As a scientist, Natalie Counihan lives by logic, so when a bike ride left the Ocean Grove resident short of breath last September she assumed she was unfit or coming down with a cold.<\/p>\n
The reality was the wife and mother of two was in the throes of Hodgkin Lymphoma, a revelation that led her to the Andrew Love Cancer Centre.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe night after the bike ride I had a bit of pain when I took a deep breath, I thought this feels a bit like something more, maybe pneumonia, so I went to the GP the next day,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said you probably have pneumonia here\u2019s some antibiotics but let\u2019s take an x-ray just to be sure. I remember saying to him specifically \u2018are you sure that\u2019s not overkill?\u2019; he\u2019s like \u2018let\u2019s just do it\u2019 so I went and got an x-ray.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t think anything else of it and then I got a phone call from the doctor\u2019s surgery mto come in the next day. The next morning, the doctor said the results showed I could have cancer, that there was a mass in my chest.\u201d<\/p>\n
A whirlwind ensued over the next few weeks with a CT scan, biopsy surgery and subsequent testing which determined Natalie had Hodgkin Lymphoma, a blood cancer.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t google anything. I didn\u2019t want to do that because with any type of cancer out there there\u2019s survival rates but to me if I saw a survival rate that\u2019s the percentage I\u2019m going to see my kids go to school,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t want to know that number, I didn\u2019t want to know if I\u2019ve got a 50 per cent chance of seeing my kids in grade two, I didn\u2019t want to know any numbers.\u201d<\/p>\n
On December 27 last year, Natalie began an intensive six-month course of chemotherapy that saw her attend Barwon Health\u2019s Andrew Love Cancer Centre on a weekly basis.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was two rounds of an intensive chemo and then a pet scan to see how things went, then another two one-month
\nrounds followed by another pet scan. At that point the cancer had gone, I was in remission so then another two months
\njust to clear up any remaining microscopic traces,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe first time I walked into Andrew Love it was like this other world I didn\u2019t know existed, you walk in and it\u2019s pretty
\nhorrible, it\u2019s not a nice place to be really.<\/p>\n
You look around and see everyone sick and you know you have to be there, it\u2019s just not pleasant.\u201d<\/p>\n
Natalie said despite her initial discomfort she was amazed at how many supportive services Andrew Love had to offer besides just the medical care.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey have a lot of side therapies, things like cook books, they offer wigs, there\u2019s free beanies. It just makes a horrible experience even a tiny bit better, which makes all the difference.<\/p>\n
\u201cLast year\u2019s Dry July funded a masseuse that came into the oncology ward, she came once a week and gave free
\nmassages to patients. That was probably my best experience in hospital because everyone else is pricking you and feeling you and here was this amazing soft touch.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barwon Health Foundation\u2019s Sara Bonnici said Dry July raises funds nationally to support adults living with cancer through patient comfort and care.<\/p>\n
\u201cEach year over 2,400 people in our region are diagnosed with cancer. All funds raised through the 2018 Dry July campaign will support a number of programmes and facilities at Barwon Health\u2019s Andrew Love Cancer Centre,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cPrograms include nutrition information and cooking demonstrations and printing of cookbooks made by the community kitchen program, carer support, exercise physiology, physio, a yoga instructor and equipment, oncology massage therapy and art therapy and exercise therapy for patients on our oncology ward.<\/p>\n
\u201cLast year Dry July, including the successful grants, raised over $156,000 for patient comfort and care. At this stage the Andrew Love Cancer Centre\u2019s Dry July campaign has raised over $41,000 and we aim to reach $55,000.\u201d<\/p>\n
Natalie has now returned to work as a scientist at Deakin University and said even though she didn\u2019t participate in this
\nyear\u2019s fundraiser in the future she will.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m a lot more aware of what they\u2019re fundraising for now and will definitely look at doing some fundraising in the future. I didn\u2019t do Dry July this year I did Dry half year instead,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI would definitely encourage people to get behind Dry July any way they can. The mental side of having those extra services available was really amazing.\u201d<\/p>\n
For more information and to donate go to dryjuly.com and select Andrew Love Cancer Centre.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
As a scientist, Natalie Counihan lives by logic, so when a bike ride left the Ocean Grove resident short of breath last September she assumed she was unfit or coming down with a cold. The reality was the wife and mother of two was in the throes of Hodgkin Lymphoma, a revelation that led her […]<\/p>\n