(Mr. Gramigna is a well-known local writer and internet entrepreneur who owns Niagara Falls Politics.comandNewWNYPolitics.net. In a seven part series, Mr. Gramigna tells a gripping story of how he overcame what he calls a "careless terminal diagnosis" to find effective cancer treatment.)

(He can be reached at:ggramigna@yahoo.com)
Hope.

Dr. W. Sam Yi, M.D.

It's the one thing every cancer patient craves more than treatment, more than pain killers, more than compassion. Yet, my doctor at Buffalo's Roswell Park Cancer Institute,” Dr. M..., didn't seem willing to offer me any during an appointment on an upper floor of his much ballyhooed facility early last spring. In fact, he seemed openly contemptuous of the intention of this prostate cancer patient to try to seek some out.

I had seen a television commercial for something called, TrueBeam STx, an innovative form of radiation treatment that promised “New Hope for All Types and Stages of Cancer.” The ad on behalf of a much smaller, less well known purveyor of cancer treatment known as CCS Oncology seemed to offer some of that H-O-P-E that I was so ardently pursuing. Yet, the widely recognized “cancer expert” who thought of himself as the tour guide for my adventure in potentially fatal disease would only scoff at my dreams.

“TrueBeam?...Yes, I've heard of it,” Dr. M-- sniffed. “It's an innovative technique that has revolutionized treatment of brain cancer. It has nothing to do with you!...Take it from me, you wouldn't be eligible for it.”

“Maybe that's true,” I conceded timidly, “but I really feel like it's something I have to try. I hope you won't be offended if I do.”
By this time, the man whom I was counting on as my chief ally in the battle to save my health could no longer hide his contempt as he struggled to make his way out of the tiny examination room that had become my refuge.

“Look, Glenn if you want to waste your time, that's fine with me,” he barked, chuckling openly now as if I had told him a really good joke. “I have no problem with you wasting your time!”

Now some ten months later, it's clear that everything I was told that day by the degree laden, award attracting, suburban mansion dwelling medical paragon with whom I spoke was false, either outright lies or an act of almost incredible ignorance....”Where Else But Roswell?” indeed!

No, TrueBeam is not reserved for brain cancer patients. And yes I was eminently eligible for treatment at CCS Oncology. And no, I was not wasting my time by going there, far from it.
In fact, my physician at CCS, Dr. Sam Yi has offered me, not only encouragement but an effective, step by step treatment plan that has tackled my physical woes one by one, leaving me, at the age of 64, with a good prognosis for an extended life.

If I had listened to Dr.M... I would probably be dead now, a possibility which he was not reluctant to callously discuss in front of me, even going so far as to openly express his amazement that I had “lasted this long.” Instead, I continue to live and work, encouraged by the goal of telling my story to other cancer patients so that they too might find effective treatment.

“Hope”.....It's the only reason I decided to tell my story. For many cancer patients it's only a dream. Yet, from my own experience I believe it's a dream that could be kept alive in many more hearts than is commonly believed.

Seeking second opinions, finding alternative sources of care, refusing to give up on yourself even though some doctor may have given up on you....This is what this series of articles about my own personal battle with serious cancer will be all about.

(Next week: Unnecessary treatment)