Marilnn Rondot, a long-time volunteer at CRH, had been experiencing pain below her ribs soon after she would eat. She endured it for more than a year after not getting answers. Finally, she decided to get another opinion and reached out to WellConnect to find a provider. The connection specialists offered a list of providers who were accepting new patients. Marilnn simply wanted to talk with someone who would listen. She found a listener in Dr. Samantha Fleckenstein at MyCare Family Med. “Dr. Fleckenstein said, ‘We’re going to run every test in the book.’ She was the one who got the process going,” said Marilnn. While Marilnn’s last colonoscopy was only three years before that, Dr. Fleckenstein wanted her to have another one.
It was, in fact, colon cancer that was causing Marilnn’s pain. Gastroenterologist Geoffrey Raymer, MD, who conducted the colonoscopy, asked Marilnn what surgeon she would like to remove the mass, and she requested general surgeon David Lee, MD. Within a few weeks, she had surgery. Marilnn had already had part of her colon removed from a previous surgery, and Dr. Lee removed more, along with some lymph nodes to make sure the cancer hadn’t spread. The good news was that the mass was contained within her colon and a couple of lymph nodes.
Marilnn can’t say enough good things about the care she received at CRH. “They treated me like I was a queen,” she said. As a CRH volunteer, Marilnn might have thought it was special treatment, but she said she sees patients treated that way all of the time.
After surgery, Marilnn spent 10 weeks healing. Then she was referred to medical oncologist Dr. Nadeem Ikhlaque. “Dr. Ikhlaque, I think, walks on water,” she said. “He was just wonderful – he was patient.” Marilnn is also grateful for the entire Cancer Center team. “They’re patient. They’re kind. They answer every question you have and even some you don’t know you’re curious about,” she said.
Marilnn enjoys volunteering at CRH in part because of how she is treated. “When I go into the hospital, almost everybody says, “Well, hi, Marilnn. How are you doing?” Today, in addition to volunteering at CRH, Marilnn advocates for colonoscopies. “I want to tell everybody I see now to get a colonoscopy. Yes, the prep isn’t fun, but the prep is the least of your worries.” Volunteering in the endoscopy waiting area, Marilnn likes to help patients feel at ease with a bit of lightheartedness. “It’s so easy to smile and say something kind to somebody who is going to be going into a procedure. You can tell when they’re nervous about it,” she said, joking to them: “Now the worst is behind you – pardon the pun.”
At 81, Marilnn keeps busy volunteering at the Hospital and Our Hospice, along with her husband. “There’s still a lot of life left in this old body,” said Marilnn. She enjoys feeling needed and helping to make work a little easier for staff by handling some of the smaller tasks that still have to be done. “I’m glad the hospital has the volunteer service to help people still feel they are needed and contributing something to society,” she said.
We’re glad you are cancer-free and part of the CRH family, Marilnn!
