by Denise Massie
On June 3, the suspicions 47-year-old Kay Field Hines had were confirmed.
Three days after having a mammogram in Indianapolis, the Logansport resident was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer.
For the last year and a half, Hines said, she knew something was wrong, but doctors couldn’t find anything.
“I didn’t feel well,” she said. “I was nauseated, dizzy and fatigued.”
Not knowing what was making her feel sick was a frustrating experience, especially when she had to miss work.
“After awhile, you begin to think it is just you,” she said.
Hines had been going for regular mammograms since 1998.
Each year she went to the doctors and they noticed nothing wrong. Hines believes since the tumor was so far back, the doctors just couldn’t see it.
“It never showed up until I felt it,” she said.
Hines’ mother, Pauline Field, said she told her daughter to go to the doctor right away.
Hines said doctors originally thought there was only one tumor, but after her mammogram in May, doctors discovered two tumors in her right breast. The results showed she might have cancer in her left breast as well.
“I opted for them to take my left breast, too,” she said. “I felt I needed to do both.”
After the surgery, tests revealed a second tumor in her left breast.
“By the grace of God, I made the right decision,” she said.
All of her lymph nodes were taken out of her right arm because cancer was found in them.
She decided to be tested to see whether the cancer was genetic since her sister Kathy Conti was diagnosed with breast cancer about 17 years ago. The test showed the cancer was genetic.
Hines said the support from her sister had been positive and the two had cried and laughed together.
“I guess I have with all my sisters,” she added. “But knowing she has survived it, she’s been my rock.”
Hines said her mother had been emotional during the experience and probably had cried the most.
“We just take each day as it comes,” Field said.
When she got the news, Hines also visited the grave of her father, Harold Field, to pray.
Since the diagnoses, Hines has received numerous phone calls, cards and support from family, friends and church members from Fulton and Twelve Mile areas. Her church, Fulton Baptist Church, and pastor Bruce Russell have been a blessing, she said.
“It’s absolutely wonderful to know so many communities care,” she said. “I’m overwhelmed with how much people really care.”
Hines received two blankets as gifts. One is covered in the pink breast cancer awareness ribbons. The other is known as a “prayer blanket.” She said her employer, Servants Heart, had also been supportive through the entire experience.
“If it wasn’t for my kids, my family and the community — it’s been tough,” she said. “They’ve been good support.”
Hines said the entire journey had been difficult on her and her family, especially her 13-year-old son, Ethan, and 12-year-old daughter, McKenzie.
“My kids have had a hard time with it,” she started to cry. “They’ve crawled into bed with me and cried about it. I don’t want them to see my pain, but they know. You just want to comfort them when they cry.”
If anything, she said, the experience had brought the family closer to God.
The hardest part of the experience for Hines is seeing her family worry about her, she said.
For now, she is trying to remain positive. The doctors expect a good outcome for her and so far have found no cancer in other organs.
On Monday, Hines will begin four rounds of chemotherapy that will last for 12 weeks. A hair dresser for 30 years, Hines said the hardest part of the chemotherapy would be losing her hair.
“That will be the final icing of the cake that I have cancer,” she said. “I’ve been trying on wigs, but it’s been overwhelming.”
She will also have to complete radiation, which will shrink the rest of the one remaining tumor.
For now, Hines tries to remember to laugh with her children. The three sit down to watch old comedy television shows and movies. She also takes walks and rides bikes when her anxiety gets to be too much.
“The best thing anyone can have through this is laughter,” she said.
When she found out her sister, Kathy, wanted to host a benefit for her with her friends and family, including two other sisters and two brothers, she was touched.
“I don’t have income right now,” she said. “I wonder how I will pay my next bill. It gets stressful.”
The money raised will help Hines pay back the money she had to borrow and help her catch up on bills.
“I can’t express how much it means to me,” she said.
• Denise Massie is a staff writer at the Pharos-Tribune. She can be reached at (574) 732-5151 or denise.massie@pharostribune.com
