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Title:
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Bob B.
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Dresher, PA
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“My name is Bob Baybutt. I’m a clinical researcher. I work on human clinical trials.
I live in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, and go back and forth between offices in
both states. I have two children who are grown up, and my wife is a social worker.
I was first diagnosed with colon cancer when I went for a routine colonoscopy. The
doctor who examined me found a polyp, which was determined by biopsy to be cancerous,
so he notified me and told me that I had an appointment with a surgeon.”
Title: We’re going to be aggressive
“I had talked to my oncologist and I had also gone onto the web and looked up what
is the best possible treatment for my cancer? When I went to my oncologist and he
told me what we were going to do, he said, ‘We’re going to be aggressive.’ And I
said, ‘Good.’
He told me exactly what he was going to give me and how he was going to treat me.
I was very glad that I decided to go with the chemotherapy because that meant that
if it was to spread there was a better chance of it being stopped. I was not really
aware of what to expect.
I did some searching on the Internet to find out what the chemotherapy was like,
what types of effects were there. The chemotherapy that I received for the colon
cancer lasted six months, and I took the full course of treatment that was prescribed.
It was quite long in terms of my mind, but in terms of the actual time six months
is not that long.”
Title: Several support systems
“I had several support systems, and my main one was my family, who were there for
me all the time. My wife would go with me each week, and then my son would also
take me sometimes. There was a lot of family support. I had lots of friends who
would offer to do things for me, and they would make sure that I didn’t push myself
too far. So everybody was really supportive, and having a care group like that was
really helpful.
The other support system that people tend to forget, and I forget very often, are
the doctors and nurses. The nurses are very helpful. If you have a problem at home,
if you can’t sleep, if you feel nauseous, whatever, call the nurses and ask them
for their advice. The doctors can be very helpful, too, because you have to talk
to them. You have to give them every bit of information. If you’re feeling a bit
different today, tell them. They know what to do.”
Title: There is life after cancer
“There is life after cancer. I know that now that I’ve been cancer-free for four
years it’s back to normal. I’m doing a lot of the things that I was doing before.
I spend more time doing things that are more important to me, and that makes a lot
of difference. I believe that going forward I will think less and less of cancer,
but I will make sure I go for my check-ups to make sure that it doesn’t come back.”