Declared cancer-free on a Friday. Became a grandma the next Sunday.

Exceptional Care Story––Kim Moore

After having surgery for breast cancer, my doctor recommended radiation therapy as part of my treatment plan. Several people had talked to me about the state-of-the-art TomoTherapy machine at St. Mary’s which is a very precise way of delivering radiation treatment that also minimizes side effects. Based on the recommendation of my doctor and husband, I decided to make an appointment to visit the St. Mary's Cancer Care Center for myself.

From that first visit, I knew St. Mary’s Cancer Care Center was the right place for my treatment. As I toured the Center, friendly smiling faces met me around every corner. I saw the TomoTherapy machine, which looked big and intimidating, but I knew it was my ticket to being declared cancer free.

I began my radiation treatment in May, and as a school teacher, that was one of the busiest times of the year for me. I was worried because I do not have a job where I can take off for an hour in the middle of the day for a treatment session. But St. Mary's Cancer Care Center worked around my schedule so I was able to do my treatments at the end of the day after school had let out. Then when school was out for the summer, they worked around my schedule again to make sure the treatment times fit into my life. As I underwent months of radiation therapy, I experienced that same caring and compassionate personal attention from the staff as I did when I initially toured the facility. Of course, I did not want to be there getting treated for cancer, but they made it the best experience possible for me.

Throughout my treatment process, St. Mary's Cancer Care Center supported my body, mind and spirit. My husband and I both appreciated the free massages offered by Stephen Naylor through the MindBody Massage program. It was a very positive experience to have a relaxing and soothing massage after my radiation treatment, and my husband was able to have a massage during my treatments too. My husband also enjoying talking to one of the Sisters during my treatments. Cancer was something that affected my husband as well as myself, so I liked that the Center cared for him too.

Since I saw the same people almost every day for my treatment sessions, they all knew how excited I was to become a grandmother in early July and how worried I was that I would not be able to leave Decatur to visit my new grandson since I had treatments every Monday through Friday. Due to the effectiveness of the TomoTherapy machine, I required eight fewer sessions than were originally planned. That meant I was able to complete my treatment and be declared cancer free on Friday, and then become a new grandma on the following Sunday!

The team at St. Mary’s Cancer Care Center understood how important the birth of my grandson was to me, and thanks to their personal attention to not just my cancer but also my life, I was able to experience the miracle of his birth without the shadow of cancer clouding it.