“Your firm really cares about my well-being.”

In April of 2009, Kathy 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 in Wenatchee, Washington. Immunohistochemical staining of the biopsied tissue resulted in a diagnosis of malignant mesothelioma. Upon learning of the diagnosis, she met with an oncologist in Wenatchee who 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 on October 5, 2009.

Kathy completed her 28 day cycle of radiation at the end of January.

In March Kathy returned to her job 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 October. 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.”