LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — The UK Markey Cancer Center has become one of the nation’s best at treating patients, but the event they held on Friday had nothing to do with direct medical treatments, but it’s one of the more important things the patients are given.
“When they’re coming to clinics it’s a lot of hustle and bustle and it’s overwhelming. An event like this gives them time to relax and connect with one another,” said Katie Brown, who leads the Social Workers division for Markey.
Their 11th annual Survivor Celebration luncheon was an opportunity for survivors to connect, enjoy some of the artwork made by their fellow patients, and take part in some therapeutic activities such as music, art, and yoga.
“Reduced pain, reduced anxiety, helping people cope with their depression and their cancer journey,” Music Therapist, Jennifer Peyton said, listing the ways a patient can be helped by those activities.
Casey McKenzie is traveling a cancer journey for a second time. About five years ago, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer. Three years ago, he got word he had multiple myeloma, an incurable blood cancer.
“At the time we had no grandchildren, and I was just praying I would live long enough to see one. We now have 3 granddaughters,” Mr. McKenzie boasted.
McKenzie said his prognosis is better, calling himself a “thriver” rather than a survivor. He canceled something on his schedule to make sure he was here for this event.
“This is just a fantastic support event. The people who work at Markey are so nice and supportive, and the other thing is to meet other survivors and share stories,” McKenzie said.
And they come to pay respects to those who didn’t make it through the last year. The aforementioned artwork wasn’t made only by cancer survivors, which added a level of meaning to the day.
“We actually had those artists lined up to come today, but they unfortunately passed before, so we wanted to make sure we honored them,” Brown said, before heading off to welcome more survivors into the building.
