Support for LateToSchool

ADad · May 7, 2008, 1:59pm

Thomas a Kempis

It can be so hard when joy and sorrow commingle. I’m sorry for your loss, and happy for your daughter and her happiness, and for your pride and joy in them. You’ve done so well.

sax · May 7, 2008, 6:45pm

I second mafool: give in to a good cry and get it over with for now. You’re sad. You have every reason to be. You’ll feel so much better and probably even laugh when you’re done.

Do you have any friends that you spend time with in D.C.? Anyone more special than the others? Is there any relationship that you might want to grow?

and hey…what ever happened to that nice horseback riding policeman, LTS, hmmmmm ???:)

Everyone has such great things to say. Read them over, take them in and know that we all care very much for you.

epistrophy · May 7, 2008, 7:53pm

Living with Lung Cancer

“The Survivor”

Terri Hunziker and her husband, Mike, have lived with her illness for the past four years. Hunziker has created two Web sites to share her story and her treatment with others suffering from the same kind of cancer.

Two days after she was diagnosed with lung cancer, Terri Hunziker decided to take charge of her life. It was four years ago when Hunziker, a former science teacher, found out she had non-small cell adenocarcinoma. She first visited a doctor because she was experiencing pain in her shoulder a discomfort she initially thought was caused by carrying around her then-11-month-old son, Bryson. But when the pain didnt go away, Hunziker went to her family doctor, who ordered X-rays to examine her shoulder more closely.

He found bone mets in Hunzikers scapula abnormal cells that mark the spread of a cancer from one organ to another.

A biopsy one month later revealed that Hunziker, a 40-year-old mother of two, had stage IV lung cancer and had, at the most, nine months to live.

That Hunziker would have cancer was surprising enough: A former science teacher in the South Kitsap School District, she was always health conscious and lived right, said Mike, her husband of 24 years.

The biggest shock was that Hunziker actually had cancer in her lungs: She was not a smoker and was almost never exposed to second-hand smoke.

I was shocked, she said. I went home, and I remember thinking, I can stay a basketcase, or I can take charge and get better. 

The owner of three online businesses, Hunziker went to the first and most accessible resource she had: the Internet. She began researching her disease, discovering that 20 percent of women who are diagnosed with lung cancer have never smoked, and that the disease is also the deadliest form of cancer.

There was a day or two of shock, Mike said, and then she started researching everything she could get her hands on.

She began making appointments with naturopaths and consulting homeopathic remedies. Hunziker even called lung cancer researchers at leading hospitals, such as Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn., and the Mayo Clinic, to ask about possible treatments.

She was fearless in her pursuit of information, often asking to speak directly with researching doctors and always getting her wish.

Hunziker still exchanges e-mails with those doctors once a week, updating them on her condition and asking their advice.

Most cancer patients wouldnt think of doing it, she said.

Hunziker took another step in treating her disease that other cancer patients might be afraid to try: She started two Web sites to share the research shes accumulated.

One site, [Terri</a> Radcliffe Hunziker](<a href=“http://www.mybumpintheroad.com%5DTerri”>http://www.mybumpintheroad.com), includes a complete timeline of Hunzikers treatments. She detailed everything from the Pulmonary function test she had on June 10, 2004, to her brain MRI one year later.

Another site, [Lung</a> Cancer Among Non Smokers & Never Smokers](<a href=“http://www.neversmokers.com%5DLung”>http://www.neversmokers.com), serves as a database for patients across the country who are dealing with the same cancer.

Hunziker hopes sharing her information and research might help other non-smoking lung cancer patients find encouragement in her story and her survival.

After all, Hunzikers lived with stage IV lung cancer nearly four years longer than doctors predicted she would.

She partially credits her proactive approach to her disease as a reason shes outlived all medical expectations. Hunziker is currently involved in her third clinical trial at the University of Washington medical center; it was her own research that led her to apply for that trial and the others.

I talk to lot of people on my Web site, she said about her new friendships with people as close as Port Orchard and as far away as Georgia who also have non-smokers lung cancer. They find my Web site and are encouraged that Ive been around so long.

But Hunzikers friends and family also believe that her positive attitude is crucial to her health.

