When it comes to keeping the faith, few are as unwavering as Reverend Dr. Frank Glasford and his wife Shirley.
When Frank began having problems swallowing he went from medical center to medical center and doctor after doctor but Frank says they never addressed what was causing his swallowing problem and would only give him a feeding tube so he didn’t have to come back to the hospital as often.
It turns out a cancerous tumor behind his esophagus and trachea was making it impossible for Frank to swallow.
The tumor was a Metastatic Adenoid Cystic Carcinoma.
As a result, Frank was unable to eat and whittled down from 160 to 115 pounds in about two-and-a-half months.
“Not being able to swallow or eat was tough take. Plus I had to sit and watch everyone eat my wife’s wonderful food. She’s a fantastic cook.”
Shirley didn’t believe doctors couldn’t do anything to help Frank, “It just didn’t make any sense to us.”
Months later, while praying for some kind of help to come, Shirley heard a commercial on TV about a treatment for tumors at the CyberKnife Center of Miami, “The TV ad said, CyberKnife could treat a tumor anywhere in the body and I knew it was the answer to our prayers.”
The Glasford’s immediately called CyberKnife Miami and came in that same day with Frank’s medical files for a consultation.
Frank says, “A divine intervention took us to CyberKnife Miami and while there we met other patients who were treated. Even a patient who came all the way from England. All we heard were great things and good results.”
CyberKnife Miami radiation oncologist, Dr. Mark Pomper met with Frank and determined the tumor causing his swallowing problems could definitely be treated with CyberKnife Radio-surgery.
Shirley says, “At last we finally had some hope now.”
“CyberKnife was the perfect tool to treat Frank’s tumor because it could deliver the highest dose of radiation possible with pinpoint accuracy, targeting only the tumor, preventing harm to vital surrounding organs like the heart and lungs,” says Dr. Pomper.
CyberKnife therapy also requires a lot fewer treatments than standard radiation which Dr. Pomper says could have easily been 40 treatments.
Instead Frank only needed five, forty-minute CyberKnife treatments. By the second treatment he already had relief and by the third he was swallowing normally and eating again.
“Food never tasted so good. We take many things for granted, like swallowing and eating. I don’t anymore and started gaining my weight back immediately.”
Shirley says, “We never heard of the CyberKnife Center of Miami before and I’m sure we saw their commercial on TV many times, but didn’t pay attention until Frank’s tumor.”
Dr. Pomper says, “CyberKnife is an amazing option that should be used a lot more often. Patients should be given the choice of standard radiation or CyberKnife radiation. Anyone who wants to call us, we’re happy to talk to them and guide them toward the best treatment. We’re here to help.”
Frank couldn’t believe how easy treatment was, “I would just lay there and listen to the music while the machine did all the work. There was no pain or side effects. No interruption to my life.”
Dr. Pomper says, “I don’t think anybody wanted to treat Frank because they were afraid standard radiation would cause more harm. That’s where CyberKnife comes in. That radiation beam is so precise, it can treat hard to reach tumors and spare healthy surrounding tissue. It’s an amazing treatment people need to be aware of and not be afraid of going elsewhere if they’re not getting the help they need.”
If Frank hadn’t been treated with CyberKnife, Dr. Pomper says the tumor would have continued growing, causing more problems and he wouldn’t have been able to live life to its fullest potential.
During the entire time, Frank and Shirley never lost faith. Frank says, “I wasn’t afraid of dying, I just didn’t want to speed it up due to medical negligence.”
“I’m a pastor and I believe this happened for a reason, so I could spread the word about CyberKnife Miami. We tell everyone we know and we pass out their cards and brochures. I have faith and know the Lord, Shirley, Dr. Pomper and CyberKnife saved my life.”
To find out if CyberKnife is the right treatment choice for you, talk to one of our cancer experts at the CyberKnife Center of Miami 305-279-2900