Betty's Story
May 20, 2021Care for Life
Six Years and Counting
There were no symptoms, no reasons for concern. Yet there it was on Betty Serritella’s X-ray film: a golf ball-sized mass on her lung.
From that moment on, Betty began a journey that ultimately led to successful cancer treatment and ongoing monitoring by a team of Holy Cross Health specialists. To better understand Betty’s cancer, Bryan Steinberg, MD, FACS, FCCP, medical director of Thoracic Surgery at Holy Cross Health, performed an endobronchial ultrasound (EBUS) and an electromagnetic navigational bronchoscopy (ENB). The Holy Cross Health pathologist, radiologist, medical oncologist, and Dr. Steinberg then agreed on the tests’ findings: the cancer was Advanced Stage IIIA lung cancer.
“The diagnosis felt like a death sentence,” Betty said. But Betty, her husband Jim, and their new team immediately took action. By the end of this first day together, they began implementing a multi-modality plan that aggressively utilized chemotherapy and radiation therapy ahead of robotic-assisted surgery, followed by final “cleanup” chemotherapy.
“I know if I have any problems I can call on them any time of day,” said Betty Serritella who remains disease-free for six years.
As with all cancer patients, the end of Betty’s treatment transitioned to a period of hopeful waiting. Had the cancer been eradicated? Would it return? Betty’s Holy Cross Health team stayed vigilant, monitoring her health every three months, then six months, now yearly.
Six years out, Betty remains disease-free. And now, Dr. Steinberg reported, “We have even more tools and strategies to work with” should any cancer re-emerge — including new therapies advanced by Holy Cross Health’s own cancer research program.
For Betty, having her team stay with her has been meaningful. “I know if I have any problems I can call on them any time of day,” she said. “They’ve been very supportive, and that’s added to my confidence.”
"Survivor care means we don’t quit, we don’t give up and we don’t forget, said Dr. Steinberg. "If something should come up, we will have a plan to deal with that.”
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