Arleen Sharwell’s message to women with breast cancer: Don’t let one doctor’s opinion get in the way of the treatment you know you deserve
Arleen Sharwell, 65, is a native of New York and a mother of two. When the self-proclaimed “Nana New York” isn’t with family, she is helping to spread awareness about the innovative treatment that helped her beat breast cancer.
The Diagnosis
Arleen was already scheduled for a routine mammography when she felt a lump in one of her breasts. Despite having no other symptoms, Arleen suspected something wasn’t right. She immediately called her doctor. Preparing for the worst, they scheduled an emergency diagnostic screening. On a Wednesday, Arleen went in for her sonogram and biopsy. The following Friday, Arleen was diagnosed with breast cancer.
After the initial shock of the diagnosis, Arleen discussed her options with her local doctor in Long Island. He advised her that she needed a lumpectomy surgery followed by 5-6 weeks of radiation therapy. This is a common course of treatment recommended across America. Arleen had reservations and concern about the procedure her doctor had recommended because she had seen how hard this type cancer radiation treatment and been on friends of hers. She was frightened by the thought of going through daily radiation, and the side effects she had seen that are associated with week after week of radiation therapy, such as nausea, hair loss, and fatigue.
The Mobetron: A Treatment Option that Felt Right
Luckily, through a family connection, Arleen had heard about IntraOp Medical’s device, the Mobetron. The Mobetron provides a single dose of intraoperative electron-beam radiation therapy (IOERT) that can eliminate weeks of costly, post-operative radiation treatment and allow patients to get back to their lives more quickly.
The Mobetron is a key contributor in the fight against breast cancer. As the first OR-ready, fully mobile, self-shielded, electron-beam linear accelerator, it provided Arleen with a potential alternative to a full course of post-operative radiation and gave her hope for a fast recovery. The Mobetron’s enhanced local tumor control makes for shorter treatment cycles and fewer side effects.
Doctor Refuses to Negotiate: “We Have Better Things Here”
After hearing about the Mobetron, Arleen became more optimistic about her situation and eagerly passed along the information to her doctor. As the date of surgery approached, she knew it was time to openly share the reservations she had with the lengthy, post-operative course of radiation to follow. Armed with the information about IOERT, and the Mobetron’s ability to replace 6 weeks of radiation with a single dose at the time of surgery, she assumed her doctor would take an active role in helping her to connect with a hospital that offered the treatment.
But Arleen’s doctor was uninterested in hearing about the Mobetron. More than that, he openly questioned its effectiveness. “Arleen,” he said, “We have better things here.” Arleen pressed. But her doctor wouldn’t relent. In that moment, Arleen knew she had a choice to make. Should she stay with the doctor and hospital she had trusted for years? Or should she listen to her gut, and strike out on her own to find a facility that offered the treatment she desired?
The Procedure
During her research on the Mobetron, Arleen came across an article in a 2006 US Oncology Review by Doctors’ David Ollila and Carolyn Sartor from the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill regarding single fraction intra-operative radiotherapy and decided to contact Dr. Ollila directly. With the unwavering support of her family and friends, “Nana New York” arranged a meeting at the University of North Carolina Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center at Chapel Hill. There she met with Dr. David Ollila, Surgical Director, and Dr. Joel Tepper, Professor and Chair of The Department of Radiation Oncology, in person, to see if she was a candidate for the device. They were able to quickly confirm that Arleen was indeed a candidate for the single fraction treatment she had read about, and the doctors scheduled her surgery to be conducted just a few days after the initial meeting.
The day of her operation, Arleen arrived at the hospital at 7am and finished her entire course of treatment the same day. Dr. Tepper used the Mobetron to deliver a single dose (fraction) of radiation to the tumor bed, pinpointing the exact area that required radiation so that healthy tissue was left unharmed.
Dr. Ollila then safely removed the lump from Arleen’s breast.
Arleen never imagined that she would be treated as an outpatient for breast cancer “The next day my family came in for lunch and I was shopping in Chapel Hill. I felt fine,” Arleen said.
Life after Cancer
Today, Arleen is healthy and busy providing information to patients about the machine that she feels saved her life. “The Mobetron made what seemed to be a dreadful situation something that I could overcome,” Arleen said. “I’ve been trying to get the word out so that other patients can benefit from this fast and remarkable treatment.”
Arleen is also impressed with the way her breast has healed since the surgery. “I couldn’t imagine going to a plastic surgeon and having it look any better,” she said. Dr. Ollila concurs, noting that the single-dose treatment provides a better cosmetic outcome versus other forms of radiation. “By treating the tumor intra-operatively , the radiation therapy avoids healthy tissue, which produces a very good cosmetic results..”
Looking back on her experience, Arleen has a new perspective on why her original doctor was so insistent in downplaying the effectiveness of the Mobetron. “The medical field, like anything else, is a business,” Arleen said. “When provided information about a technology that they don’t have access to, some doctors will immediately denounce it. It’s difficult to admit, but hospitals don’t only see you as a patient. They also see you as a source of revenue. When I think back to how strongly my doctor tried to convince me about the ‘better things’ his hospital had, I wonder if those ‘better things’ were also ‘expensive things.’” I would see if Arlene would change this quote. Expensive can be misconstrued, I think I would say “ It makes me wonder who those “Better things” were better for? Certainly not the patient, because I can’t imagine anything better than being completely through with treatment in one day and not having to lose my breast in the process.”
Arleen wants women to know that they should never just accept what their doctor tells them. Cancer patients must conduct their own research — and always get a second opinion.
At the end of the day, Arleen could not be more pleased with the results of her one day breast cancer treatment. “It’s a miracle, it truly is a miracle,” she said. “There’s no comparison whatsoever. As far as breast surgery is concerned, it was a piece of cake!”
About IntraOp
IntraOp Medical Corporation provides innovative technology solutions for the treatment and eradication of cancer. Founded in 1993, IntraOp is committed to providing the tools doctors need to administer intraoperative radiation therapy safely and effectively – for all cancer patients. The company’s flagship product, the Mobetron, is the first fully mobile, self-shielding intraoperative electron radiation therapy device designed for use in any operating room. Key Mobetron benefits include: increased survival rates, better local tumor control, shorter treatment cycles, and fewer side effects. Leading hospitals, from university research centers to specialized cancer clinics in North America, Europe and Asia, use the Mobetron as a vital part of their comprehensive cancer program.
For more information on IntraOp Medical Corporation, please visit: www.intraopmedical.com
