Phyllis Parker

Dec. 26, 2007

Phyllis Parker of Traverse City is well-known for her positive attitude and the way she simply loves on everyone who comes in contact with her. If you’ve lived in Traverse City for any length of time, you probably know Phyllis as the friendly check-out lady at your nearby grocery store, and Jim, her doting husband and local carpenter.
“Salt of the earth people, that’s what they are,” sums up a local friend and admirer. “They are the kind of people that would give you the shirt off their own back, even if it was their last shirt.” Or maybe you know the Parkers and their children from karaoke night. Fishing out on the bay together is one of their favorite pastimes now that the children are grown, and you might have bumped into them some early morning and traded Big Fish stories. No matter how you know Phyllis and Jim Parker, you remember them always - and with fondness.

HEADACHES WERE just
THE BEGINNING
Last year about this time, Phyllis began having headaches. Medication for migraines helped a little, but the headaches came more frequently and were more severe in intensity. Numerous visits to the doctor and prescriptions did not lead to a resolution of the headaches. Maybe, Phyllis offered as explanation to her family and friends, it’s just stress - after all, it was a bit of a rough year after the death of her dear friend Becky.
Despite the bad headaches, Phyllis kept up with her usual activities. But people at work noticed that she seemed a bit forgetful at times and Jim noticed the same. And the headaches began to take on increasingly frightening characteristics. Ultimately, a frightened Jim took Phyllis to the hospital emergency room for re-evaluation, insisting that something was terribly wrong with his wife. She was disoriented, confused, and suffering unrelenting pain. The CT of the brain performed at the hospital revealed that Phyllis had an extremely large - about the size of a tennis ball - brain tumor that was herniating, a true life and death situation.
She was rushed to a specialty hospital where emergency surgery was performed to remove the tumor, which was determined to be cancerous. The surgeons were able to remove all the cancer and saved her life. They released her from the hospital after an amazingly excellent short recovery, but scheduled her to come back for a PET scan in a few weeks. You see, Phyllis’ brain tumor was a “secondary tumor” - while in the hospital for brain surgery, a CT scan was done revealing a small lung tumor which turned out to be the original source of the cancer.

HELP FOR A HEAVY BURDEN
So far, Phyllis has undergone: One brain surgery resulting in a large arc of an incision from the top right of her head all the way to her ear (dozens of staples); radiation; a second surgery to remove most of her left lung; two more hospitalizations due to reactions to medications; and, has just completed chemotherapy.
All this just doesn’t seem fair. Here’s a lady who’s loved on the world, cared for her daughter disabled from a car accident, had hardship most of us have never known, given to the community in countless ways, shares laughter all the while and spreads rainbows wherever she goes. She is young - barely past 50 and just beginning to enjoy her first grandchild. This should be a happy time. Instead, Phyllis and Jim are in the fight for her life - and she’s fighting hard. But things are tough - the money is running out. Jim is caring for her and neglecting his business out of necessity. Going from two incomes to no income is hard enough, but how does one cope in this unthinkable situation? And to make matters worse, Phyllis’ car was stolen recently.
“Keep your chin up, that’s all you can do,” smiles Phyllis. “But it does get frustrating and lonely. We don’t know how we’re going to make the next house payment. I am keeping my faith that this will all work out, but we’re not going to be able to do this alone.”
Friends and family rallied recently with a small fundraiser with the help of local radio stations and small businesses. A little over $5,000 was raised - and that has helped until now. But the cancer fight is continuing, and the extra dollars are gone. The only saving grace is that Jim and Phyllis have been able to maintain the health insurance that pays for Phyllis’ treatment - and they still have each other, their family, and their faith.

HOPE FOR LUNG CANCER?
During 2007, more than 8,000 Michigan residents were diagnosed with lung cancer; 5,840 died.
So, what’s happening with lung cancer research? Why are so many people still dying of lung cancer?
According to the International Early Lung Cancer Action Project
(I-ELCAP), one of the challenges of treating lung cancer has been due to the advancement and, often, spread of the cancer cells by the time it is detected. While survival rates of other forms of cancer have improved, the survival rates for lung cancer have not. In fact, more people die from lung cancer each year than that of breast, prostate and colon cancer combined. Because symptoms of lung cancer don’t usually appear until the more advanced stages, diagnosis occurs too late for the cancer to be cured.
Results of a study conducted by
I-ELCAP, which began in 1993, suggests that these outcomes could be drastically improved by early detection of lung cancer through the use of annual CT screening. In this study, most of the people diagnosed with lung cancer were at the earliest stage (Stage I). Those who chose not to be treated all died within five years. However, the cure rate of those who received early treatment rose to 80 percent.
Due to advances in the technology of CT screening, it is now possible to detect lung cancer at its earliest stage, possibly improving the cure rate of a staggering amount of lung cancer patients as well as lowering the costs associated with lung cancer treatment. The cost of a low dose CT scan usually ranges from $200 to $300, and treatment for Stage I lung cancer is less than half the cost of the late-stage treatments which most often have grave outcomes. In fact, compared to the cost of routine mammogram screening, the long term savings could be similar or even better.
CT screening for lung cancer has been available at many locations for quite a number of years. Those who believe to be at risk for developing lung cancer may wish to consider asking their physician for a base line CT screening as well as regular follow up screenings - such health maintenance can CURE lung cancer before it has a chance to spread - and this has been known for quite a few years.
Phyllis and Jim wish they had known about CT scanning. If you would like to help with the Parkers’ situation, please email special@northernexpress.com for more information.