Patient Success Stories

Pancreatic Cancer Patient Credits Early Detection, First-Rate Care with His Recovery

Melvin Danner with his wife, Ginger

Pancreatic cancer is a particularly difficult cancer to diagnose due to the organ’s location in the body and the lack of symptoms in the early stages of the disease. Sixty-year-old Melvin Danner, a lifelong resident of Frederick, Maryland, is a pancreatic cancer survivor. He was treated at the University of Maryland Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Cancer Center (UMGCC) in Baltimore and recently shared his thoughts about dealing with cancer, the importance of early diagnosis and high-quality care, and how it feels to have beaten the odds.

How did you first discover you had cancer?

It all started with constipation and diarrhea with lower stomach pain over a period of a few weeks. Finally one weekend, I went to the emergency department at Frederick Memorial and explained that I was not leaving until we found out what the problem was. I was kept for three days and numerous scans and tests were done with no conclusion. I was treated for dehydration and seemed better. I thought I was probably having a reaction to medications.

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My gastroenterologist, Dr. Gerry Winnan, suggested that I go to the University of Maryland Medical Center and see Dr. Peter Darwin for a specialized diagnostic test called an ERCP test (endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography). Dr. Darwin and his staff performed the test, including a fine needle biopsy of the pancreas. While he said he couldn’t be 100 percent sure, he thought that there was a very high probability that I had cancer.

What was your reaction to the diagnosis?

The news hit me like a ton of bricks. I had just lost a very good friend to pancreatic cancer and another to liver cancer. I felt my number was up. We made an immediate decision to take it out.

What treatment options were presented to you?

I was told the CT scan can only detect an object 5mm or bigger, so that we could wait and re-test, or talk to a surgical oncologist. That was a no-brainer to me. I opted for the surgery immediately.

Did you do any research about your condition?

I called an old friend, a long-time ER nurse, who had lost her husband to cancer, and I talked it over with her. I also looked on the Internet at many different Web sites. The four percent survivability rate that I read about was devastating.

How did you decide to come to University of Maryland Medical Center for treatment?

My gastroenterologist had referred me to Dr. Darwin for additional diagnostic testing. Dr. Darwin recommended his colleague at Maryland, surgeon Dr. Robert Moesinger, who would do a Whipple Procedure, an operation where they remove the head of the pancreas, part of the small intestine, and some of the nearby tissues. My other specialists on the team at the UMGCC included Dr. William Regine, an expert in radiation oncology for pancreatic cancer, and medical oncologist Dr. Austin Doyle.

What was your treatment plan?

We scheduled surgery for April 4, 2005 – which also happens to be my birthday. Plans were to do a Whipple procedure, but during the surgery they found that the body of the pancreas, rather than the head, was diseased. So they removed the diseased part of my pancreas as well as my spleen. It was about a nine-hour surgery.

I was a bit concerned about the invasiveness of the abdominal surgery. I consented to an epidural pump for pain medication on the morning of my surgery, but I never even used the pump. My pain was minimal during recovery. I was truly fortunate. I was discharged a few days early due to a speedy recovery. The major inconvenience was not being allowed to eat or drink for several days following surgery – I’ve never missed too many meals!

Following my surgery, one of the tissue samples taken out showed a positive margin (indicating some remaining cancer cells), so radiation and chemotherapy were recommended to be on the safe side. My wife, Virginia, is a seven-year survivor of ovarian cancer, and so I was not looking forward to chemotherapy. I was given Xeloda and had no problems or reactions at all. I was never nauseous and I didn’t lose my hair.

I had radiation treatments after the surgical incision healed. Again I tolerated the treatment very well. Dr. Regine and the radiation oncology folks were great. We kidded around about their artwork on my stomach when they made the marks for targeting the beam.

What was treatment like for you?

I am truly blessed with the diagnosis, treatment and follow-up care I’ve received. Sometimes I felt guilty for not having more pain or side effects when I looked around at the other folks who were there. I drove myself to my treatments and took my wife (my co-pilot and backup driver) to lunch or for cookies in the hospital lobby after my appointments.

What type of follow up care have you had?

I could have had my follow up care in Frederick, but I decided to stay with the team from University of Maryland’s cancer center. I do not regret that decision. I felt comfortable with the local expertise and facilities, but I knew that UMGCC had three linear accelerators and much more experience using them.

For a while I had three-month follow up visits with both medical and radiation oncology. Now Dr. Doyle sees me every six months, and I have appointments with Dr. Regine and his staff in radiation oncology every three months.

Are you happy with the decisions you made about your treatment?

I couldn’t be more pleased with the staff and the treatment I received at Maryland. I found the care to be first class. Everyone on the staff was a team player and gave us the confidence that they were dedicated to the best care for the patient. The staff was always upbeat and friendly. They took the time to answer questions and explain the answers when needed. After surgery one day, Dr. Darwin stopped by just to chat. I thought that was a real “we care” touch. In many hospitals today, you rarely see your care providers. I’ve referred my neighbors to Dr. Darwin for diagnostic work.

Since the University of Maryland Medical Center is a teaching hospital, I gave my permission for my doctors to use my case as a training opportunity whenever possible. I also agreed to be part of a clinical trial on improved radiation targeting techniques led by Dr. Regine. The doctors were studying ways to reduce the area affected by the radiation beam so that less normal tissue was affected. I was happy to participate in the hope of improving the science for others.

How are you doing now?

I am doing well. I have Type II diabetes and I take insulin and a daily enzyme to aid digestion. Before my cancer treatment, I had a heart attack and had a stent put in. You could say that I’m a 1946 classic with a few missing parts -- and they don’t make spare parts for these older models anymore.

I retired as an electrical engineer, but I had some familiarity with the health care field. I was in the second graduating class of emergency medical technicians (EMT) in the state of Maryland, and I was active with the volunteer fire department for more than 25 years. Having cancer changes your outlook on life. These days I try to squeeze in as much as I can. My wife and I travel quite a bit -- we’ve been to 49 out of the 50 states in the U.S. I also enjoy woodworking. I used to have a large woodworking shop and manufactured custom wooden doors. I still like to play around with wood, though now on a smaller scale, mostly doing veneering and other finishing techniques.

What's your advice to others who may be living with cancer?

I cannot overemphasize the importance of early diagnosis. I feel quite confident that early diagnosis and the excellent treatment at UMGCC is the reason I am still on this earth. Yes, it was like getting hit with a floorboard in the face. But, we learn that the world will go on without us, and we are neither indispensable nor irreplaceable.

To others, I would say, think back to what you learned in kindergarten and in the sand box, and then practice it, every day. Take the time to enjoy the journey and what you have. I seem to have beaten the odds, at least for the short term. But, you never know when it might end.

This page was last updated on: September 4, 2007.