In July 2010, I started feeling soooo tired. I would get out of bed in the morning and just lay on the couch most of the day. It seemed like I had no energy at all. Instead of going to the doctor and having to wait for test results, my husband took me right to the emergency room. We were there from 8:30 in the morning until about 8:30 at night. They ran tests and scans and more tests and finally gave me all the results. I had ovarian cancer. I was devastated, to say the least. I had never been sick before in my life.
My daughter and future son-in-law were getting married in Jamaica in April 2011. I had a 5 year old grandson. I wondered — would I be able to go to the wedding . . . would I get a chance to see my grandson grow up. ???

The next few days were spent on the phone, making appointments and going to doctor offices. I ended up at the Cancer Institute of New Jersey. My doctor there was wonderful. I knew she would take good care of me. I had surgery August 16, 2010 and started chemo about 2 weeks later.

My goal was to get better for my daughter’s wedding. I did make it to my daughter and son-in-law’s wedding in Jamaica. I had only 2 more chemo sessions to face when I got back.
But my blood work when I got home showed that my body couldn’t take any more chemo. My doctor sent me for a PET scan and said the results would decide if I’d need more surgery or radiation. But the scan came back clear. I was cancer-free!!!!!

This past summer, I babysat for my grandson every day and was able to make many happy memories with him.

I am so grateful to my doctor and the whole team at the Cancer Institute of NJ. I am so grateful for my husband of 31 years. I truly could not have made it through the treatments without him. I am grateful to my family and friends who were so supportive and encouraging.

I was truly blessed to be surrounded by such wonderful people.

Gail
NJ