Jennifer Van Syckle 0:00 Did you know a person with a disability is twice as likely to have cancer as a person without a disability? Today, our guest Stacey Johnston Gleason is a person with both an intellectual disability and who's experienced colorectal cancer and survived it. You're not going to want to miss her story. Thank you for joining us for this episode of Talking Health in the 406 where we're one community under the Big Sky. I'm your host, Jennifer Van Syckle, longtime health care worker turned health educator so Stacey, I guess, just to kind of start out with tell us about yourself. You were raised in Washington. Stacey Johnston Gleason 0:42 Yes, I was raised in Washington in a small town called Usk, U S. K. It's about 65 miles north of Spokane. The school there is Cusick, which is the town next to it. So Usk and Cusick are very small. So in my class, there was probably about 18. Okay, Jennifer Van Syckle 1:06 that is small that small. So yeah. You were grew up in Washington, and then eventually you did come to Montana, then you you told me you were kind of adopted by a family here. Can you tell me about that? A little bit? Stacey Johnston Gleason 1:20 Yeah, I left Washington after? Geez. I was probably, it was 2007. So well, well into my adulthood. I left Washington state. So yeah, I met my adopted family in Special Olympics. My adopted mom was my Special Olympics coach. We were actually on the board for Washington Special Olympics together. And we just became friends. And I helped her out. Jennifer Van Syckle 2:00 You met your adopted family through Special Olympics in Washington. And then did they move to Montana? And is that kind of how you ended up here? Stacey Johnston Gleason 2:08 Yes, they moved to Montana. And about a year after they moved. Here. I moved here. Yeah. And so then about, I'd say, a year or two after? Well, actually, it's about let's see. 7, 8, about 4 years after we moved to Montana. They adopted me into their family. Yeah, legally adopted me. They did so. Yeah. Jennifer Van Syckle 2:38 And adopted in their hearts long before that I imagined from the sounds Oh, yeah. Stacey Johnston Gleason 2:42 Yeah, yep. Yep. I actually actually saw an article about an adult woman that was adopted. And so I showed it to them, and said, Would you guys be interested in this? And they said, Well, you're already part of our family. But they said, Sure. And they they did it. Jennifer Van Syckle 3:06 That's neat. So what did that entail? That is it? I don't know. Getting? I don't know. Can you explain what that process is? Or what what you guys? Stacey Johnston Gleason 3:16 Well, the I'm not sure all of it, because, of course they did. They did it. But but it's actually you do have to go to court. You have to go in front of the judge. And you have to tell them why you want it and stuff. So yeah, so it's just like an adoption. Yeah. Yeah. So Jennifer Van Syckle 3:39 interesting. You just you don't hear about that very often. But I could see where with a lot of people it would be a good thing. You know, maybe yeah, when that'd be a little more common in our world could be could result in a lot of goodness. Definitely. Yeah. Yeah. How old were you when all that happened? States? Stacey Johnston Gleason 3:56 Oh, it was only it was 2011. And I'm 56. Now so. Jennifer Van Syckle 4:02 Oh, okay. Okay. So you are definitely an adult? Well into your adult year. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Okay, interesting. You have an interesting history, because then you also faced cancer. Can you tell us about that? What, what led up to it? How did they find the cancer? What triggered anything that ended up catching it and tell us about that journey? Stacey Johnston Gleason 4:29 So my doctor, who's also a family friend, so she knows how to talk to me and stuff. And she was asking questions to me. And she asked me if I had any blood, you know, in my stool stuff. And I'm like, Well, yeah, she's like, what? And I'm like, Well, yeah. And she's like, you do and she's like, that's not right. Right. And I'm like, I didn't know that. And so she did a colonoscopy. Well, then I had to have she, she didn't like the results of it. So she sent me to somebody else to have another one. And he didn't like it. So he sent me to a surgeon. With all within like, six weeks, I had two colonoscopies and then surgery, and it ended up being cancer. Wow. But they ended up getting it because of her fast response. I ended up having the, because I went to the surgeon so quickly, it was stage one. Okay. Jennifer Van Syckle 5:47 And how old were you Stacey with all that when that happened? Were you Stacey Johnston Gleason 5:53 for the 48 I think Jennifer Van Syckle 5:56 48. Yeah. And I know, right now, the guidelines are recommending screening for colorectal cancer, which is the colonoscopy between 45 and 75 years old. And so it's it's so lucky, you had that person in your life that knew how to talk to you. And yeah, I'd recommend that. Stacey Johnston Gleason 6:15 Because then then it was 50. I would have been another two years. Wow. Jennifer Van Syckle 6:21 Oh, my goodness. Thank you. Yeah, yeah, I got some interesting statistics that in Montana, we in people 45 and younger, there's 144 new cases of that same that colorectal cancer found every year. And between people just just 45 to 