October 26, 2007

An Evening with Peggy

Olympic skater helps celebrate digital mammography and the Genesis Center for Breast Health

MOLINE, ILLINOIS   - Olympic gold medal figure skater Peggy Fleming remembers the first time she stepped out onto the ice as a 9-year-old. It was magical -- a smooth and effortless melding of the music and athleticism she loved.

Within six months, she entered her first competition in San Francisco and won. She thought, ”This is easy.”

Two weeks after that win, however, she competed in another skating competition with a dramatically different result. “I went out with the same attitude, but I came in dead last,” Fleming told an audience Tuesday during an event hosted by Genesis at the i wireless Center in Moline. “I felt the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat -- all in one month. On that day, my competitive spirit was born.”

Forty years later and after five U.S. titles, three World titles and two Olympic Games, that same competitive spirit would help Fleming, then 49, face breast cancer with fierce commitment and determination. For her, it was the best way to fight a disease that scared her, humbled her and took her on a journey she appreciates a decade after her diagnosis and successful treatment.

“Attitude is huge when it comes to fighting cancer,” she said, recalling conversations she has had with fellow figure skater and cancer survivor Scott Hamilton. “We both felt like it was a competition. We wanted to win. You really face what you have to do. Every challenge you’re thrown is a gift.”

“An Evening With Peggy Fleming” was the culmination of a month-long Genesis celebration of Breast Cancer Awareness Month and the introduction of five digital mammography machines to Genesis Center for Breast Health locations in Davenport, Bettendorf, DeWitt and Silvis.

Radiology Group Imaging Center, which partnered with Genesis in bringing the technology to the Quad Cities, has two machines at its Davenport location.

Digital mammography

Digital mammography is the most advanced screening tool in the early detection of breast cancer, particularly in women who are younger than 50, who have dense breasts, or who are pre-menopausal.

“The arrival of digital mammography, fully implemented throughout Genesis this week, is a significant technological milestone. However, it’s only one component of the four Genesis Center for Breast Health locations, “ said Rob Nelson, M.D., who is Vice President of Clinical Services at Genesis.

Earlier this month, a Genesis webcast of a sentinel lymph node biopsy illustrated how the Center for Breast Health has been on the cutting edge since it opened in 1994. The center was one of the first in the country to study the effectiveness of the procedure, which now is an accepted standard of care for women diagnosed with breast cancer.

“From screenings, to consultations, to diagnoses, to treatment planning and support, the Center for Breast Health uses a collaborative approach to deliver care,” Dr. Nelson said. “This unique multidisciplinary approach brings together surgeons, radiologists and mammography technologists to provide a continuum of care for patients’ breast wellness.”

In addition to the Center for Breast Health staff, Dr. Nelson also credited the organizations who helped bring digital mammography to the Quad Cities and who support patients with breast cancer. They include: Radiology Group Imaging Center; the city of Davenport; Davenport Surgical Group; Genesis Health Group Surgical Associates; the foundations of Genesis Health System; the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Quad Cities Affiliate; the Digital Mammography Project Team; and Gilda’s Club of the Quad Cities, which now provides on-site support at Genesis.

“We thank these organizations for their tireless dedication to providing quality, compassionate breast cancer services to the Quad Cities,” Dr. Nelson said.

Early detection

“Early detection is crucial,” Fleming added. “It takes the combined tools of monthly self-exams, yearly mammograms, and yearly exams by a physician to save lives.”

She discovered her lump by chance – five months after a mammogram gave her a clean bill of health. Although she was comforted by her doctor’s prognosis, she was “scared to death” and cried over her diagnosis. Her mother, who raised four daughters after their father’s early death of a heart attack at 41, had given her an example of strength.

“She taught me how to cry, not crumble,” she says. “ I rolled up my sleeves and told my doctor, ‘Tell me what you want me to do, and I will be the best patient you ever had.’ “

She had a lumpectomy and underwent six weeks of radiation. Meanwhile, she went from being known as a “celebrity athlete” to “celebrity breast cancer survivor.” Ten years later, she still swells with emotion when she looks into the eyes of fellow breast cancer survivors.

“Cancer is a very humbling experience. It doesn’t care who you are or what you do,” Peggy said. “And cancer is not a death sentence. Knowledge is comfort. Knowledge is peace of mind. Educate yourself, and weigh your options.”

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