Cancer

Spectrum Health Celebrates Cancer Survivors

In honor of National Cancer Survivors Day®, Spectrum Health will hold special events to celebrate cancer survivors and share their stories.

Cancer Survivors Day will be held Wednesday, June 6, from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Spectrum Health Lemmen-Holton Cancer Pavilion, 145 Michigan Street NE, in Grand Rapids. Free parking will be available in Ramp 5, off Coit Avenue.

Cancer Survivors Day visitors will enjoy appetizers and ice cream, as well as free massages and other relaxation therapies. There will also be the opportunity to take free commemorative photos in a special photo booth, listen to a live band and view art from the Lilly Oncology On Canvas™ exhibit on display throughout the building.

Even without attending Cancer Survivors Day events, the public can celebrate a survivor or memories of a loved one by submitting a story, photo or video to Spectrum Health via the Spectrum Health Facebook page or at www.spectrumhealth.org/share-cancer-story.

Spectrum Health has provided some sample questions to help in the storytelling process.

Survivors:

• What does being a cancer survivor mean to you?
• What good things have come from your cancer diagnosis?
• What do you know about yourself now that you didn’t know before diagnosis and treatment?
• What, or who, helped you get through it all?
• After beating cancer, what else would you like to conquer?

Family members and friends:

• What about the survivor do you celebrate?
• What word or phrase would you use to describe the survivor?
• How are you inspired by the survivor?
• If you have lost a loved one to cancer, what memories of him or her do you cherish?

For questions, please contact the Spectrum Health Cancer Program at 616.486.6184 or www.cancercontact@spectrumhealth.org.

Spectrum Health is a not-for-profit health system in West Michigan offering a full continuum of care through the Spectrum Health Hospital Group, which is comprised of nine hospitals including Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital, a state of the art children’s hospital that opened in January 2011, and 190 service sites; the Spectrum Health Medical Group and West Michigan Heart, physician groups totaling more than 600 providers; and Priority Health, a health plan with 625,000 members. Spectrum Health is West Michigan’s largest employer with more than 18,000 employees. The organization provided $176.5 million in community benefit during its 2011 fiscal year.