By Gina Morton
SHAMOKIN DAM — Dave Burns was flooded with feelings when he found out his cancer had returned — 14 years after defeating it the first time.
“There were all sorts of emotions — too many to list — after being fine for so long,” the 54-year-old said by phone from his Shamokin Dam home. “I was just dealing with normal middle-aged stuff.”
Now, Burns is undergoing chemotherapy, keeping his fingers crossed for a third bone marrow transplant and thanking family, friends and strangers for their ongoing prayers and support.
‘I feel hollow’
Burns was first diagnosed with acute myelogenous leukemia — characterized by the rapid growth of abnormal white blood cells that accumulate in the bone marrow and interfere with the production of normal blood cells — in the early ’90s. Throughout that experience he received two bone marrow transplants. He was healthy once the transplants were completed.
He remained healthy until Aug. 10 when he heard from his doctors it had returned. He and his doctors were all thinking the same thing once it was discovered.
“Everyone was shaking their head,” he said. “After 14 years it shouldn’t have come back, but we didn’t waste time on why. It was irrelevant. We had to treat it.”
He began the first round of inpatient chemotherapy in August and is currently in round two of outpatient chemotherapy which consolidates remission to make it last longer for the next step.
Treatment began early last week and is every other day, twice a day. The days are long and sometimes he can sit in the hospital for hours upon end.
Through the process he said it eliminates his immune system and everything in his body begins to go downhill.
“I feel hollow,” he said. “I just feel wiped out.”
Through the treatments he needs to be extraordinarily careful about germs because of the lack of immune system. His days are filled with lots of hand washing, but there are also things he can’t do. He can’t cook or handle raw food, he can’t take out the garbage or change their cat’s litterbox.
His wife, Pam Brennan Burns, has taken on all the housework as well as working full-time. She said she has had her good and bad days dealing with the illness.
“There is a lot involved for the spouse of someone with a life-threatening disease,” she said by e-mail. “In Dave’s case, I try to remain strong all the time, which is tough.”
He’s hoping to receive a third bone marrow transplant. That is his only option of keeping the disease away. He has a transplant evaluation set up for this week in Pittsburgh to determine if it is feasible.
Pittsburgh bound?
Undergoing a third transplant is not common because the procedure is very rigorous and sometimes the body can’t handle it.
“I think it’s pretty unusual,” Burns said. “I joke with my wife that if I get through it again, I’m going to write a book and go on Oprah.”
If he is approved for the transplant, he will have to remain in Pittsburgh for 100 days for continual checkups. Normal recovery is one year.
“There’s a myriad of side effects and things can pop up, I need to be close for treatment,” he said. “After (100 days), if I’m doing OK I can move back home near the local hospital.”
But it’s not only health difficulties he’s burdened with. Burns and his wife now face financial difficulties through the experience. He has been forced to quit his job, leaving his wife as the sole provider for the family.
Between bills, lack of income, medical expenses and continual gas for driving to and from the hospital, the numbers add up.
The transplant itself, he said, will cost at least $100,000.
“I’ve been out of the medical lifestyle for 14 years,” he said. “You forget about it and don’t think of it.”
A fund has been set up for individuals who wish to make contributions to Burns and his family at a local bank.
During the 14-year hiatus, Burns held numerous fundraisers for the American Cancer Society and in 2004 did a charity bike ride for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. He rode 100 miles in one day and raised $5,700.
Through outreach to the community about his story, Burns hopes individuals will become educated on the illness and might encourage them to become a donor.
The last transplant he received was a M.U.D. transplant, or matched unrelated donor. He explained it’s easier to find a relative match, but if not they can find someone through the donor system. He was matched with a man from North Carolina, who he has kept in touch with since.
“I went to his house to visit and he’s been to mine,” Burns said. “He got involved in the registry because his niece had leukemia. He wasn’t able to help her, but he did me.”
Thoughts and prayers
Things have changed a bit since the last time Burns faced this illness — including technology.
In the early ’90s when he was first diagnosed, there was no Internet or text messaging, he remembered.
“People didn’t know and we’d think, ‘OK, did we call these people?,’ ” he said. “With the technology now, it’s wonderful.”
His wife organizes and sends e-mail updates to friends and family on a regular basis, keeping everyone informed on Burns’ condition and overall happenings.
“It makes it easier for us,” he said. “People are calling and e-mailing back. It’s been real helpful and makes it easier on our end.”
Thoughts and prayers are also a big help to the family.
Though she wasn’t there the first time Burns got sick, Brennan Burns said she has heard from him all the prayers and support he received.
“Prayer means everything,” she said. “I cannot say enough about the pastoral care team at Geisinger, or our local priests and ministers, who have provided us both with prayers and blessings.”
She said family and friends have also been very supportive and the continuous thoughts, prayers and cards make a difference.
“I love my husband and I will do whatever I need to do to help him,” she said. “I just take things one day at a time.”
