When Don Kirschner was serving in the Vietnam War with the United States Air Force, he caught hepatitis C. It wasn’t discovered in his body until the ‘90s, and hepatitis C can turn into cancer when left untreated. His...
Read MoreSurvivor Series
Since 2016, GreatNews.Life’s Survivor Series has spotlighted cancer survivors who are in remission. These survivors share their inspiring stories of hope and impart wisdom and resources to those battling cancer and their loved ones.
Cancer Survivor Series: Don Kirschner
Cancer Survivor Series: Ekaterina Hatzikostantis
In November of 2015, Ekaterina Hatzikostantis and her family faced something that no family expects, but everyone dreads all the same. “I kept throwing up at the same time every day. The doctor said, ‘it’s just stress,’” said...
Read MoreCancer Survivor Series: Marsha Henson
Marsha Henson documents important dates, notes from doctor’s visits, and notes from her cancer treatments in various notebooks and calendars she has kept since her diagnosis in 2017. She recently flipped through them for the first time in a couple...
Read MoreCancer Survivor Series: Craig Buzea
Craig Buzea did not know what he was feeling one day following a playoff football game he coached at Homewood-Flossmoor High School in 2019. While he was unsure of what was going on, he knew it was serious and had been going on for a couple of weeks....
Read MoreCancer Survivor Series: Jodi Dawson
While the natural response to a cancer diagnosis usually consists of shock or panic, Jodi Dawson was not surprised. When Dawson found a lump on the side of her throat, she knew something was wrong. She said she had a few weeks to come to terms with...
Read MoreCancer Survivor Series: David Harness
Life throws curveballs at many of us. Sometimes, a quick response to those curveballs can be the difference between life and death. Through the quick reaction from David Harness and his doctors, Harness is still here today....
Read MoreCancer Survivor Series: Molly Bernotus
Six years ago, when Cedar Lake resident Molly Bernotus went to get her wisdom teeth removed, the oral surgeon found something in her jaw during an X-Ray. Thinking that it was some kind of cyst, the oral surgeon sent a biopsy to a lab to be examined....
Read MoreCancer Survivor Series: Kelley Weisenbacher
Once she got it back, Kelley Weisenbacher decided to use her voice to compel people to actively attend to their physical health through regular checkups with a doctor. After being diagnosed with thyroid cancer in 2017, Weisenbacher realized how...
Read MoreCancer Survivor Series: Marsha Smith
As a nurse at Methodist Hospitals, Marsha Smith encounters illness and disease on a regular basis. This in no way prepared her for her own breast cancer diagnosis. Smith discovered a lump in her breast while she was taking a shower. Initially, she...
Read MoreCancer Survivor Series: Rosanne “Ro” Loughmiller
Combating cancer takes courage, resilience, and, in Rosanne Loughmiller’s case, earrings. Loughmiller is the Director of Business Development at Hartsfield Village and Community Home Health and was shocked to learn she had cancer on December 7,...
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