Survivorship

Rendal Wall, known as Kalamazoo's 'Guitar Guru', Wall, was worried side effects from his bladder cancer treatment would silence the strings around which his life and career have revolved. Today he's back to playing his music and living a cancer-free life.

Nearly two years after being treated at the University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Center, Gerald Dixon has an active life that includes selling houses, jogging and plying the local rivers and lakes in his 27-foot cabin cruiser.

When it comes to diagnosing cervical cancer, other gynecological exams cannot replace a HPV test — in which a small sample of cells are collected from the cervix to be examined for abnormalities.

Harry Robins, now 71, got the shock of his life in July 2014 when he learned about the surgery he needed to treat the squamous cell tongue cancer that showed signs of spreading. The surgery was way more invasive than he expected, involved removing a third of his tongue and required months of intensive rehabilitation to recover. He and his wife believe they made it through this trying time only with the help of the care team.

Marty Schultz, 65, spent two years dealing with fatigue and sinus drainage before a local otolaryngologist took a biopsy. The Pinconning resident was diagnosed with low grade olfactory neuroblastoma, a rare cancer of the sinuses. He was referred to Erin McKean, M.D., MBA, the division chief of rhinology and skull base surgery at Michigan Medicine. Schultz was not amused but, as someone who relies on humor, found himself making jokes with his brother, Joe, who accompanied him to his initial visit. McKean didn’t miss a beat and joked right back.

William McCallum is living with stage 4 neuroendocrine cancer. This diagnosis is not easy to live with. Most days McCallum feels well enough that he doesn't think much about having cancer. After deciding to put his faith in his doctors, he aims not to worry. Acting in films for Rebel Pictures -- with his son, Michael -- has been both a welcome distraction and a creative outlet.

Kelly Luck discovered the importance of setting goals. Her goal: to climb Mout Kilimanjaro, gave her the motivation to get through her breast cancer treatment and emerge stronger than ever.

When Heather Jose was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer, she set a goal: Live to see her 14-month-old daughter go to kindergarten. That day came and went long ago; in fact, she recently saw daughter Sydney off to her sophomore year of college. Jose wants people to know that living with advanced cancer is possible, and more women will have the chance as treatment options expand.

When an adolescent or young adult undergoes cancer treatment, the goal is to become cancer-free and move on to live a healthy, productive life. But after treatment ends, it’s not always so simple. A new study looked at issues related to sexual functioning in young adults treated for cancer and found both men and women reported difficulties related to sex for up to two years after diagnosis