GIST Patient Stories

Carol Rey

Carol Rey

  • GIST (Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor)
Carol Rey

When I met the physicians at Fox Chase Cancer Center who would be treating me, I knew right away there were no better hands to be in.

I am a breast cancer survivor, but my second journey with cancer started about two and a half years ago, when I started to experience two symptoms. First, I was waking every two hours during the night to empty my bladder. Second, I started having quite a bit of trouble moving my bowels. I put off seeing a doctor about these symptoms, but finally a friend of mine suggested that I go see a gynecologist to discuss what was happening.

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Diane Ciccoli

Diane Ciccoli

  • GIST (Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor)
  • Melanoma
Diane Ciccoli

Toward the end of 2019, I started having pain on my right side. I finally went to my primary care doctor in January of 2020, and she sent me to get a CT scan. It didn’t show anything, but the pain wasn’t going away, so she sent me to get an MRI with contrast. I was out to lunch with a girlfriend when my doctor called and told me, “Diane, I’m so sorry, but you have a tumor.”

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Brenda Vorters

  • GIST (Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor)

Found by Accident

In 2014, I had just retired and was looking forward to traveling with my husband, Leonard. I had been dealing with a multiday headache that just kept getting worse, and at one point, I passed out. I woke up four days later to learn that I had suffered a massive brain bleed. As a result of this, my doctors ordered a complete CT scan to get an idea of what was going on.

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John St. Omer

  • GIST (Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor)

In the spring 2005, I passed out at my home and was taken to my local emergency room. After describing my symptoms, an endoscopy was performed. Doctors found a mass in my stomach and performed laparoscopic surgery to remove it. My discharge instructions made no mention of cancer.

In April 2007, my symptoms were back, so I returned to the same hospital. The doctors asked me whether I followed up with an oncologist after my initial surgery. No one at my local hospital ever told me I had cancer, so I was confused and shocked by this news.

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Warren Chambers

  • GIST (Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor)

My body’s call for medical attention came on a seemingly normal morning in 2007, when I experienced extreme difficulty swallowing after completing my regular workout routine. I had an uneasy feeling about the strange sensation, but I delayed pursuing a doctor’s help until the next day, when I finally decided to go to the emergency room at a local hospital. The emergency room doctor found a large growth in my stomach and recommended that I seek a facility that was able to handle a tumor of that type and size. I was shocked that I could be living with something and not know. I was able to run five miles the previous day with no issues.

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