Patient activists urge more screenings for colon cancer

7th March 2016   ·   0 Comments

By Allana Barefield
Contributing Writer

The chemotherapy fluids dripped slowly. The clock kept ticking minute by minute, heard by everyone in the room. The scars from surgery and the noticeable weight loss as she stared in the mirror all represented one word: survival. Her face lit up when she heard the news that her cancer was gone.

Heidi Magrath, 50, was diagnosed with colon cancer in Sept. 2013. The Mandeville, La. native can now re-tell her story to others inspiring them with lessons learned on a new perspective on life.

“Being diagnosed with cancer you look at everything different, you value the little things by appreciating that you get to take a second look on the world,” Magrath said. She is beyond grateful to be still breathing. She never thought she would have gotten cancer at such a young age being 47 when colon cancer was not in her family. Magrath said she never smoked, drank, or was over weight, to be considered at-risk.

After lung cancer, colon cancer is the second-leading cause for cancer-related deaths in the U.S. Louisiana ranks fourth in the nation for deaths related to colon cancer. In March, as part of Colon Cancer Awareness Month, the American Cancer Society is urging increased screenings as part of its 80 percent by 2018 initiative, to get that share of adults over the age of 50 to have regular screenings.

Medical experts say both fear of screenings and a lack of insurance coverage has saw the numbers for colon cancer increase across the country and in the state. “Louisiana is the second highest to have colon cancer [diagnosis] nationwide because of the high population of uninsured people,” said Dr. Keith L. Winfrey, the chief medical officer at New Orleans East Louisiana (NOELA) Community Health Center. The center, which opened in 2015 to provide more patient services particularly for the New Orleans east area serves patients in three languages, of which one-quarter don’t have health insurance. Screen tests from a stool sample or the colonoscopy can be pricey so people become reluctant, he explained.

“Patients need to realize only 10 percent are hereditary gene mutation,” Winfrey said. Colon cancer is the third most common cancer in the United States and is expected to cause 49,190 deaths during 2016. Many cases stem from an individual’s lifestyle from high fat diets, or alcohol use, where the symptoms do not show up until the later stages, Winfrey added. Last year, NOELA community health center received a $40,000 grant from the American Cancer Society, funded by Amerigroup, to provide education and colorectal screening in the east. The overall goal of the grant was to make the clinic a place that empowers the patient to take preventative measures with their primary doctors through check ups or screenings.

“Having cure coordinators are beyond helpful to handle the electronic side from emailing to calling the patients to remind them that they’re due for their screenings,” Winfrey added.

The New Orleans east clinic can also go a long way in understanding why some communities have a higher risk for cancer diagnosis than others. “There has been research that African Americans have been more prone to be diagnosed with cancer but studies still don’t know why,” Winfrey added.

The American Cancer Society recommends that patients begin colon cancer screenings at the age of 50, and continue to screen in 10 year intervals, if a patient has received a colonoscopy.

Telling families is one of hardest parts in this process. “Its like a death sentence with a lot of anxiety and depression added to the patient and family,” Winfrey added.

This transition was true for Magrath as she confronted her diagnosis with colon cancer. Her diagnosis was important to getting early treatment and saving her life. Going to Ochsner Medical Center on the North Shore was a place where Magrath said she felt loved and at ease by doctors and nurses, during her treatments. Dr. Greg A. Bizette, her oncologist, had a set plan to go to battle to beat her cancer since it was in an early stage, she explained. The cancer changed her life from executing daily tasks for her household.

“As a mother I spent all my time on my family but now I had to spend the time on myself to keep going,” Magrath added. Being there for her two sons that were in high school and college was a difficult time since the roles reversed because her children could not depend on her.

Having hope allowed Magrath to not give up, she said. Having a colonoscopy done can ruin one day, she said, but Magrath said it was better to know, than to not know one’s diagnosis Magrath added.

If the cancer is already there than it is better to deal with the problem earlier on before it progresses, she said. “Walking around with fear that you wont be there for your kid’s graduation or wedding is not the way to live life, you owe it to yourself and your family,” Magrath said.

If someone does receive a cancer diagnosis she is proof that there is survival. To her, being a survivor means to “live your life with no restrictions because I have survived this battle but it still can come back,” Magrath said.

Watching her only child look death in the face and keep fighting was also a challenge, said Ruthanne Hilker, Magrath’s mother. “She has always been a person to be energetic and a go-getter,” Hilker added. “I know the news bothered her that she wanted to cry but she didn’t once complain,” Hilker said.

Magrath said her diagnosis changed her for the better. She made it an event to go get her treatments with the company of a neighbor, friend, or relative to sit with her, to talk, or eat. She has since started line dancing class, biking 120 miles each week, and staying active in the Boy Scout community. Magrath is also the captain for Relay for Life, across the state. She says she celebrates life and honors cancer survivors, and remembers those who have passed. She continues to work to raise money for the American Cancer Society to fund cancer research and programs for cancer patients. “I am beyond proud of her from conquering this while still being a mother, friend, and wife,” Hilker said.

*In the article titled “Patient activists urge more screenings for colon cancer,” which was published in the March 7, 2016 edition of The Louisiana Weekly, it was stated that patients should begin colon cancer screenings at age 45 and decrease “gaps” in screening to between five and ten years. According to American Cancer Society, the accurate screening age is 50 years old, and the appropriate interval between screenings is ten years if a patient receives a colonoscopy.*

This article originally published in the March 7, 2016 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.