News
Opinion
ENLARGE
On July 25th, two years ago, I woke up having an ischemic attack — a sort of pre-heart attack. I was experiencing gastric discomfort, feeling very cold, extremely weak. My husband's 911 call brought the Incline Village paramedics quickly, and I was already in the ER when I had my major heart attack.
Because, initially, I was not having the painful symptoms that one assumes to be related to heart attacks, I didn't know what to think. But something was dreadfully wrong. It was through the efforts of the paramedics and the wonderful staff at Incline Village Community Hospital under the direction of Dianne Higgins, MD, that I'm here today to say “thank you for my life”.
IVCH's relationship with Renown Medical Center in Reno was in place and well established. So, one phone call from Dr. Higgins in IVCH's Emergency Room set in motion a seamless network of Renown's Cardiology Department, Incline's Sheriff and Fire Departments, and CareFlight's helicopter that got me over Mt. Rose and into the Heart Catheter Lab in Reno. My totally blocked Right Coronary Artery was reopened with a stent 78 minutes after a major myocardial infarction. There was further blockage that was taken care of a few weeks later by triple coronary artery bypass surgery.
Two months into my recovery from open-heart surgery, my husband, Stuart, entered IVCH's emergency room with acute kidney stones. During the workup CT scan and blood tests, the ER doctor, Dr. Monica Courey, noted some abnormal results that had nothing to do with kidney stones. She strongly recommended further studies by specialists to discover the cause.
A few weeks and many tests later, my husband was diagnosed with Stage IV Pancreatic Cancer, confirmed by an invasive in-patient endoscopic examination —- and our lives careened into an entirely different direction. We are again so grateful for the responsive, attentive, initial care he received at IVCH — giving him the first indication that something was awry.
Stuart sought care at University of California San Francisco's Pancreatic Cancer Center, a National Cancer Institute designated research center for this type of cancer. His first surgery indicated that the cancer was too far advanced, Stage IV, and the operation would not be continued. Six months of intense chemotherapy ensued, and the liver and lymph metastases shrunk to nothing. A second, successful, surgery followed last October in which all cancerous lesions were removed along with his entire pancreas, and his most recent two PET scans indicate there is no visible sign of disease.
When one considers the poor statistics for survival of Pancreatic Cancer (only 6 percent), and that there is still no means of early detection, this is a giant-sized miracle for which we are truly grateful. It is obvious to us that the astute observations first made by IVCH's ER staff dealing with kidney stones, helped to save his life.
Stuart and I are both back to the hiking and skiing and entertaining we love, and we are truly grateful for the support of our family, friends, and good care we've both received — starting with Incline Village Community Hospital.
—Submitted by e-mail to jeick@tahoebonanza.com
Because, initially, I was not having the painful symptoms that one assumes to be related to heart attacks, I didn't know what to think. But something was dreadfully wrong. It was through the efforts of the paramedics and the wonderful staff at Incline Village Community Hospital under the direction of Dianne Higgins, MD, that I'm here today to say “thank you for my life”.
IVCH's relationship with Renown Medical Center in Reno was in place and well established. So, one phone call from Dr. Higgins in IVCH's Emergency Room set in motion a seamless network of Renown's Cardiology Department, Incline's Sheriff and Fire Departments, and CareFlight's helicopter that got me over Mt. Rose and into the Heart Catheter Lab in Reno. My totally blocked Right Coronary Artery was reopened with a stent 78 minutes after a major myocardial infarction. There was further blockage that was taken care of a few weeks later by triple coronary artery bypass surgery.
Two months into my recovery from open-heart surgery, my husband, Stuart, entered IVCH's emergency room with acute kidney stones. During the workup CT scan and blood tests, the ER doctor, Dr. Monica Courey, noted some abnormal results that had nothing to do with kidney stones. She strongly recommended further studies by specialists to discover the cause.
A few weeks and many tests later, my husband was diagnosed with Stage IV Pancreatic Cancer, confirmed by an invasive in-patient endoscopic examination —- and our lives careened into an entirely different direction. We are again so grateful for the responsive, attentive, initial care he received at IVCH — giving him the first indication that something was awry.
Stuart sought care at University of California San Francisco's Pancreatic Cancer Center, a National Cancer Institute designated research center for this type of cancer. His first surgery indicated that the cancer was too far advanced, Stage IV, and the operation would not be continued. Six months of intense chemotherapy ensued, and the liver and lymph metastases shrunk to nothing. A second, successful, surgery followed last October in which all cancerous lesions were removed along with his entire pancreas, and his most recent two PET scans indicate there is no visible sign of disease.
When one considers the poor statistics for survival of Pancreatic Cancer (only 6 percent), and that there is still no means of early detection, this is a giant-sized miracle for which we are truly grateful. It is obvious to us that the astute observations first made by IVCH's ER staff dealing with kidney stones, helped to save his life.
Stuart and I are both back to the hiking and skiing and entertaining we love, and we are truly grateful for the support of our family, friends, and good care we've both received — starting with Incline Village Community Hospital.
—Submitted by e-mail to jeick@tahoebonanza.com
