BRIDGE TO LIFE; CANCER SURVIVORS CELEBRATE THEIR VICTORIES OVER ILLNESS.Byline: Don Holland Daily News Staff Writer With spring's promise of life renewed, current and recovered cancer patients gathered Sunday for the first time in Simi Valley Simi Valley (sē`mē, sĭm`ē), city (1990 pop. 100,217), Ventura co., SW Calif. in an oil, fruit, and farm region; laid out 1887, inc. 1969. to celebrate life and mark National Cancer Survivors Day. The event, held in 650 communities across the country, is aimed at sharing the success stories of cancer patients, encouraging early detection and spreading the word that cancer can be conquered. ``A diagnosis of cancer today does not mean what it used to mean - an almost certain demise,'' said Alan Rice, president of Simi Valley Hospital Simi Valley Hospital (SVH) is a Seventh-day Adventist hospital located located in Simi Valley, California. SVH is a member of Adventist Health. New Construction Simi Valley Hospital is in the process of building a new wing to the hospital. , which co-sponsored the event along with the Simi Valley chapter of the American Cancer Society American Cancer Society, n.pr established in 1913, this national volunteer-based health organization is committed to the elimination of cancer through prevention and treatment and to diminishing cancer suffering through advocacy, scholarship, research, . ``So what we're seeing here is the cancer survivor community getting organized.'' After lunching in the park-like setting next to Simi Valley Hospital's Oncology Institutes, officials honored cancer survivors with the dedication and unveiling of Memory Bridge. Jessica Szegedi, an 18-year-old Simi Valley college student, told of struggling with thyroid cancer Thyroid Cancer Definition Thyroid cancer is a disease in which the cells of the thyroid gland become abnormal, grow uncontrollably, and form a mass of cells called a tumor. when she was 4. Szegedi was repeatedly diagnosed with nothing more than a common cold until doctors at the UCLA Medical Center UCLA Medical Center is a hospital located on the campus of the University of California, Los Angeles in Los Angeles, California. It is rated as one of the top three hospitals in the United States and is the top hospital on the West Coast according to US News & World Report. did a biopsy that revealed malignant cancer. ``It was so far advanced that my windpipe windpipe: see trachea. was almost completely blocked off,'' said Szegedi, who volunteers for the local American Cancer Society. After five surgeries and repeated radiation treatments, the cancer had gone. ``I now savor each and every moment because I know how lucky I am to be alive,'' she said. Another survivor, Helen Beebe, said new cancer treatments and gene therapies hold ever greater promise. ``Early, early detection, treatment and preventive measures make all the difference,'' said Beebe, who recalled a time when 95 percent of those diagnosed with cancer perished from it. ``Caught early, cancer is now 95 percent curable cur·a·ble adj. Capable of being cured or healed. . That's what our research is doing.'' CAPTION(S): 2 Photos PHOTO (1--Color in Simi Edition only) Participants tie ribbons and flowers to Memory Bridge in Simi Valley. (2--Color in Simi Edition only) Ruth Morello, left, and Helen Beebe unveil the Memory Bridge, a cancer survivors monument dedicated Sunday near Simi Valley Hospital. Gene Blevins/Special to the Daily News |
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