can bring to the discussion.
We often admire doctors like God and that’s a lot of pressure on them. It’s not their only job to heal you. It is also your job, in your daily actions and thoughts, to try harder to heal, in conjunction with your medical treatment. When you have real conversations and share real fears or real accomplishments, I think it makes all the difference. You are a team, and you need to be an active part of that team, not just hand it over to someone else. Ask questions and if you don’t understand, continue to have that openness and persevere in your understanding. I brought things to Dr Podzielinski – supplements and holistic approaches to pair with the medical treatment she was prescribing. We didn’t always align, but we were able to have these conversations and I felt like an active participant in my journey.
The path to follow
To be honest, I almost disconnected myself from the fact that I had cancer. I don’t think about it anymore. I do Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) therapy every week, which has helped me feel good where I’ve been and where I’m going. I cleaned up a lot of things that I thought were contributing to my poor health, both emotionally and physically. I have done so much healing from the inside, from the outside. I truly believe it will never come back, but I am taking all the things I have learned and the changes in mindset I have had during this time to look ahead and know that it is so. brilliant.
I believe God put this cancer in my life to learn and to push me down the path I’m supposed to be on. I needed to experience it so that I could support, help and love others along their journey. And someday I would love to create different support programs to help them be their own advocate and get through their treatment because it’s scary and very overwhelming. Everything goes so fast that you don’t even know what you don’t know. Just because you have a diagnosis doesn’t mean you are going to die. Doctors are so brilliant, every chance you give yourself.
Most of us don’t realize how much our thoughts create our reality. We are here to enjoy and live and be happy and experience all that life has to offer. When you create this reality, this is where you will end up.
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