Inspiration at MD Anderson

Posted by Lynne Dale, Summer’s mom. This morning was tough on Summer. She had had a dream that she was back at her high school and all her friends were welcoming her. To wake up and realize that she was still in Houston, facing another day of physical therapy and radiation was tough.

We barely made it to PT on time; Summer was really dragging. Her physical therapist, Nancy, was someone new to us. She was friendly and all smiles. She quickly had Summer up and active.

At one point, Summer said that she was surprised there were so few bald people in PT, and Nancy said, “I’m bald.” Summer said, “What do you mean?” Nancy said, “This is a wig. I’m fighting cancer, too.” Summer and I were dumbfounded. How could this woman get up and go to work every day, encouraging others to stay strong, when she was going through the same thing? What an inspiration this woman was to both of us! (And may I add, it’s pretty hard to complain about PT when your therapist is going through treatments, too.)

I asked Nancy if I could take her picture with Summer and share her story. As she posed with Summer, she spontaneously pulled off her wig. She told us later that she had never allowed anyone to photograph her bald before. Maybe Summer inspired her, too!