When Alysa Kirton’s mother passed away from cancer, she hoped then she would never be faced with the disease. But her hopes were dashed in 1994 when the doctor told her she had breast cancer. If that news was not bad enough, the doctor also told her that she would need a mastectomy. Faced with a possible life and death situation, she decided to follow doctors orders. After surgery, she breathed a sigh of relief when her oncologist, Dr. Douglas Orr, told her she would not need radiation or chemotherapy.

“I was very relieved when he told me I would not need chemo or radiation,” Kirton said. “After surgery, I just wanted to get on with my life and feel as normal as possible.”

For five years, Alysa saw Dr. Orr every six months for routine tests. Every time the tests were normal, she would relax, that is until time for the next visit. Because of her deep faith in God, she trusted in Him to take care of her.

In April of 1998, during a routine check-up, blood work showed that her tumor markers were elevated. She continued to trust in God even though fear crept in.

“I somehow knew that the test meant the cancer was back,” she said. “I went to Baylor Hospital in Dallas for additional tests. I was told that the cancer had come back in my liver and lymph nodes behind my chest. I left there wondering what God was doing and if I needed to make funeral arrangements. Even then I did not give up hope.”

Because of the location of the cancer in her chest, surgery was out of the question. However, they performed surgery on her liver to remove the cancerous tumor. Because the cancer was stage four, she received six months of chemo, a stem cell transplant and seven weeks of radiation.

“This time it was harder to fight the cancer,” Kirton stated. “The toxic doses of chemo make you so sick you sometimes want to die. Then you see the faces of those you love and know you must fight. God did not want me to give up so I kept fighting.”

Alysa’s husband, Lyall, helped her through the ordeal. He would take care of the house, their two teenage boys and their four year old son, Brett. Because of the treatments, she was too weak to do anything but go to work. The Kirton’s are members of Central Baptist Church in Italy. Church members and friends prayed, visited and brought in meals to help. She would not want to go through anything like this without God and her church family.

Alysa knew from experience not to let her guard down even though her check-ups had been good for over ten years. This proved to be true in the Spring of last year when routine blood test revealed her tumor markers were elevated again.

“The doctor wanted to do a PET scan, but my insurance would not approve it until a spot was found. Finally in November the CT scan and MRI showed a “spot” on my liver again.”

A few weeks ago, Alysa went to Baylor Hospital in Dallas to have the tumor removed during laparoscopic surgery. The surgeon was unable to remove the tumor because it was located so close to the hepatic vein.

“When I woke up from the surgery and Lyall told me they could not remove the tumor, I was devastated. I had handled being told the cancer was back, but I thought I would leave the hospital without the tumor. I wanted it out of my body so things could be normal again.”

Doctors recommended the Cyber Knife treatment. Radiosurgery uses many precisely aimed pencil-like beams of radiation to deliver high doses to the tumor while sparing normal tissue only millimeters away. It was invented in the 1950’s and developed during the computer revolution. With the CyberKnife®, technology is being applied for the first time to extra-cranial sites such as lung, liver, kidney, prostate, pancreas and breast.

No incisions are made during radiosurgery, and patients usually return to their normal activities the next day. And because most treatments are given on an outpatient basis for one to five days, radiosurgery will not demand a great deal of time.

Alysa went through three sessions that lasted almost two hours each. An MRI will be performed in May to discover if the procedure was successful in destroying the cancer. Until then, Alysa will try to wait patiently and continue to rely on God one day at a time.

“I was a little nervous going under the Cyber Knife. It is a fairly new procedure and long term effects are rather unclear. But, I am at the stage where I can’t worry about tomorrow, only today. Having cancer for the third time hits really close to home. I try to think and be positive and put all my concerns and fears into God‘s hands. He never promises us tomorrow. Being diagnosed with cancer again shows me just how precious each day should be. I have learned the hard way not to take tomorrow for granted.”

Alysa Kirton knows how important Relay For Life really is from a personal standpoint. Raising money for the American Cancer Society is one of the most important thing she does every year. The research funded by the money raised here in Ellis County could help find a cure for cancer. Participating in the survivor’s lap each year is bitter sweet for Alysa. She is glad to be alive and able to participate each year, yet she is sad knowing some of her friends and family will not be there to walk with her because they lost their battle with cancer.

Every year she considers not being part of a Relay team. And, every year someone else she cares about is diagnosed with cancer or loses their battle with cancer so she works to raise as much money as she can. She knows she must continue the fight and raise the money so a cure for cancer can be a reality. After all, for Alysa and all cancer survivors, it is a life and death fight.

The Relay For Life Central Ellis County will be held at Waxahachie High School on May 15 and 16, 2009. Everyone is encouraged to join a team, raise money and participate in the all night event. Any cancer survivor that would like to sign up for the event is asked to contact Karen Mathiowetz at 972-483-7434.