Ive never heard one complaint or one negative word about what has happened, said Hunzikers cousin, Angie Cabe. Her will to live is incredible.

The community has rallied around the Hunzikers in the past four years. The Peninsula School District, for example, has been flexible with Mikes schedule he is teacher at Key Peninsula Middle School while friends and family members have picked up their two children, Bryson, now 5, and Brae, 11, from school.

Cabe has planned a fundraiser tonight to help Hunziker pay her medical bills, and more than 120 people have indicated they will be at the event.

(They) all express some connection to Terri, said Cabe, who added that the people coming include families with children who attend school with her sons, close family, and friends of friends. They are people who know her name but dont really know her personally.

That support has helped the Hunzikers stay positive throughout a handful of other tragedies in the past decade. Eleven years ago, just six months after Brae was born, Mike suffered third-degree burns over 50 percent of his body from a fire. He spent three months being treated at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, and another two recovering.

Hunzikers father, Phil Radcliffe, survived near-fatal injuries in a saw mill accident in 2006.

Those kinds of situations are things the family takes in stride, Mike said. But the last eight or so months have been harder on the family, since Hunzikers health has been declining.

Hunzikers breathing has become more labored in the past few months, and she now needs oxygen to help her breathe.

This current clinical trial may be her last hope of prolonging her life, as she has already tried every other available approach for treatment.

Mike said this wifes greatest focus since being diagnosed is spending as much time with her children as possible. He said he is amazed by how patient she is with the childrens wants and needs, and she never thinks of her own condition.

Shes been completely unselfish, all the way through this, he said.

Hunziker hopes she has been able to set a possible example for her two sons, particularly about how to overcome adversity without giving up. She also hopes her Web site and the research shes done can help educate the public about her disease and potentially save lives.

I think that people have learned that lung cancer can happen to anyone Hunziker paused to change out her oxygen tank and catch her breath whether someone has smoked or not.

There needs to be the same funding and research going to lung cancer (as other cancers).

[The</a> survivor](<a href=“http://www.gateline.com/106/story/1332.html]The”>http://www.gateline.com/106/story/1332.html)

4Giggles · May 7, 2008, 10:04pm

LTS- I too vote for a good cry! (not too long though) What a beautiful relationship you and your daughter have, take great joy in knowing you got it right!

NYMomof2 · May 8, 2008, 12:21am

Yes, the policeman - inquiring minds want to know!

latetoschool · May 8, 2008, 9:17am

Oh - yes - the policeman - well, I didn’t like him after all, he was too aggressive. I had plans with friends to watch one of the dems debates, and he tried to pressure me to cancel and spend the evening with him instead, which I did not think was appropriate or very nice. So I didn’t go out with him. I think people should keep commitments, and not change them just because some supposedly “better” deal comes along.

Re my daughter, I have felt since the beginning that it was wrong to take her away from her world, and, when the opportunity presented itself, I supported it. I have known this day was coming for several weeks, it’s just that when it finally did arrive, it hurt - major ouch. It’s sort of like sending them to college - somehow, 18 years becomes 18 months, then 18 weeks and then 18 days and then those days are gone as well, and it all seems to happen in sub-second speed.

But we aren’t supposed to live with our children under the same roof forever, and, I want mine to be free to achieve, be, and do. I miss her terribly, and I miss the cat that I have known and cared for for over ten years. But this is the way it’s supposed to be.

But it’s not all sad and depressing. One of the things we discussed before she left is that I am going to look for housing for me in D.C., right in the city. When I first planned this out, I thought Arlington was a great idea, and, it has worked out; I am happy here. But I am missing out on too many events in the evening, etc., because after working all day I don’t feel like going all the way home to Arlington to put on evening dress, etc.

So in the process of looking for a new home in D.C., etc., I have been combing classified ads. One advertiser is a rental scam running through wire transfer services it turns out, and the person running has the just simply horrible luck of me uncovering the matter. LOL. Right now, I am playing along with them in email volley, I wonder just how deep they will dig themselves. I am going to string them as long as the exchange is productive from my side and then I will make sure they are hit with everything law enforcement has. Distractions are a blessing…

But anyway, we talked about getting a kitten when I find the right place in D.C. itself…there are plenty of them available, that’s for sure…

MaryTN · May 8, 2008, 9:28am

How about two kittens?

