Edmonton Sun YOUR

HEALTH Monday, October 2, 2006

Control in chaos
Exercise helps cancer survivor

edmontonsun.canoe.ca

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When Colleen De Roy felt or hopefully not, he just said a dull pain in her left breast no, she recalls. in February 1997, she just Once she got over the inifigured she had pulled a tial shock of the dreaded Cmuscle while lifting weights word, De Roy prepared herat the gym. self for what she knew was On closer inspection a going to be a year from short time later, De Roy dis- hell. covered a tiny lump. But it She underwent a partial was so small she mastectomy, foldidnt think lowed by a full much of it. mastectomy a It wasnt couple weeks even the size of later. a pea, so I In between I wasnt conhad taken the cerned, she rekids camping becalls. I thought cause what are it was silly to you going to do? bother my docshe says. My tor with that. biggest thing was Carey But the pain I didnt want persisted. And them to know eventually at the how sick I was. I urging of some KEEPING FIT felt they were too friends, De Roy young for that. went to see her doctor. Then came four rounds of Following an ultrasound chemotherapy, each treatand lumpectomy on subse- ment three weeks apart, quent appointments over starting in August. the next couple of months, Besides losing her hair, De De Roy was levelled with a Roy also lost about 30 life-altering diagnosis: it was pounds while becoming viobreast cancer. lently ill. Your whole world Yet throughout the whole changes. It was like a big ordeal, she managed to keep punch in the stomach because there wasnt any history of that in my family, she recalls. I didnt smoke and as far as I was concerned we led a pretty healthy lifestyle, so this came out of the blue. By the time the diagnosis was made that May, her lump had Colleen De Roy runs 30 km a week. grown to the size of a walnut. Fortunately, the somewhat active. Within fast-moving cancer hadnt days of each chemo treatyet spread to her lymph ment, De Roy would either nodes. be out for a walk or in the loDe Roy, who was 36 at the cal swimming pool taking time and living in Ottawa aquacise classes. with her husband and three It was the best time for children her youngest just aquacise because I had no 18 months old poignantly hair I didnt have to blowremembers the first question dry it, she laughs. she asked her doctor. De Roy finished chemo I asked him, Am I going that October. to die? He didnt say maybe In January 1998, she un-

Castagna

derwent painful reconstructive surgery where tissue was taken from her lower abdomen and used to fashion a breast. Just four months later, De Roy was back in the gym, lifting weights and doing aerobics. She also joined a dragon-boating team for breast-cancer survivors and began running. Fast-forward to today and De Roy is more active than ever. Now living in St. Albert, the determined 45-year-old stay-at-home mom has just completed her second season with Edmontons Breast Friends dragon boat racing squad. Shes running up to 30 km a week in preparation for her second half-marathon this January in Phoenix on the heels of her first 21-km foot race this past May in Vancouver. Shes lifting weights and swimming laps twice a week. Thats all in addition to recently instructing a Running Room clinic for breast-cancer survivors, as well as helping to organize yesterdays 15th annual CIBC Run for the Cure. The five-foot-10 170-pounder, a self-described chocoholic who follows Canadas Food Guide as closely as she can, says exercise had a major hand in helping her turn her trials and tribulations into a triumph. When you go through something like that a major health issue in life theres so much youre not in control of. Its like youre spinning out of control, she explains. The one thing you have control of is what you do with your body It (exercise) gives you some control in a world of chaos. Do you have an inspirational story for Keeping Fit? E-mail Cary Castagna at ccastagna@edmsun.com

BRENDON DLOUHY / EDMONTON SUN

Besides running, Colleen De Roy is part of the Edmontons Breast Friends dragon boat crew.