49. There's 111. So it's just, it's just crazy. And yeah, thank goodness, the screening age has dropped to 45. But I'm so glad that you didn't sit there with that for another two years. And so did you have to do like, chemotherapy or radiation or anything else? Or did Stacey Johnston Gleason 6:59 was snarl I was I was fortunate that the surgery was enough. Jennifer Van Syckle 7:05 Okay. And did you? Did you do all that in Montana? I know you've mentioned in the past about having a long commute to get to your your doctor? Stacey Johnston Gleason 7:16 Yes, I actually did have all that done in Great Falls. Okay. Yeah, my surgeon, my surgeon was in Great Falls. And they actually had me do some genetic testing and stuff. But unfortunately, I didn't. I don't know a lot about my, my family history and stuff. Because of me, just I don't know a lot about my family. So I didn't meet my biological father until I was in my late 20s. And he passed away two years after I met him. He was the only he was an only child and his parents had passed away before I met him. So yeah, and so I really don't know a lot about my family history. So but they did do some genetic stuff because of having cancer. So early. Yeah. Colorectal cancer early. Jennifer Van Syckle 8:12 Yeah. Oh, my gosh, I think there's a lot of people that can relate to that. Not you know, whether it's one, one side of the parentage or both sides that, yeah, it's just a complete unknown. And it's pretty cool that they have those tests that they can do these days to see if you exam packing that cancer gene or not. Stacey Johnston Gleason 8:32 Zach is my biological mother. She's had breast cancer. She's had both breasts removed, and my biological father died of lung cancer. Jennifer Van Syckle 8:45 Oh, wow. I can see why I can see why that doctor wanted to wanted to check that. Yeah, definitely. And are you still in touch with that very first doctor that kind of visited with you about this? Do you still see that person? Stacey Johnston Gleason 9:01 I do. But unfortunately, they are are not going to be practicing after July. So I do need to find a new doctor. And so I'm kind of stressed about that at the moment. Yeah. Yeah, Jennifer Van Syckle 9:16 it can be hard. It can be hard not only to get in with a medical provider, but find the right one that clicks. Stacey Johnston Gleason 9:21 Like yeah, well, yeah, cuz I've had this one for Well, since 2007. And they've actually saved my life a couple of times. I actually was having problems. I couldn't breathe very well. I couldn't walk a block. I was like, really lethargic and walk a block. I couldn't walk up a set of stairs very well. And I was just having quite a bit of problems. And she ended up finding a five PEs and also a blood clot behind my knees. So So yeah, so she's actually saved me a couple times. So Oh, my goodness. Yeah. Jennifer Van Syckle 10:01 Wow, that's that Stacey Johnston Gleason 10:03 was pretty scarey too. Jennifer Van Syckle 10:05 Yeah. And have you Stacey had any other issues? You know, I know you have to try and find a new physician now but have you ever had any other issues trying to find good health care in your in your life that you've experienced or? Stacey Johnston Gleason 10:17 Well, yeah, just like living in Spokane was it was kind of hard and live in there trying to find somebody to, to listen to you and stuff. So I didn't really see a doctor too much there, you know, was a little bit more difficult there. But we'll know what I did find somebody like an eye detached retina back in the day and then and if it wasn't for the eye doctor that I did have I, you know, you just you just find those certain people and I mean, I'm lucky to have the vision in the one eye that I do have that that eye that I did detach, and because if I didn't then didn't have him. I would have lost that vision and I Jennifer Van Syckle 11:04 stay so you've got you've got one heck of a tough track record there. Yeah, you've been through a lot. Stacey Johnston Gleason 11:11 Yeah. So. So yeah, yeah. Yeah. So Jennifer Van Syckle 11:16 Oh, my gosh, yeah, that's, uh, Stacey Johnston Gleason 11:21 once I find the the physicians that I that that do help me, it's like I latch on to them, you know? Jennifer Van Syckle 11:32 Yeah, exactly. Yeah. The one that you mentioned that helped you catch your colorectal cancer that talked with you. Can you talk a little bit more about what's been special with that, doctor? How that person does talk with you? Or what's, what's different? Did they just take extra time? Or do they do they Stacey Johnston Gleason 11:53 take extra time? And they just, they took the time to know, me as a person. And know, just know how I, how I work. How my how I don't know just just how I am, you know, Jennifer Van Syckle 12:13 take the time to get to know you as a person. Yeah, that of just cookie cutter. Yeah, yeah. And we're gonna pause with Stacey story right there. But don't worry. She'll be back in our next podcast. And I do want to take a moment to thank Stacey for sharing this information. If you would like more about what you heard today, visit our website at talking TalkingHealthinthe406.mt.gov. And thank you for joining us for this episode of talking health in the 406 where we're one community under the Big Sky. Until next time, take care Transcribed by https://otter.ai