They’ll keep each company during the day and you’ll enjoy watching their antics when you’re home. :)

astrophysicsmom · May 8, 2008, 11:20am

haha, the rental scam people won’t know what hit them! I think the move closer in will be a great way for you to “simplify”. I concur with the “hire a housekeeper” and “two kitties are better than one” advice. You did the right thing for your daughter, as I’m sure you know.

I have a small story to pass along to you, since it involves you. Last weekend, my allergies (tree pollen, whatever) completely took over and knocked me for a loop. It was bad enough on Sunday that I went to the 24-hr treatment place. I was miserable, feeling sorry for myself, and ding, the little “What would LTS say?” bell went off. I have to admit that I gladly took my prescriptions (including the 6-day prednisone) and began feeling allergy symptom free (and higher than a kite) for the next 3 days. If I am one of those many people who must face cancer ahead in my life, I only hope that I have a fraction of the mettle you have shown this illness. Frankly, I’m afraid that I’d never have the internal drive you have shown multiple times. (If I can’t handle nasty allergies, how could I handle cancer? ) But, you should know that you’re on the minds of many, at some of the most random times!! Your attitude about your treatment and your drive to go on will something that will continue to positively affect us all for a long, long time.

Faline2 · May 8, 2008, 11:34am

hi late to school
reading about your lovely daughter joining her bf and friends back in Miami does give me a pang. however the real pang for me is how wonderful your relationship is with her and what a magnificent job you have done raising such an accomplished and thoughtful and wise young adult. and I have only two sons…sons are “simpler” and mine are terrific, but it is not the same as a daughter. 
My eldest son is moving to a major city for a summer job/internship before his last year at Duke, and his Duke roommate had to back out, leaving him with no apartment for the summer during his final exams. I had to get on craigslist (he was so desperate he was not embarrassed by his Mom doing it) and write a hundred strangers about him, hoping to find the right stranger for him to share a sublet with. Can I just tell you that many of the potential subletters were STRANGE…and I got a real eyeful of several scam artists and also many adults who simply can’t pay their own bills and are looking for someone to move in like tomorrow to pay them. It took me a couple of days to recognize the scams from the real thing…even so…wish us luck. He moves in 24 hours to live with someone we don’t know. We did do a criminal check otherwise ?..but this place is very close to his summer job and so he will be commute free. but craigslist is quite the community…I just got my introduction. An ad in the newspaper per day was over 120 bucks…so no wonder America sells things another way now.

latetoschool · May 8, 2008, 2:37pm

MaryTN, we are talking about it, but thinking is to go with one. Not that I am any less committing to beating this thing but unfortunately I must approach pet issues through sort of a “what if” lens…comparatively, office leases, new residence, even major technology acquisitions are another issue entirely and I am transacting those situations with the assumption that I am immortal.

Astrophysicsmom if you had such a diagnosis, you would fight your way through it, and do very well, as would most of the people here. You would. There isn’t much of a choice, really - you either get busy living or get busy dying. But allergies are a different animal - the symptoms are almost certainly far more miserable, at least initially. I was very surprised to discover that cancer - at least small cell lung - has almost no symptoms at all. I was even very surprised when my oncologist said that it’s not unusual to have no pain, even when something horrible is happening. But allergies cause a lot of very difficult symptoms, and as I learned from the herniated disc situation, physical discomfort can really mess with one’s mental resolve and subsequently with one’s ability to fight off a serious illness.

Faline, I am amazed at the number of scams. The one I’m currently tracking, the people aren’t even trying very hard to to disguise themselves. That tells me that enough people fall for it that they don’t have to make a serious effort to even try to be believable. At the moment, they would like for me to wire about $500 to Nigeria…

anon94785555 · May 8, 2008, 3:01pm

Thank you for sharing so much of your life with us, LTS. Hopefully this thread can be preserved (backed up on a hard drive) as it has been evolving, some distant year when the finale comes it will make a fascinating book. I am so happy for your D, she will never have regrets about what she should have done for you and she/you are wise enough to let her go. When I look at your life I see bad physical happenings but so many good things in so many other facets of life, continue to enjoy your work, family and friends.

latetoschool · May 8, 2008, 4:02pm

Wis, thank you, I do hope this continues to evolve into something that can be used to help others who may find themselves in similar circumstances. I wonder if you can imagine that the day in September when I first posted I did not forsee this; I was in shock, just days out of the hospital, and was merely responding to a post where another CC member asked where I was. I never intended to post the information, just merely responded to that inquiry.

