Tag: colon cancer

Anniversary

Happy Anniversary to me!  On August 5, 2016 I will celebrate 5 years (Colon) Cancer free.  Yay!  IMG_7945You see on Friday, August 5, 2011 I had surgery to remove the colon cancer so I count that day in August as my anniversary date as opposed to counting when I actually completed my 12 chemo treatments which, by the way, was in February of 2012.  I’m not going to get into it here as I have already blogged about the actual experience which can be found under Blogs on my site, lajeunehollis.com (“A Place of Desert…”).  

Although I tried unsuccessfully to put on a Colon Cancer Cruise in 2015 (“Colon Cancer Survivors Cruise Info”) it was still a learning experience that left me much richer for it…

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The month of March will forever hold a special place in my  heart as it is Colon Cancer Awareness Month and without the colonoscopy I received back in June of 2011, I would not be sharing any of these stories with you today (“True Blue”).

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Eating healthy and nutritious foods is a way of life for me now, not just a passing fad (“My Clean Living Life – Parts I and II”).

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Working out at The Edge in Hamden is a great stress reliever for sure but it also serves the dual purpose of keeping me physically fit (“Pit Bull or Poodle?”).

And participating in seasonal sports and/or activities on a regular basis brings me right back to my childhood as my parents were always good about keeping all 7 of us Hollis kids busy in a good way (“Ski Date”).

Having good friends to lean on during a major illness (remember that old saying about the fact that you don’t really know who your real friends are until you encounter major illness) rang so true for me.  Also, making new friends as a direct result of my Cancer experience was humbling to say the least (“Friends are like jewels…”).

Family is crucial and I honestly don’t know what I would have done without the love and support of my father and my siblings during this trial (“Easter Sunday Back in the Day”).

And finally,  growing up in a religious household made all of the difference in the world in terms of how I viewed my illness and how I responded to it (“A Desert Place…”).   Having faith and a church home (for me, Christian Tabernacle Baptist Church in Hamden, CT) was completely necessary for my sanity and my survival.  I was then, and continue to be now, truly blessed.

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True Blue

I felt compelled to write this blog today since March is Colon Cancer Awareness month and I am  a Colon Cancer Survivor.   I have to admit that I first started seeing “Blue” on Social Media which reminded me that I too needed to get the word out about the importance of pre-screening for Colon Cancer since a colonoscopy literally saved my life: Black coffee and lemon Italian Ice…eeech!

 

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I realize that I have a story that everyday people can relate to which I witnessed firsthand while sharing it through one of the most popular blogs on The View from Lajeune: A Place of Desert…(almost) 4 years cancer free

 

on News 8 television with Ann Nyberg:  http://networkconnecticut.com/2015/07/colon-cancer-was-no-match-for-lajeune-hollis/

 

on 94.3 WYBC-FM radio with Juan Castillo: My Happy Surprise this week on The Electric Drum?

 

and through speaking about it at my church, Christian Tabernacle Baptist Church in Hamden, CT.

 

People I know from all walks of my life watched me go through colon cancer and beat it so I hope they felt encouraged not only for themselves, but for their loved ones who may or may not one day encounter the C word…

 

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As it turns out, Colon Cancer is one of the most preventable and treatable cancers out there so I felt the urge to create my own fundraising page on the Colon Cancer Challenge Foundation (CCCF) website: http://events.coloncancerchallenge.org/site/TR/Events/TributeDonateYourWay?px=1104261&pg=personal&fr_id=1060

 

My page is on this website because I admire the fact that CCCF “has been working since 2003 to fund screening programs for the uninsured and provide much-needed funds to young investigators who are committed to finding a cure for colorectal cancer.”

 

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And the answer is:  I am “true blue” in a good way, for I am not only a Survivor, but a Believer…

 

 

 

 

Black coffee and lemon Italian Ice…eeech!

I am prepping for my colonoscopy tomorrow.  A colonoscopy 4 1/2 years ago literally saved my life so I’m not mad about it.  What grosses me out is the prep.

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Part I:  The entire day before (or today for me) I have to stick to a clear liquid diet.  There is no limit to the amount of clear liquids I can drink during the day.  This diet can include water, clear broth, bouillon, soda, gatorade, clear fruit juice, limeade or lemonade, popsicles, Jello-O, Italian ice, coffee or tea.  Here’s the catch: I cannot have anything with the colors red, purple or orange.  I cannot have any solid food, I cannot have any alcoholic beverages, I cannot have any milk, cream or dairy substitutes.  That pretty much wipes out my whole diet (smile).

Part II:  At 3pm this afternoon I start cleaning out my system with the Suprep Bowel Prep Kit.  This is the prescription medication that my GI doctor ordered for me to pick up from the local pharmacy one week before my procedure. There are 4 steps involved here which all center around drinking the entire first bottle of the prep medication which must be diluted with a 16 ounce container of water.

By the way, if you cannot find a responsible adult to go with you, you must arrange for transportation to and from your colonoscopy    There are reputable medical taxi services in the area that can help with this step.

