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WatermanWellness

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Winter 2015

7

Cynthia DeVos,

a pastor at First Presbyterian

Church of Mount Dora,

credits her passion for helping

others as a source of strength

throughout her journey to

survivorship.

Despite her mother passing

from kidney cancer and her

sister overcoming her own

battle with colon cancer,

DeVos didn’t worry much

about her risk for cancer.

An annual checkup with her

primary care physician revealed blood in her stool, and from that

day on, her outlook was forever changed.

DeVos was immediately sent for a colonoscopy, which

confirmed that she would need surgery to remove a cancerous

mass from her colon. Rambabu Tummala, MD, medical

oncologist, oversaw her treatment and was an instrumental part of

her support system.

After her surgery, Dr. Tummala encouraged chemotherapy as

another component to her treatment.

“Chemotherapy treatment after surgery is done to remove

microscopic cancer cells that might have been left behind or may

have spread to other parts of the body but are too small to be seen

on imaging tests,” Dr. Tummala says.

Six months after her surgery another tumor appeared in her liver.

“Cancerous cells sometimes break off from the main tumor

and settle in other parts of the body,” Dr. Tummala says. “For

those diagnosed with high-risk stage II or stage III colon cancer,

A strong support system helped Cynthia DeVos overcome her battle with colon cancer

adjuvant chemo is oftentimes recommended to decrease the

chance that the cancer will spread.”

Following DeVos’s second surgery, she endured six months of

chemotherapy.

“There were days that I did not want to leave the house, but

knowing that I would be helping others through the Word of

God motivated me to go to work every day,” DeVos says.

She credits her faith, a strong support system, and the

compassionate care provided by Dr. Tummala and his office staff

for helping her overcome the difficulty she experienced during

treatment.

DeVos can now happily say she has been cancer-free for eight

years and is an advocate for regular screenings.

“If I had put more thought into it, I could have saved myself a

lot of heartache,” she says. “I think a lot of people put off having

a colonoscopy because of the prep involved, but it saved my life

and it can save others too.”

“A good rule of thumb to follow if someone in your family

has been diagnosed with cancer is to start screening 10 years less

than the age of the family member diagnosed,” Dr. Tummala

recommends. “For instance, if your father was diagnosed when he

was 55, you should start having regular screenings by age 45.”

A COLONOSCOPY SCREENING

COULD SAVE YOUR LIFE

Don’t hesitate. Call your primary

care physician and schedule a

screening today. For a list of primary

care physicians in your area, visit

FHWaterman.com

.

A little

faith

goes a

long way

Rambabu Tummala, MD