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The Cancer Spreads
Fifteen months later and 23 weeks into
her second pregnancy, Suzette felt pain
in her abdomen. Her stage 4 cancer had
metastasized to her liver and bones.
Following nine weeks of
chemotherapy, at 33 weeks gestation,
baby daughter Jordan was born. Two
months later, Suzette had a stem cell
transplant. Her tumors shrank signifi-
cantly; there were no treatments for
five months.
That peaceful time ended with the
diagnosis of brain cancer and more
treatment. While on vacation last June,
Suzette found another lump in her
breast. She underwent a second radical
mastectomy and is receiving chemother-
apy to shrink her tumors so she can
receive a bone marrow transplant.
The good news: Becky, her sister, is
a perfect donor match. The bad news:
the insurance company refuses to pay
for the procedure, which costs about
$100,000.
Suzette knows better than anyone
how much she might lose. "Earlier
this year, a doctor advised me to write
my will and prepare my family for me
not being around," recalls Suzette.
"'Hey, wait!' I thought. 'That's not
the message I wanted. I'm not ready
to leave my husband and family.' I
found another physician who was
willing to work with me against this
aggressive cancer."
Suzette fights back, struggling against
the heartbreaking obstacles that increas-
ingly confront her and other seriously ill
women with breast cancer.
"No one knows what it's like unless
you've gone through it. That's why I
go to Gilda's Club in Royal Oak.
Women like me — some younger,
some older — support each other. I
have a chance to sometimes take my
mind away from the wars."
Grim Statistics
Breast cancer is the most frequently
diagnosed non-skin cancer among
women in the United States.
Approximately 185,000 new cases of
breast cancer are diagnosed yearly.
About 10 percent have metastatic dis-
ease at the time of diagnosis and about
40-50 percent of the others eventually
develop metastatic disease. Some 44,000
women die from the disease each year.
"We don't have a choice about the
cancer, but we do have a choice about
how we live," says Scott Herskovitz,
who sold his pizza business to spend
more time caring for Suzette and the
girls.
"It is wrenching to watch Suzette
during the high-dose chemo treat-
ment; she is sick and in pain," Scott
says. "When she's feeling good, our
family leads a normal life and we're
hoping that this second stem cell
transplant will help our family find
those peaceful days again."
Breast cancer patients continually
face physical, economic and psychoso-
cial issues. Women like Suzette want
increased control and better informa-
tion about their treatment options.
Judy Michaels is a long-time friend
of Scott's family. "The sense of corn-
munity that envelops Suzette and her
family is extraordinary," says Michaels.
"Women Suzette has known from her
elementary school years are helping
and high school friends not seen in a
decade are volunteering support.
Friends and relatives of the parents
and sometimes perfect strangers have
pitched in and donated their help to
this young family."
Leah McLean and Suzette have been
friends since junior high days. Setting
her career aside as an oncology social
worker to raise her family, McLean stays
home with her four small children. She
was helpful getting Suzette connected
with support services and, with other
friends and family members, organized
an upcoming fund-raising event to help
raise money for Suzette's second bone-
marrow transplant.
"People have responded generous-
ly," says McLean. "The goal is to have
everything donated — the food, the
decorations, and the many items for
the silent auction.
"Suzette was known to go to birth-
day parties after a chemo treatment.
She takes each day as something pre-
cious — a perspective that we could
learn from. She is an inspiration as she
moves forward and doesn't let her loss-
es push her down."
The hope is that this "experimental"
treatment will not only save Suzette's life
but help research come closer to saving
thousands of other lives. ❑
"A. Celebration of Life" fund-raiser
for Suzette Herskovitz is a dinner-
dance featuring the Simone Vitale
Band. It will be held at Canterbury
Village in Lake Orion, on
Thursday, Nov. 16. For informa-
fion, call Leah McLean, (248) 620-
9515.
To send contibutions, make
checks payable to My Friends Care
BMT Fund P.O. Box 1391,
Clarkston, MI 48347.
,