Cancer is a very interesting experience - I look at it sort of like a hurricane, a natural cleanser of life. It has a way of forcing you to get your “accounts” in order - meaning personal relationships, finances, strategic plans, etc. You really have no choice. It changes your life and your entire worldview. I wonder if you can imagine that now, when I leave my office every day, I arrange things on my desk and in my files so that if this should turn out to be my last day here, the person who enters to collect the documents and files and equipment etc. that comprise my work life can find things easily. Similarly, I keep all of my relationships clear of conflict. Since, with brain mets, and with no brain scan scheduled for a while, I cannot know if the wbr worked, and if it didn’t, then I could potentially go into a seisure at any moment and then never recover, I literally do live each moment as if it could be my last on earth.

At the same time, I am working very hard to fight this, and this includes working every day, eating right, exercising, following my doctor’s instructions but also giving them pushback if I don’t think we’re on the right track, keeping a positive mental attitude, interacting with positive, supportive people, and making sure I am on top of the latest medical research.

So it’s a balancing act: I am operationally functioning as if death is imminent, but living with the intention of extending my prognosis out years and years, and staying in that mental space, as well.

momof2inca · May 8, 2008, 5:17pm

Since there are no guarantees in life, it seems like this might be a good way for all of us to try to live.

SBmom · May 8, 2008, 5:26pm

Definition of a hero: holding two opposing ideas in one’s mind and still being able to act.

Bravo LTS

ADad · May 8, 2008, 7:19pm

Arthur Ashe

epistrophy · May 8, 2008, 8:31pm

and another

“A year into his wifes recovery from lung cancer, Dudley Hart is a new man on the golf course”

The only reason she saw the doctor that day was to get everybody off her case. Suzanne Hart had already made her own diagnosis, the annual spring cold. The violent, barking coughs and heavy chest were normal for her at this time of the year. Maybe she had bronchitis, perhaps a mild strain of pneumonia.

Nothing serious.

If it made her husband, Dudley, happy and pacified her friends for a few days, fine. She would go through the motions, seek medical attention, return with the evidentiary doctors note, quiet their concerns, calm his nerves, and go about her business as a full-time mother of 5-year-old triplets.

After all, nobody had time to mess arond. She had the kids to raise, a new house in Clarence under construction and a husband gone on the PGA Tour. She expected to take a few deep breaths for the physician, head to the pharmacy for another useless prescription and return home without missing a beat.

I had that same cough and a high-grade fever once a year for a while, she said. I just assumed that I would get it once a year. I did what I needed to do. It was yucky, but I knew it would be gone in seven days. I was like, Whatever. Antibiotics dont help. Steroids dont help. But it was the first time I had a chest X-ray.

And thats how she was diagnosed with lung cancer.

Suzanne never smoked and was in good health before doctors first found a softball-sized mass on her right lung. Within the mass, they found a tumor about the size of a golf ball had been growing inside her body for years. How it developed didnt matter. She was a cancer patient.

On May 21, 2007, her 36th birthday, the tumor was removed during the first of two surgeries at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Two days later, she lost two-thirds of her lung during the second surgery. All told, including preoperative treatment for pneumonia, she was in the hospital for three weeks. Her world had changed, definitely, and her husbands had been flipped upside down.

It was a combination of shock and fear, said Dudley Hart, a Western New York native and an 18-year veteran on the tour. I was like, What? I thought she just had a cold. You cant help but have negative thoughts when youre lying in bed trying to go to sleep. This is your wife. Im thinking, Holy cow, we have three little kids. Its scary, trust me.

Friday marks the first anniversary of the day Suzanne walked into a local clinic for routine tests and left a cancer patient. Today, shes a happy, healthy cancer survivor. The triplets Abigail, Rachel and Ryan are 6 years old and doing well in kindergarten. The family has moved into the home that was under construction when this mess began.

