Classmates help cancer victim

By ANGIE PARKINSON

VIEW STAFF WRITER

Heidi Shelton was busy learning to help diagnose problems and abnormalities in the body through UNLV's radiology program when she was diagnosed with a serious illness herself, one that no one would have predicted for the healthy and active 22-year-old. The cancer in her body was a complete surprise to her doctors.

Her journey with cancer began when she noticed a lump on her back last fall. She was not very concerned at first but it kept growing. Two dermatologists dismissed it, saying it was just a cyst that she could have removed if she wanted. A third dermatologist drained the growth, treating it like a cyst. But when the lump ballooned back up, he decided to remove it.

Although only the size of a silver dollar on the surface, the lump actually extended inside her back to the size of a baseball. It was attached to lymph nodes and other soft tissue.

Shelton ultimately was diagnosed with Ewings sarcoma, a cancer typically found in children.

"The first week you just don't even know how to process it," Shelton said.

But she has learned to cope, gaining strength from the support of those around her.

"I also have a pretty good faith in God and I think he has a plan for us, so that definitely has helped," she said.

When members of the UNLV Student Technologist Association of Radiological Sciences, or STARS, found out their classmate had cancer, they sprang into action.

Shelton said she had never met the president of STARS at UNLV, Michael Tarby, when he approached her and they spoke about her situation. Tarby said he knew he wanted to help. "I told her, 'I don't just want to raise dollars for you. I want to raise thousands of dollars,' " he said.

After all, the whole point of STARS is to assist and support other radiological sciences students, Tarby said, although this is not the usual way members are called upon.

Tarby spoke with George Pales, head of the radiography program, and they devised some ideas to help Shelton. Tarby designed a Web site for her, www.helpheidi.com, and found a way to get the Web-hosting service for free.

They also ordered Lance Armstrong-style bracelets bearing the Web site address. The bracelets will be sold for $5 each, with profits benefitting Shelton.

Tarby said more fundraising activities are in the works.

Shelton, who was close to completing the UNLV radiology program when she was diagnosed, has been awed by the help offered. Individuals she does not even know have donated.

"How do you thank people for that?" she said. "The only thing I can do is when I get better, I've got to give back."

Before being diagnosed, Shelton had left a job with health insurance to take a better-paying internship in her field. But she was still covered by COBRA, the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985, an insurance law that requires employers to provide insurance coverage access to employees for a limited time after they leave a job.

But even with that coverage, her costs are high. One chemotherapy treatment costs about $45,000 and she needs 17 treatments. Even with COBRA, she is billed $10,000 for each treatment. Her fellow students hope to cover at least $100,000 of the $170,000 bill.

Shelton said she is now an advocate for people obtaining and keeping health insurance. "It's not just cancer. Anything could happen," she said.

The hardest part about the chemotherapy is the accompanying fatigue, she said, and that is hindering her educational pursuits.

She has completed the classroom portion of the radiology program. All the remaining requirements must be completed at the hospital.

Sometimes her immune system is not strong enough for her to be at the hospital, which puts her behind in her program. Her professors have been flexible about giving her the chance to complete the 300 hours of work she needs.

Although she admits to having bad moments, Shelton keeps a positive outlook. She even jokes about losing her hair, once long and blonde, saying it's kind of nice to be bald in the heat of summer. And she does not miss having to shave her legs.

Shelton said she also has gained perspectives she might not have had. She attended an American Cancer Society event where a woman spoke about undergoing six chemotherapy treatments for an hour a week. Shelton must have 17, a treatment every three weeks for a year.

"What I realized is, you just can't complain because someone out there always has it worse than you do, always, no matter what you think your situation is," Shelton said.

And it seems her future looks bright. "Because I caught it early, it's just in the soft tissue so my prognosis is really, really good," she said.

For more information on fundraisers, visit www.helpheidi.com. To order a wristband, send $6 to STARS, 4505 Maryland Parkway, Box 453017, Las Vegas, NV, 89154-3017.