CancerInstituteReport_2023

Patient Story: Cristian

In recognition of Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month in November 2023, we shined a spotlight on Cristian who — more than four years after his surgery and treatment for pancreatic cancer — continues to thank the Cancer Institute daily. Cristian, who retired from his job as a Distinguished Scientists from a national laboratory, is originally from Romania but has been living in the United States since 1990. In 2019, while still working full time, Cristian’s workload was so busy that he didn’t notice the first signs that something might be wrong. When his son told him that his face was yellow, he wanted to ignore it and blame it on being tired, but his wife insisted that he see their primary care physician. After concerns with the results of an MRI, Cristian was referred to a gastroenterologist, who confirmed that Cristian had cancer. Fortunately, it was operable and the position of the cancer on the pancreas gave the surgeons a reason to be optimistic, so he was scheduled for surgery with James McLoughlin, MD the following week. Acting that fast was essential for limiting the spreading. “I was concerned, but I knew I needed to follow instructions and put my faith in the years of experience and knowledge of the doctors at the medical center,” he said. After surgery, Cristian stayed at the medical center for almost four weeks where he said the doctors and nurses did everything possible to take good care of him. “What impressed me most was the collaboration among

| Cancer Institute Annual Report 12

Made with FlippingBook interactive PDF creator