Dudley Hart is back on tour and playing his best golf in years, if not his career. He finished tied for fifth Sunday in the Wachovia Championship in Charlotte, N. C., where he was 8-under par for the four rounds. Today, hell play a practice round for The Players Championship, which he left last year after Suzanne was sent to the hospital.

Once known as the Mini Volcano for his short temper, he could shoot 100 in the first round Thursday and still know his life is exponentially better than it was a year ago.

There are a lot worse things that can happen in this world to people than playing a bad round of golf, Hart said. Sometimes, you can forget about that.

Never again will he forget.

Back to his roots

To understand the end, one must comprehend the beginning.

Hart was born in Rochester but spent much of his youth in Hamburg. His father, Chuck Hart, was the club pro at Wanakah Country Club. The family moved to Miami Beach, Fla., in 1981, when Dudley was 13, but he never forgot his roots. Its among the many reasons, once the triplets neared kindergarten, he wanted to return.

I remembered what it was like and what a great place it was to raise kids, good schools, great people, everything, he said. The only downside, especially for a golfer, is the weather. The way I looked at it, for 16 years of my professional life, it was all about me. For my kids, I just didnt want to raise them in South Florida.

Hart had other reasons for moving back. He partnered with his father and PGA professional Jeff Sluman to purchase Lake Shore Golf Club outside Rochester. He also is close friends with Sabres coach Lindy Ruff, whom he met on a chance encounter at a South Florida driving range when Ruff was a young assistant coach of the Panthers.

It was a Buffalo thing. Drop a quarter in Hong Kong, and chances are the stranger picking it up would be from Tonawanda. Hart was a pro golfer who adored the Sabres and Bills. Ruff was an ex-Sabres captain who adored golf. In no time, they made a strong connection that lasts to this day.

For Hart, convincing his wife to relocate from Jupiter, Fla., to Western New York was no honey-do. He met the former Suzanne Wills, a native Floridian, through mutual friends in 1993. At the time, she was a special education teacher in the Fort Lauderdale area. He was in his third full season on the PGA Tour.

His response to her: She couldnt resist my charm.

Her response to him: Who watches golf? I knew nothing about it. I had my masters in teaching and I was like, Wait, you put a ball in a hole for a lot more money than I make? I made $28,000 a year. I was like, Theres something wrong. 

Like many, she never gave this region much thought before they moved here in 2006. All she knew was Buffalo was a snowy place near the lake, a dot on the map and a long way from home. Hart promised her they would have everything they needed and more the dream house, good friends and terrific schools for the kids. She has since learned the strength of the people doesnt come across in the national news as much as the strength of the snowstorms.

After she was diagnosed, Dudley immediately left the tour. He and Suzanne decided he would stay home with the kids while she was being treated in Pittsburgh. Construction on their home wasnt completed, so while she was in the hospital he moved himself and the triplets into a small two-bedroom apartment off Wehrle Drive.

I remember coming home from the golf course, and she was tired and cranky and thinking, What the heck? You havent done anything all day, really, Hart said. Now I know how you can be tired and cranky after saying about 4,000 times, Hey, dont do that. Hey, dont do that. 

The Sabres were in the middle of their second straight trip to the Eastern Conference finals when Lindy Ruffs wife, Gaye, came to the rescue. A year earlier, their daughter Madeline was diagnosed with a brain tumor. Nobody avoids the sobering realities of life. Madeline has since thrived, but the experience was frightening. Gaye Ruff, before shes anything else, is a mother.

Theres always that initial shock of, How can this happen to somebody? Gaye Ruff said. You just go into that mode. What can I do? Where do you need to go? Who do we need to get you to? What can we do for the kids? Its a mothers instinct.

Gaye Ruff pooled her friends and helped make sure Dudley had what he needed at home in between twice-a- week drives to Pittsburgh with the kids. For weeks after Suzanne returned home, Gaye made sure she or one of her girlfriends made dinner every few days for the family. In many ways, she became a big sister for Suzanne.

Shes definitely right up there on the top of my list, Suzanne said. I knew if I ever needed anything that she would be there in a heartbeat. I hope she feels the same way. She had a great group of friends. Its the community effort thats so impressive. Hopefully, someday I can repay them without them going through what we did.

Actually, it was just Western New York.