Part III:  The next morning (or the day of your colonoscopy) approximately 4 hours before your arrival time, repeat steps 1 – 4 with the Suprep Bowel Prep Kit.  I will now be on the second (last bottle) and all liquids must be completed 3 hours before my arrival time.  What I find difficult is that I now have barely anything in my stomach, I’ll most likely be feeling even more dizzy than I feel right now, and I still have to get all of that icky drink down as quickly as possible…

Part IV:  To me this is the easy part:  the actual procedure.  In and of itself it’s  quick, it’s painless and there’s very little memory of it as you are sedated.

Part V:  The fun part. It’s over and you can eat again – yay!!!

Update:  just completed colonoscopy — all clear — no polyps!   Next one in 3 years due to my history.

The Yellow Brick Road

So me and my sisters, Dana and Casandra, were texting one lazy Saturday afternoon and came up with this great idea. We were talking about how in the past year I did:

a magazine interview:

(pgs 40-41: http://issuu.com/secondwind/docs/nhm_oct_2014-web2e=4001684/9891267)

a radio interview:

(see parts 1 and 2 of podcasts dated 8/15/15: http://www.943wybc.com/Episodes.aspx?PID=2770)

and a television interview:

(http://networkconnecticut.com/2015/07/colon-cancer-was-no-match-for-lajeune-hollis/)

two of the three interviews centered around my colon cancer experience. Then Dana said, let’s put together a colon cancer fundraiser in my (Lajeune) name and we all agreed it should involve water, a good time and people. We immediately thought: why not a cruise!  Here is where the ‘Yellow Brick Road’ kicked in: Dana is a part-time travel consultant so everything involving the cruise travel plans would come out of her agency – Cruise Planners; Casandra is a part-time Quilt Artist so she could create 2 colon cancer survival quilts to raffle off; and I am a colon cancer survivor with a real wish to help others, so Voila, the Lajeune Hollis Cancer Survivors Cruise was born!  We decided on the month of June in 2016, since June is Cancer Survivor’s Month.  We thought it would be nice if everyone wore white on the last night of the cruise which could represent Survivorship and Life.  And we imagined a Carnival Sunshine Cruise to Canada/New England made the most sense as it’s an affordable, good time that is popular with our target demographic, middle-aged adults.   By the way, the interior cabins start at just $569…

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We leave out of NYC June 30th – July 4th so there is no airfare involved. We are adding $50 to each cabin, which will go directly to CCCF, who “has been working since 2003 to fund screening programs for the uninsured and provide much-needed funds to young investigators who are committed to finding a cure for colorectal cancer.”  Dana initially contacted the Colon Cancer Challenge Foundation (CCCF) and sent them my colon cancer survival story blog.  She suggested that I call them myself and share my story.  I spoke on the phone with their Director of Communications (Cindy) and explained my story. After I finished Cindy confided in me that the timing couldn’t have been better as one of the main priorities at CCCF this year concerned the African-American Community who are dying of Colon Cancer (one of the most preventable cancers!) quicker than any other ethnic group. Cindy explained that this is happening because African-Americans are not going to see their doctors on a regular basis so when they do finally come in, the diagnosis is much worse than it would have been. I agreed to allow her to post my colon cancer survival blog in their CCCF Fall newsletter and she asked to be kept in the loop on our upcoming Colon Cancer Cruise so she could get us additional publicity by including it in their newsletter!  Cindy also mentioned that she would be more than happy to provide us with information on early detection for colon cancer which we could hand out on the cruise.  Stay tuned as me and my sisters are happily skipping down the Yellow Brick Road as we speak!

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My clean living life…

So, 4 years ago I was diagnosed with colon cancer (which I will blog about at a later date) but this diagnosis forced me to start cleaning up my life in terms of what foods I put into my body. I started buying and eating more veggies, legumes, beans, whole wheat products, lean meat, fish, chicken sausage, turkey dishes, hard cheeses, low sodium foods, unprocessed foods, organic foods, etc. I also started drinking up to 8 glasses of water a day, taking vitamins and exercising 5 days a week. My sleep habits have always been good (I try and get at least 7 hours of sleep a night). And I don’t use drugs so that was not an issue. I do, however, drink red wine (which supposedly is good for your heart as it contains antioxidants!) and the only kind of chocolate I consume is dark chocolate which again is heart healthy. One of my favorite clean eating recipes given to me by my former co-worker Michele Elliott, has everything I love in it: whole wheat pasta, tomatoes, garlic, spinach, beans and chicken sausage and it’s a breeze to make. Here it is:

Whole Wheat Pasta with Veggies and Beans (and Chicken Sausage):

Cook whole wheat rotini pasta according to directions on box

In large pan sauté in olive oil:
2 to 3 cloves of garlic minced
1 large red onion
1 large bag of baby spinach
one container of grape tomatoes (cut these in half to double the amount)
2 cans of red kidney beans
2 cans of chick peas or garbanzo beans
Add crushed red pepper and black pepper
Add cooked chicken sausage to other ingredients (first cut chicken sausage links lengthwise and then make into medallion size) and bake them in oven at 350 degrees for 20 minutes

Cook all ingredients together on stove for 45 minutes to an hour (until beans and tomatoes are soft).

Add cooked pasta to veggies and beans and chicken sausage.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

1 1/2 cups is your portion.

Bon Appetit!    Here is a picture of my dish:

Whole Wheat Pasta with Veggies and Beans and Chicken Sausage