“It was a rare, freak thing that happened and that's what makes it scary. It can happen to anyone; you think you’re invincible until it happens to you.”
WATCH ANN’S STORY
“It was a rare, freak thing that happened and that's what makes it scary. It can happen to anyone; you think you’re invincible until it happens to you.”
WATCH ANN’S STORYAt age 26, Ann Sheeran was at a turning point in her life and questioning her career choices. But a pain in her stomach kept getting in the way. “It’s mild”, she thought, “like heartburn,” and she ignored it. The pain persisted. Ann’s boyfriend, Bryce, was concerned and encouraged her to make a doctor’s appointment.
Ann visited her Primary Care Physician, Perel Schneid, DO at Crystal Run Healthcare. She tested positive for H. pylori (Helicobacter pylori), a relatively common bacterial infection that causes stomach upset, abdominal pain, and even ulcers. Dr. Schneid prescribed antibiotics and Ann began to feel better, but then the symptoms came back.
Ann turned to Crystal Run Healthcare Gastroenterologist, Robert Walker, MD, to keep her care coordinated and all in one place.
“We’re just going to do an endoscopy,” Dr. Walker said, in order to get a closer look. Unexpectedly, Dr. Walker found a growth during the endoscopy and sent a biopsy out for testing.
Ann received a phone call from Dr. Walker asking her to come to the office and bring her mom with her. If anything, she was expecting to be told she had a stomach ulcer. “That’s when I found out I had cancer, stage 3 stomach cancer.” Ann was the youngest person, by far, that Dr. Walker had diagnosed with a gastric tumor.
The very next day, Dr. Walker called to get her an appointment for surgery. Dr. Walker and his team of nurses scheduled the surgery at Montefiore Medical Center and recommended Ravi S. Shah, MD, Oncologist and Hematologist at Crystal Run Healthcare, for treatment.
Ann had a total gastrectomy. The surgeons at Montefiore removed her stomach and attached her esophagus to her intestines. This means she skips a step in digesting her food, but she has found it completely livable with some portion adjustments.
“It took the pressure off me, my family, and my boyfriend, Bryce. We didn’t have to go searching for a surgeon or an oncologist. Everything was available through Crystal Run.”
Lab tests on 50 lymph nodes surrounding Ann’s stomach revealed that nine were cancerous. She needed time to heal and then begin further treatment. Ann received six months of chemotherapy and five weeks of radiation.
When Ann came in for her chemotherapy treatment, Dr. Shah could tell how she was doing just by looking at her. Head nurse, Michelle, and Ann’s chemotherapy team all offered support.
“ I asked Dr. Shah if I should get a second opinion. He said of course, if I wanted to get a second opinion I should, but he reassured me that he wasn’t the only one deciding the best course of treatment for me. He met with a team of six Crystal Run oncologists (a tumor board) who discussed my case and they all had to be in agreement on the best course of action for me. That was so comforting to me, to know I really got six expert opinions when it came to my treatment.”
What helped Ann make it through the tough times was the support of her family, her boyfriend Bryce, the team at Crystal Run, and her own attitude:
“You can handle cancer two ways, you can either go into it positive or negative and I think being positive helped me more. I would tell myself I’m lucky that my treatment was just 10 minutes from my house.”
Her journey through treatment and the care she received at Crystal Run made Ann realize what was missing from her previous career.
Ann went back to school to become a nurse and was recently hired in Northern Virginia at Inova Fairfax Hospital in the graduate RN Program for Labor and Delivery. She’s excited to be a part of the beginning of life for babies.
“I didn’t feel fulfilled or that I was making a difference with my past career choices. Dr. Ravi Shah and Michelle made such a difference in my life and helped me so much. I realized I wanted to help people’s lives that way, too, and thought nursing was the perfect fit for me.”
Ann had her last treatment on April 24, 2018 and has been in remission ever since.
She recently got engaged to Bryce and they’re planning their wedding! Bryce is a career firefighter and they have both relocated to the Washington, D.C. area.
Ann’s advice for everyone?
“Listen to your body. To be honest, I don’t know if I’d be here if I delayed seeing a doctor much longer.”
“It matters to me that my patients survive to meet their goals – seeing birthdays, graduations, weddings – that they might have otherwise missed. It drives me to innovate in their treatment.”