Where we lived [in Florida], we might have had one friend bring us something for dinner or do something like that, Dudley Hart said. Here, we had people we didnt even know maybe we met them at a party one time bringing stuff and calling and asking, What can we do? It was a big part of why I wanted to get back there.

Taking a life mulligan

This wasnt the Harts first bout with adversity. In 2001, the triplets were born about three months premature and weighing 6 pounds, 9 ounces combined. That experience helped shape Suzannes attitude after she was diagnosed with cancer, before the surgery and subsequent recovery.

When the triplets were born, there could have been all types of problems, she said. They could have had [multiple sclerosis] or cerebral palsy or been blind. We were very fortunate that theyre all healthy and annoying, sometimes [laughing] now. You do what you got to do. You dont have a pity party.

Suzanne quickly recovered from surgery and returned home. A week later, she was driving. A week after that, she was back meeting with the builders in anticipation of moving into their new home in Clarences upscale Spaulding Lake neighborhood last fall.

While she spent the summer regaining her health, Dudley spent the summer regaining his composure. He had reached a point in his career in which he was losing his love for the game and tiring of the self-torture. He had a reputation for combusting after a poor round or a poor shot.

Id like to say competitive, he said with a laugh.

The PGA Tour granted him a one-year family exemption, which relieved him from the pressure of worrying about his tour card for this season. Looking back, he needed the break. He joined the Country Club of Buffalo and played a few times a week for fun without agonizing over every round.

In one summer, amid all the commotion, Hart had a few heart-to-hearts with himself and gained new perspective on life. And once he realized that golf was a serious but secondary passion, his love for the game was restored.

Theres absolutely no question about it, said his father, Chuck. He was always so tough on himself. It made him not like the game as much as he should have. He viewed it as a job and, a lot of days, he didnt want to go to work. Last summer, being home and having the heat off him and playing at the Country Club of Buffalo, his love of the game got renewed.

I used to not like playing golf with him. Sooner or later, it was going to turn into, I hate this game. What am I doing this for? Last year, I played with him a half-dozen times and it was fun. He would miss a shot, and it wasnt a big deal.

Hes in the money

By golly, the attitude adjustment worked. Hart returned to the tour this season with a new caddie, Dave Young, his next-door neighbor. Ruff is expected to carry the bag in two weeks for the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial in Fort Worth, Texas.

Hart was required to earn $485,000 in his first 15 tournaments to keep his tour card. It would have been enough, coupled with his earnings early last season, to finish in the top 125 players. He reached that goal in his first four tournaments, which included a $312,000 payday for his third-place finish in the AT&T at Pebble Beach.

I understand a little bit about the mental part of his sport, which is unbelievably taxing on anybody, Ruff said. Anybody that golfs can understand it. Somehow, through all this, you have to give him a lot of credit for putting it behind him. Hes been able to focus on it, use it as a life experience and move on.

Hart has five top 15 finishes in 10 tournaments this season and has earned $951,449. Even if he didnt play another round, it should be enough to secure his spot for next season considering the top 125 cutoff last year was $785,180. Harts best season was in 1999, when he pocketed $1.26 million.

Now, hes pushing forward as this week marks the end of a year that had more twists and turns than a belly dance. Suzanne and the kids were in Charlotte last week for the Wachovia, but they had to catch a plane during the final round. It was a reminder that life supersedes golf.

Looking back, life doesnt get much better.

As it turned out, we got very lucky, he said. It was a crazy year for sure. Your survival instincts take over. You do what you have to do. You keep plugging.

[The</a> Buffalo News: Sports: A change of Hart](<a href=“http://www.buffalonews.com/sports/story/340822.html]The”>http://www.buffalonews.com/sports/story/340822.html)

(P.S. Gave my closing argument today in my federal conspiracy trial - over 3 hours on my feet, leaving me a bit, uh, tired. A few more arguments remain, then the jury will get the case. Having been engaged in this trial since February, I’m ready for a change of scenery.)

latetoschool · May 8, 2008, 9:50pm

Epistrophy, congratulations on your closing argument; I wish we could hear/read it. Be very interested to hear the jury’s decision, too – is it o.k. to ask if you think they are comprehending the material? Since this is a long trial, will they hang in there and deliberate carefully, or, are they likely to want to be done with it, and decide quickly and potentially incorrectly?

epistrophy · May 9, 2008, 8:18am

and another

**"Marathon Runner Amy Dodson

Keep Pushing Onward: Determination keeps her powered to overcome disability"**

Amy Dodson knows life can be unfair. But that hasn’t stopped her from dreaming of a better life.

