PATSY R. SKINNER CANCER FOUNDATION, INC.
PATSY'S BATTLE
Patsy R. Skinner
Sunset 12.11.01
Patsy R. Skinner was born in Arkansas in 1946. In 1954 she moved to Longview, Texas.
She attend schools there and graduated from Dorthy Mays High School. Patsy married Lawrence Skinner of Longview, Texas and they moved to Austin Texas is 1976 Patsy was a active member in the Church of God In Christ, where she held a number of positions. She was the District Missionary of the Austin District. Patsy and Lawrence were certified as Foster Parents for The Texas Department of Protective Services for 14 years.
In September 2000 Patsy did a self-breast exam and noticed a small lump. After sharing her finding with her daughter she was instructed to call her doctor immediately to let her know what she had discovered. After talking with her doctor Patsy was scheduled to take another Mammogram which she had just previously had and exam in April of 2000.
Patsy's family was very concerned due to the fact that in April of 2000, Patsy had a Mammogram that was clear and free from any lumps or masses. After the results were in they discovered that Patsy had a large mass in her right breast.
Patsy was admitted into the hospital to have a needle biopsy done on the lump in her right breast which later came back benign. Due to the size and the position of the mass it was imperative that the lump be removed as soon as possible. Once the lump was removed a full biopsy was done on the lump and the results were devastating it was malignant "CANCER".
In October 2000 Patsy was admitted to the hospital for a Radical Mastectomy of the right breast. They removed twelve (12) Lymph Nodes, and cancer was attached to only one (1) of the Lymph Nodes. After six (6) month of Chemotherapy doctors reported that Patsy's cancer was in remission.
In September 2001 Patsy experienced 2 weeks of chronic bone pain and severe shortness of breath, which she thought was just a side effect of the drug called Tamoxifen, which she had been taking as a preventive medication after Chemotherapy.
Patsy noticed that her right arm was swollen and warm to the touch, she went in to have an ultrasound done and it showed that she had developed a blood clot in her upper right neck area. The doctors prescribed a blood thinner called Coumadin to the thin the blood in hopes that it would help the clot pass without having to do surgery.
In October 2001 Patsy began to experience more severe shortness of breath and constant coughing over a period of a couple of weeks. So she called her primary care physician who requested that Patsy go to the ER immediately because she was very concerned about the shortness of breath and constant coughing that Patsy was experiencing.
Once Patsy was admitted to the ER a series of test were conducted on Patsy and as her labs and radiology results began to come in, they showed signs of fluid collecting in the lining of her right lung which was causing the shortness of breath.
A biopsy was ordered on the fluid when the results were in once again the results were devastating "CANCER" cells were present in the fluid. Radiology reports also showed that the "CANCER" had attacked her right lung, chest wall and her bones. Patsy was released and sent home to start a new series of treatment.
Twenty-One (21) Radiation Treatments...Six (6) months of Chemotherapy...
Patsy only received twelve (12) Radiation
treatments and two (2) Chemotherapy treatments.
In November 2001 Patsy was readmitted into the hospital where she received one (1) more radiation treatment. After completing treatment thirteen (13), Patsy took a turn for the worse. Her blood pressure dropped and her kidneys began to shut down. She slipped into a semi-comatose state. While in this state specialist were called in to try and reverse her current condition, during this time her lungs continued to fill with fluid. Doctors tried to drain the fluid by sending a tube into her lungs and using the suction method and breathing treatments but not much could be done after multiple tries. The fluid continue to build which caused her to develop pneumonia, and now that Patsy could not cough on her on and the suction was not working all treatments were discontinued and Patsy began to pass away.
Before Patsy slipped into her coma I remember her removing the oxygen from her face and she begin to sing this song...
I've gone thru the fire and I've been thru the flood, I've been broken into pieces seen lightning flash from above But thru it all I remember that HE LOVES me and HE CARES and he'll never put more on me than "I CAN BARE"
After fourteen (14) months the battle was over Patsy passed away December 2001 at the young age of 55.
"The Lamb of God Went to the Cross to Set Me Free" I'M FREE! I'M FREE!
