THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, March 29, 1996 TAG: 9603280144
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 18 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY GARY EDWARDS, CORRESPONDENT
LENGTH: Medium: 81 lines
Nancy Gekas seemed to have a storybook life six years ago. Gekas, then 48, was an elementary school teacher, a Phi Beta graduate of the University of North Carolina, married to her college sweetheart with two fine college-age children. She taught Sunday school and enjoyed an active social life.
When the Richmond resident traveled to Texas in June 1990 for a vacation, she visited the physician who treated her when her family lived in the Lone Star state.
``I had noticed that a freckle on the top of my left foot had thickened somewhat,'' she said. ``I asked our doctor to look at it. It looked harmless to both of us.''
It wasn't. Gekas returned to Richmond and soon received a call from her doctor.
``I knew he wasn't calling long distance just to chat,'' she said.
The innocent spot turned out to be melanoma, an often deadly form of skin cancer that metastasizes rapidly. Gekas had lost two friends in their 40s to the malady, and her husband had lost several close relatives to cancer.
``That's part of the irony,'' she said. ``I had always enjoyed tremendously good health. We were always concerned about him.''
She had the spot removed and waited. She had to follow up for five years to monitor any recurrence. She will mark her sixth anniversary in June.
Gekas came to Virginia Beach General Hospital on March 22 to do what she does frequently: clown for a serious purpose. Gekas's uplifting talk was part of the annual Daffodil Days celebration under the auspices of the hospital's Coastal Cancer Center. The daffodil symbolizes hope and is the official flower of the American Cancer Society.
Gekas stepped up to the podium to address cancer survivors, their friends and families. She was wearing a brightly colored orange and yellow outfit with a flower-pot head, her ``Daffy Dil'' guise.
She took the flower pot off after a couple of minutes of humorous banter with the audience. The woman who made A's in college is a graduate of a professional clown school and started a comedy club for children with cancer at Medical College of Virginia in Richmond during her own recovery called ``Laughter in the Rain.'' She was the 1993 recipient of the cancer society's Virginia Division Service and Rehabilitation Award of Merit.
Her bout with cancer gave her a new perspective on life, and she decided to share her experiences with others who are recovering from the nation's second-leading cause of death.
Cristine Johnson sat in the audience holding her 9-week-old daughter Anna Nicole and listening closely to Gekas.
Johnson watched her mother die from the ravages of breast cancer three years ago. Six weeks after her mother's death, Cristine herself was diagnosed with Hodgkin's disease, cancer of the lymph glands.
``She was diagnosed late and mine was caught early,'' said Johnson.
Johnson underwent 2 1/2 months of radiation therapy, five days a week. During a follow-up CAT scan about a year ago, Johnson's doctors saw something that looked like a fetus. It was. An obstetrician/gynecologist confirmed that she was indeed pregnant.
``My obstetrician worked closely with the oncologist,'' said Johnson. Despite some concerns, Anna Nicole Johnson arrived in the world at a ``perfectly healthy'' 9 pounds, 13 ounces.
``She's the joy of our life,'' said Cristine Johnson, speaking of her husband, Daryl, who watched his mother-in-law die and his wife go through three years of treatment.
Gekas offered some thoughts on what her bout taught her:
``We must be responsible and aware and take care of our own bodies,'' she said. ``Pay attention to suspicious symptoms. It is better to be safe than sorry. What if I had ignored the spot on my foot.
``There's no need to live in fear, but just be aware.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photos by GARY EDWARDS
Nancy Gekas, dressed as ``Daffy Dil,'' right, addresses cancer
survivors, their friends and families at Virginia Beach General
Hospital. Her uplifting talk encourages others to be aware of and
take care of their bodies. The daffodil symbolizes hope and is the
official flower of the American Cancer Society.
by CNB