In fact, after spending most of her life fighting cancer, Dodson is even more determined to reach new heights. But that could be difficult. The 32-year-old teacher already holds more world track records than anyone in her peer group. And the competition is growing.

“When I first started running, there (weren’t) too many other competitors,” said Dodson. “Now the races are attracting a much larger crowd. It’s wonderful to see.”

Some athletes might be put off running in bigger fields. But Dodson embraces the competition. To her, being able to race is a gift. Why? Because she started running marathons after losing her left leg to a rare form of cancer.

“To run 26.2 miles is a challenge unto itself for able-bodied people,” said Jan Stokosa, a designer of prosthetic devices who knows Dodson well. “But to have an amputation and run that distance on a prosthesis is truly an amazing feat.”

Even with years of experience working with disabled patients across the country, Stokosa says he’s amazed by Dodson’s dedication. “Her spirit and energy are so great that Amy’s been able to overcome a lot of pain,” he said. “If you stand next to her, it’s like being near a bright light. She just exudes positive energy.”

She’s a four-time national half-marathon champion for leg amputee women. Dodson also won a gold medal at last year’s World Triathlon Championships in the below-the-knee female leg amputee division.

In 2002, she broke the world marathon record for amputee women by completing a 26.2-mile race in 3 hours and 53 minutes.

But most events she enters are against able-bodied competitors. Dodson became the first amputee woman to complete the Boston Marathon in 2001. It’s all in her attitude.

“I don’t think of myself as being disabled,” said Dodson. “I can keep up with anyone.”

She’s long been accustomed to pain. After having problems with her left foot at age 10, she was diagnosed with a tumor that took three surgeries to remove.

Then during her sophomore year in college the foot pain became excruciating. She had trouble even pulling bed covers over it at night. The tumor had returned and spread, and doctors decided they had to amputate her leg.

Despite the pain and loss, Dodson was determined to return to school. She did, checking back into the hospital for chemotherapy treatment on weekends.

Her long blond hair, something she took pride in, had to be shaved. “I was quite a sight,” she laughed. “I had to walk around campus without a left leg and no hair. But I did it.”

Dodson demanded to be treated just like any other student. She covered her left leg, trying to walk without a noticeable limp.

“I didn’t want anyone to feel sorry for me,” said Dodson.

During her fight against the disease, Dodson refused to dwell on negative thoughts. She was determined to fight cancer and win, and loved to spend time laughing with family and friends.

Return To Battle

Two years later, it came back. Within three months, the cancer had spread up her body. The lower lobe of her left lung had to be removed. Quite suddenly, Dodson’s chances of survival dropped from around 90% to 10%.

When she was diagnosed with lung cancer, Dodson had just started her first job after graduating from college. “I was at a time in my life in which I was still trying to find myself,” she said.

She could accept losing a leg to save her life. But losing a lung with little chance of survival was something that would terrify anyone.

“There were some dark moments,” said John Dodson, her husband. “But Amy didn’t get caught up in self-doubt. She took it as another challenge that needed to be met head-on.”

The couple met and started dating before her cancer re-emerged. “John was the first person I told,” Dodson said. “I didn’t have any doubts he’d support me. John was there for me and he stood by my side.”

She didn’t want to burden strangers with her situation. So Dodson tried to hide her disability as much as possible in public for several years. Then one day, John noticed she didn’t try to cover her prosthetic leg while preparing to go shopping.

“Amy had decided to allow the rest of the world into her own private struggle,” her husband said. “In a sense, it was a sign that she had moved into a new stage of life.”

She wanted to celebrate, not mourn. Soon after her decision to stop hiding her prosthetic, Dodson considered taking up running.

Her father, Corky Simpson, was a sports columnist for the Tucson (Ariz.) Citizen newspaper and an avid runner. She had fond childhood memories of watching him race.

