Save the O's 5K to raise awareness

Dianne Baer was shocked. 

She had gone to see her doctor with complaints of pain in her stomach and pelvis, but she never expected what her doctor would find. 

Baer was a health-conscious person. She ate the right foods and exercised often, but it didn’t change her situation. 

Following her stage IC ovarian cancer diagnosis, she immediately faced surgery and six rounds of chemotherapy. Both of her ovaries were affected by tumors, and her 5-year survival rate was 90 percent.

This month marks 12 years since her diagnosis. 

Healing 

“It was strange having cancer,” Baer said. “I just didn’t relate to having cancer, but I wasn’t going to let it have me. I wanted to be as healthy and as active as I had been. I knew I needed to be.” 

Aside from the cancer, Baer was healthy, and she was determined to stay that way. She began walking 30 minutes every day before she even left the hospital, and she followed her doctor’s instructions with precision. 

Baer said people thought she was crazy, but she, along with a walking group, began training for a half-marathon while going through her chemotherapy. The half-marathon was one month after her last treatment. 

 “The half-marathon and eating well really helped me through,” Baer said. “Having that exercise to look forward to and a group of people supporting me to distract me was a good thing.” 

Learning

While support and exercise helped her through her disease, she said learning more about her diagnosis and spreading awareness about ovarian cancer contributed to her recovery. 

Baer participated in many events and awareness opportunities, such as the Norma Livingston Ovarian Cancer Foundation’s (NLOCF) Ovarian Cycle and Motherwalk, working toward the goal of developing a screening test for women.

Baer said anything that can help spread the word about ovarian cancer helps, which is why she started training for the NLOCF Speakers’ Bureau Community Outreach Program when she went back to work. 

The program gave Baer, and women in other stages of ovarian cancer, the opportunity to talk with medical students about the disease, signs, symptoms and risk factors. Baer has been a part of the organization for seven years. 

“My story is pretty cut and dry,” Baer said. “I had symptoms, was diagnosed, and had surgery and treatment. Whereas some women, the symptoms are so vague they are either not listened to or they are misdiagnosed.”  

 “The point of awareness programs is to help women identify the symptoms and signs so they can get to the doctor sooner and be diagnosed sooner,” Baer said. “The outcome is better that way.”

Living

After Baer’s treatments, her doctor used the word “cured” to describe her cancer-free state, which Baer said she questioned. She no longer has cancer and unlike some cancers, her chances of having ovarian cancer again are no greater than in any other woman. 

She is still cautious, though — twice a year she has a blood test that will detect if the cancer is starting to come back. The test is not helpful as a screening test, but it does help people like Baer who already had ovarian cancer.  

“I still hold my breath; I still have a blood test twice a year, and I just carry on,” Baer said. “It has been an experience. It has given me a little bit of a mission for expanding awareness, and I have met a lot of great people so I can’t say it is all negative.”

The Save the O's 5K will be held on Aug. 16 at Greystone Golf and Country Club. The race will start at 8 a.m. For more information about ovarian cancer or to sign up for the Save the O’s 5K, visit nlovca.org.