Pam is giving back in any way she can to the programs at UNC Lineberger that gave her life back to her.
UNC Lineberger donor and Board of Visitors member Pam Dixon celebrated her five year anniversary of being cancer-free in December of 2010.
At age 48, she found a lump in her breast that led to a biopsy and the discovery of two more lumps. She was told that she had three different forms of breast cancer. “Initially I was in shock,” says Pam. “Nobody on either side of my family had ever had cancer.”
Her care team – surgical oncologist, Dr. David Ollila; medical oncologist, Dr. Lisa Carey; and radiation oncologist, Dr. Jan Halle; – and all the nurses and support staff “were straightforward, knowledgeable and compassionate,” she explains. As the mother of two autistic children, Pam understands the value of physicians who are not only competent but also compassionate. “UNC does a very good job of balancing the two.”
In addition to the support offered by her medical care team, Pam also found support through a number of programs available at UNC Lineberger. “The Patient and Family Resource Center (PFRC) supplied me with educational materials about my diagnosis and treatment, and center staff also directed me to many other resources to help me through my journey to recovery,” says Pam.
She visited with the chaplain before every treatment, received her first wig from the Mary Anne Long Brighter Image Boutique and participated in such programs as Look Good, Feel Better (a beauty session for female cancer patients) and Get REAL and HEEL (an after care breast cancer program).
Thankful for these programs and all of the resources available at UNC Lineberger, Pam is giving back in any way she can to the programs at UNC Lineberger that gave her life back to her.
Pam served on the Patient and Family Advisory Board helping to plan the new N.C. Cancer Hospital, is a member of the UNC Lineberger Board of Visitors and is a donor.