So when a friend suggested she enter a local racing event, “it was like a slap in the face – it was like a light bulb had gone off.”

Leg amputees had run sprints and short-distance events.

“But that didn’t interest me,” Dodson said. “I wanted to run longer distances.”

The prosthetic leg she used wasn’t designed for running, and Dodson came in next to last in her first race.

“The only reason I didn’t finish last was because one of the other competitors refused to let me finish last,” she said. “Everyone was very encouraging. I was amazed by their generosity.”

Dodson was hooked. She started running marathons, but her prosthetic made it tough.

“Amy’s old prosthetics actually wore a small hole in her leg,” said Stokosa. “If you were to take a nickel and place it on her leg, even that little amount of pressure would hurt. That’s how much pain she was in.”

Looking For Inspiration

Dodson kept at it, determined to improve. When she met Stokosa three years into her running, he designed her a new prosthetic.

To learn how to run faster and smarter, Dodson studied able-bodied runners and athletes.

She also looked for courage, and found it reading about bicyclist and fellow cancer survivor Lance Armstrong.

“He’s inspired me to keep working hard and remain dedicated to what I love to do,” Dodson said.

She also found inspiration in learning about Bob Schul, who won a gold medal in the 1964 Olympics’ 5,000-meter race. “It’s amazing the training workouts he put himself through,” she said. “His positive outlook just amazed me.”

Her next challenge is an Ironman Triathlon in November in Panama City, Fla. Dodson says she’s ready for the 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile biking event and 26.2-mile run.

Dodson starts training for a big event months and even years ahead.

“Developing specific goals and timetables really pays off,” she said. “The clearer your goals are, the easier it is to succeed.”

Those who wonder why an amputee would want to run in races, says John Dodson, miss an important point.

“There’s an interior battle that goes on when someone runs,” he said. “They’ve got to battle through the loss of oxygen and soreness.”

Running is a metaphor for Dodson’s battle with cancer.

“That’s why she runs,” said her husband. “It helps give her strength and confidence to try almost anything in life.”

[Marathon</a> Runner Amy Dodson; Keep Pushing Onward: Determination keeps her powered to overcome disability. | Investor’s Business Daily (February, 2005)](<a href=“http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-8292670_ITM]Marathon”>http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-8292670_ITM)

(P.S. to LTS: Re your questions about my trial, maybe I could pm you about this stuff after the trial is over and the jury has returned their verdicts. They’re good questions - I’m just not comfortable addressing them in a public forum, especially before the trial has concluded.)

ADad · May 9, 2008, 9:18am

The Buddha

latetoschool · May 9, 2008, 2:05pm

^^ Yes, absolutely. We can think ourselves into illness and we can think ourselves into recovery or at least into stability.

Epistrophy I would like that, when the trial is over. Might be out of scope but I am curious as to your thoughts about the trial prospects of Viktor Bout, and that of Charles Taylor, which appears to have been postponed for lack of funds…I cannot figure out if someone has to do some special taxes here, or what needs to happen to make the trial resume…

On a cancer note, I am curious if anyone can give me some more feedback on benedryl experiences. This morning I had chemo (this is consecutive cycle #10 with no break as blood counts have stayed stable, somehow) and, I got the benedryl again. Reggie, my nurse, aways cuts the ordered dose my half for me. It always makes me higher than a kite. This time, though, I seriously thought they were going to have to call for the crash card or the code blue team. It hit me so hard it scared me. Usually, when getting chemo, I sit there and do my work; I take calls on my blackberry, answer emails, do a lot of paperwork, etc. This time I couldn’t even move. I tried to finish composing a reply email and it took me 10 minutes to type six words because I couldn’t even hit the right keys. Reggie is an absolute saint and a gift from God; not only is he an excellent nurse but in this situation he was a godsend; he would not leave my side or stop watching over me the entire time. I spent the session just sitting there with my eyes closed, doing nothing. When I opened my eyes Reggie was there, watching me intently. I did go to the bathroom a few times but was tempted to ask Reggie to go with me - seriously thought I might collapse in the distance of ten steps.

I am much better now; I am in my office working, just ate lunch; things are greatly improved. But I am curious to know if anyone else has had this sort of an experience with benedryl, and, is there a substitute drug that is may be less impactive.

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