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“I didn’t have to give up my life when I was diagnosed with breast cancer.” That statement summed up Charmaine Welsh’s experience when she chose to stay close to home and entrust her cancer care to Michael Evans, MD, and Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN) Cancer Center–Hazleton.
Welsh was diagnosed with breast cancer in August 2015. She has since undergone a mastectomy, chemotherapy and breast reconstruction surgery, without ever reconsidering her decision to be treated in Hazleton.
Cancer care close to home
“People often tell me that I made battling cancer look like a walk in the park. But when you hear ‘cancer,’ the last thing you want to think about is traveling far from home,” Welsh says.
Having LVHN Cancer Center right here in Hazleton meant the world to the active mother and grandmother. “I was able to get leading-edge cancer treatment and I didn’t have to travel for hours each way to get it.”
Collaborative care between communities
“Dr. Evans discussed my case with oncologists at Lehigh Valley Hospital (LVH)–Cedar Crest and has access to a medical world beyond Hazleton,” Welsh says. “This Cancer Center is part of something bigger.”
The health network, and LVHN Cancer Center–Hazleton in particular, continue to offer patients like Welsh resources right in her own backyard. As a part of the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Alliance, and with 3D mammography now available at the Health & Wellness Center at Hazleton, oncologists from Hazleton can access the newest technology and resources outside the Lehigh Valley.
“I will never forget the compassionate care I received from Dr. Michael Evans and the entire Cancer Center staff,” Welsh says. “Most of all, I am so grateful this high level of care is right in my backyard. They had me covered.”
Lehigh Valley Topper Cancer Institute provides world-class care to people throughout northeast Pennsylvania. Learn more at LVHN.org/institutes.