Cancer Survivors

HAGERSTOWN -- There were no speeches, no testimonials. There wasn't even a slide show of past events during Monday night's Valentine dinner sponsored by the American Cancer Society of Washington County. Instead, the approximately 50 dinner guests enjoyed the food and each other's company at the Maugansville Ruritan, knowing such an occasion might not have been possible without up-to-date information, early detection and advances in medical treatment of their disease. "My cancer was discovered during a routine checkup," said Richard Fouke, a five-year prostate cancer survivor.

MAUGANSVILLE -- A hush fell over the room when Cory Eyler held up a piece of paper listing the symptoms he experienced five years ago when he learned he had colon cancer. The paper was blank. "Today I celebrate my life as I continue on my mission to reach out to all cancer survivors," Eyler said. "Don't let this monster catch you off guard. " At the Maugansville Ruritan Building Sunday afternoon, 30 to 35 organizers, team leaders and team members gathered to kick off the 2009 American Cancer Society Relay for Life in Washington County.

Breast cancer survivor Emily Nulph, 62, of Hagerstown, knows her husband, Gary, loves her unconditionally. But following her bilateral mastectomy in 2006, Nulph says she didn't feel like she was complete as a woman without her breasts. Nulph says she could have chosen reconstructive surgery but felt it wasn't an option for her. "I had an appointment with a plastic surgeon, but I didn't feel like at 62 it was something I needed to do," she says. But, she says, she still wanted her clothes to fit correctly and to have what she calls the "look of a woman.

Patty Austin, left, and Gwen Austin share a laugh Tuesday with their mother-in-law and cancer survivor, Glenda Austin, right, at a Celebration of Life Survivors' Party at Fountain Head Country Club in Hagerstown.

GREENCASTLE, Pa. - The second annual Fashions for Hope will be Tuesday, Sept. 16, to benefit the Greencastle Relay for Life in 2009. Doors at the Kauffman Ruritan Center in Kauffman Station, Pa., will open at 5 p.m. A meal will be served at 6:30 p.m., followed by the fashion show in which all the models are cancer survivors. Gift baskets are to be raffled before the meal. This year's models are Cora Crider, Phyllis Keller, Faye Mentzer, Sharon Luchs, Faith Anderson, Sonia Blair, Sharon Hykes, Rose Davis, Diane Hughes, June Cook, Jean Clark, Barbara Eshleman, Kim Muller, Angie Summers and Angie Wyatt.

CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. - Neither Shawn Corwell nor his doctors expected the 35-year-old's leg pain was from B-Cell lymphoma. The initial depression after diagnosis yielded way to a fighting attitude, which Corwell shared Sunday from the stage at the local National Cancer Survivors Day luncheon. "The biggest thing is life's not over," Corwell said. "You've just got to live life. " About 300 cancer survivors and their caregivers joined for lunch hosted by Summit Health and the American Cancer Society.

There are a million and one things that Marsha Knicley-Masood misses about her mother. But what she'll never forget is her smile. "When I think of her, I see her smiling," Knicley-Masood says. "Even while she was fighting breast cancer, she tried to remain upbeat. That was who she was. " Her daughter also remembers her as a caring person, "who was always doing for others. " When Rosemary Finney died, it was time to do something for her. "She battled breast cancer for 20 years," Knicley-Masood says.

More than 270 breast cancer survivors gathered Wednesday at Four Points Sheraton for a Celebration of Life survivors party hosted by Breast Cancer Awareness of the Cumberland Valley. Members of the organization look forward to the annual party because it's one of the rare events the organization hosts that's purely a celebration, said Kathy McCann, board vice president. "It's not about treatment. It's not about fundraising. It's about having fun," McCann said. "It's just nice to feel pretty and go out. " As survivors arrived, they received pink carnations donated by Kamelot Florist and tickets for door prizes.