Festival of Life Celebrates Cancer Survivors
Photo by Brook Photography
Ira “Jack” Sloan, who was recently treated for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, came to celebrate with his daughters and to thank the doctors and nurses who he says went out of their way to make him comfortable. “I’m only alive because of USC and my daughters,” he said.
Guests were treated to the sounds of Disneyland’s Bayou Brass Band while they enjoyed a continental breakfast under sunny skies. Harv the Magician roved the crowd, entertaining kids with balloon animals, and numerous booths offered information on survivorship issues.
Michael DeRisi, who had been treated for kidney cancer at USC Norris, was celebrating five years of survivorship. “I’m very thankful for the incredible doctors and staff I found here at Norris,” he said.
The day included a formal program, moderated by physician, author and television personality, Art Ulene. Clare Templeman, assistant professor of obstetrics/gynecology and surgery at the Keck School of Medicine of USC, shared her thoughts about hope as a driving force for those who work at Norris.
“To me, Norris is a community of people who provide hope … and the greatest place I’ve ever worked,” said Templeman.
Vicki Kompaniez, a USC Norris volunteer and breast cancer survivor, recalled how she left in the middle of chemotherapy at another institution to finish her treatment at USC Norris.
“I walked in to Norris and I felt like I had come home,” said Kompaniez, whose husband also was successfully treated for esophageal cancer a year earlier at USC Norris. “The care, the love, the support; from the minute you drive up at the valet … you feel nothing but taken care of.”
Chorda Tympani, a medical student barbershop quartet who entertained the crowd with their rendition of “Come Fly with Me” during the program, had a very special member among their ranks. Robert Martinez, a first-year medical student at the Keck School of Medicine, is also a former patient of USC Norris, where he was treated for colon cancer in 2004.
He lauded USC Norris as an exceptional treatment facility that treats the “whole person” with compassion. Martinez, who was inspired to study medicine because of his experience with cancer, encouraged the crowd to share their stories with others.
“Always think about the patients who are being diagnosed, how you can share your success story with them,” he said. “Focus on how you can inspire others to keep fighting, because you can easily lose track.”
At the end of the program, white doves were released as the crowd stood in unity and sang “Reach Out and Touch Somebody’s Hand.”
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USC in the News
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The Chronicle of Higher Education mentioned USC’s $6 billion fundraising campaign. The story noted that USC had already raised $1 billion in a “quiet phase,” including the $200 million naming gift from USC Trustee and alumnus David Dornsife and wife Dana Dornsife to the USC Dornsife College.
The Guardian (U.K.) highlighted two major gifts to USC in a list of the 10 biggest philanthropic benefactors in America. The list included the $200 million naming gift from USC Trustee and alumnus David Dornsife and wife Dana Dornsife to the USC Dornsife College, and the $110 million gift from USC Trustee and USC Viterbi School alumnus John Mork and wife Julie to create the USC Mork Family Scholars Program.
The New York Times featured the USC U.S.-China Institute documentary “Assignment: China — The Week that Changed the World.” The documentary, part of a series, examines media coverage of the 1972 Nixon trip that reshaped U.S.-China relations after a quarter century of isolation and hostility. “People look back now and take it for granted that the outcome was preordained,” said the institute’s Mike Chinoy, who produced the documentary. Voice of America also featured the story.
Los Angeles Times featured the Oscar Senti-meter, a tool developed by the USC Annenberg School, Los Angeles Times and IBM that analyzes thousands of tweets about the Academy Awards nominees. The story noted that Mexican actor Demian Bechir received an enormous boost on Twitter the day of the nominations, with a total of 6,893 tweets mentioning him, a 47-fold increase from the day before. The story noted the tool uses language-recognition technology developed in collaboration with USC Viterbi School’s Signal Analysis and Interpretation Lab.
The Times of India (India) featured a three-day medical emergency training workshop organized in association with USC. At the workshop, held at GCS Medical College in India, 50 doctors and more than 100 paramedics learned how to improve emergency support systems. William Mallon of the Keck School of USC said that discussion topics included the use of portable ultrasonic devices to scan patients. “The ultrasound applications help physicians make accurate and timely decisions,” he noted. Daily News & Analysis (India) also featured the workshop.
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