All Are Our Heroes

'I may have cancer. It does not have me.'

You are not invited to Ronald Webb’s pity party. Even while battling lung cancer, he’s too busy living each day to feel sorry for himself.

In February of last year, a case of bad indigestion drove him to the emergency room. He’d been experiencing pain on the right side of his chest for several months, and was hoping the ER doctors could prescribe something stronger than the over-the-counter treatments he’d been taking.

But the doctors had another diagnosis – lung cancer. "The first step was getting over the shock. You hear that word – cancer," remembers Ron. First shock, then fear, then a deliberate decision on how he’d handle the challenge. "You have to maintain a positive attitude. You can’t get on a pity party. I may have cancer -- it doesn’t have me."

Ron’s treatment started with six doses of radiation and chemotherapy, followed by surgery, and then more chemo – three treatments per month. "I had surgery on a Monday and was in the hospital for five days. I came home on Friday, rested on Saturday and Sunday, and by Monday, I was out walking in my yard."

A painter by trade, Ron’s been out of work since his surgery last June and is eager to return. "I’m a little out of shape. I’ll have to start walking and exercising." He’s thankful to his boss, who’s holding his job for him.

His wife and two teenage daughters, his doctors, their staff members and the American Cancer Society (ACS) are also high on his list. "I’ll be forever grateful." Just over a year ago, in the grim days following his diagnosis, Ron met his "Santa in February" – the ACS Patient Navigator at Gwinnett Medical Center. Jennifer Beck helped him coordinate and arrange his medical care, provided additional resources and connected him with the necessary support systems. "Some days, three people would call me to offer help," says Ron.

Now he’s looking ahead. "You have to appreciate every day. Not a day goes by that I don’t tell my wife and daughters that I love them. If something were to happen to me while they were at school or work, I want the last thing they heard from me to be ‘I love you.’ "