Kathy Martin, August 2009
In April of 2009, Kathy Martin first noticed she was having difficulty
taking deep breaths. She met with her family physician who performed several
tests including a chest x-ray. The x-ray revealed a pleural effusion.
In June of 2009 she underwent a left-sided thoracentesis with pleural biopsy
at the Central Washington Hospital in Wenatchee, Washington. Immunohistochemical
staining of the biopsied tissue resulted in a diagnosis of malignant mesothelioma.
Upon learning of the diagnosis, Kathy met with an oncologist in Wenatchee.
After discussing her chemotherapy options, the doctor recommended that
she consult with Dr. Eric Vallieres in Seattle, Washington.
In July of 2009 Kathy met with Dr. Vallieres and his staff at the Swedish
Medical Center where they discussed her eligibility for the extra-pleural
pneumonectomy. Dr. Vallieres felt she should first undergo chemotherapy
treatments using Alimta in conjunction with Cisplatin. A CT scan taken
before the third round revealed a reduction in the size of the tumor.
As a result of this favorable response and after subsequent tests, Kathy
underwent surgery on her left lung with Dr. Eric Vallieres on October
5, 2009. Kathy recalls that any discomfort felt in the months following
her surgery were greatly soothed by her pain medication which was eventually
weaned off.
Kathy completed her 28 day cycle of radiation at the end of January. Although
they left her feeling nauseated and she developed discoloration and scarring
on her back skin, she recovered enough to return back to work.
Kathy and Ron Martin
In March Kathy returned to her job at the Sheriff’s Office full-time.
While she loves staying busy, she and her husband were ready to take a
vacation after the challenging year they have had. They recently returned
from a relaxing trip in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico and are feeling recharged
for the season ahead. Meanwhile, Kathy has been faithfully keeping up
with her physical therapy appointments several times a week to help regain
strength and mobility on her left side.
Kathy last saw Dr. Vallieres in May and is seeing him again later this
month. Her doctors have been monitoring a small spot on her spine that
is most likely benign. However if the spot turns out to be more serious,
she has already consulted with a radiologist on how to treat it. She recently
learned about the relatively new CyberKnife treatment which is a non-invasive,
non-surgical method of delivering radiotherapy to very targeted areas.
It’s hard to believe a year has gone by since Kathy’s EPP surgery!
She continues to be very appreciative of the Worthington Law Firm. “I
feel your firm really cares about my well-being and are experts about
mesothelioma treatment.”
*** POSTED OCTOBER 7, 2010 ***