REGINA — For more than two years, Dionne and Graham Warner
hoped for a miracle — and when it finally arrived Tuesday, they
were numb.
Then euphoric.
“The doctor walked in with no file in his hand,” Graham said.
“I thought, ‘That’s strange.’ But he didn’t need a file to tell
us.”
The doctor told Dionne, “You continue to be my walking
miracle.”
Her Regina oncologist told them a recent positron emission
tomography (PET) scan done in Winnipeg shows the 46-year-old
woman has no trace of cancer and is in remission.
Since 1995, Dionne has waged wars on breast cancer, brain
cancer and two bouts of liver cancer. The couple’s latest
battle with cancer began in December 2009 when Dionne was
diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer in her lungs, bones and liver.
Her oncologist told her she was a week to 10 days away from
either being paralyzed or losing the use of her arms because of
tumours pressing on her spine.
After getting the PET scan results, the couple was in awe as
they walked past examination rooms at the Allan Blair Cancer
Centre.
“Those were the rooms we sat in how many times where we learned
she had cancer,” Graham said. “It was a very strange feeling
walking past those rooms with this freedom. And then we walked
past the packed chemo waiting room, and it felt like we were
prisoners being released from prison and at the same time
knowing that’s a pretty rare thing. The cancer clinic is great
and they’re doing everything they can, but we were conscious
that not too many people walk out of there with the news we
just got.”
The Warners consulted a doctor of natural medicine and, with
the blessing of her oncologist, Dionne started treatments in
Mexico which the couple call comprehensive because they
included chemotherapy.
“The doctor of natural medicine in Regina said, ‘Dionne, you
can walk, talk and move. If I were you, I would either get to
Germany or Mexico for treatment,’ ” she said.
On their first three-week trip to Tijuana, Dionne underwent
major hyperthermia treatment weekly. The process involved
removing her blood gradually and heating it to 43 degrees C.
The blood was passed through ultraviolet light to kill any
bacteria and then re-introduced into her body.
Heat weakens cancer cells, but does not harm healthy cells,
Graham said.
Besides taking vitamins and supplements, Dionne had
chemotherapy treatments and was on a diet that had no gluten,
carbohydrates or dairy products. Consequently, the slender
woman lost a lot of weight, which didn’t please her Regina
oncologist.
“When we explored going back (to Mexico) to try some stem cell
therapy, he was less enthused, but he still assisted me in
pursuing stem cell therapy,” Graham said.
On the couple’s second trip to the Mexican hospital, Dionne had
stem cell therapy. Graham explained a sample of the tumour was
taken, harvested in the lab and a vaccine was made. After a
hyperthermia treatment, Dionne received an injection of the
killer cells, which attacked the cancer.
Graham estimates the first Mexican treatments cost $28,000 US
and the second set were around $22,000 US. In addition, the
couple paid just under $2,700 for each Avastin treatment Dionne
received in Canada. Over two years, she had two to three
Avastin treatments a month.
“I think we’re under this perception that our medical system
pays for everything and will always look after us, but it
didn’t pay for the Avastin, which we think was very effective,”
Graham said. “It would be nice to see the comprehensive
treatment join the traditional.”
Dionne said the treatment worked for her, but emphasized that
every cancer case is unique.
“Dionne’s attitude is the foundation to work from,” Graham
said. “When you have such a positive attitude, you can really
build off of that in pursuing different treatments.”
Since word has spread on social media that Dionne is in
remission, the couple has received hundreds of messages and
emails. Many well wishes have come from people they have never
met, but who have read Never Leave Your Wingman, a book written
by Regina author Deana J. Driver that chronicles the couple’s
story of hope since Dionne was first diagnosed.
“Hope is everything,” Graham said.
“You’ve got to start with your inner self and come out saying,
‘I’m going to do my best to fight back and win this battle and
live life with no regrets,’ ” Dionne added.
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