Today, 54-year-old Nancy Holiman is a two-time cancer survivor. Nancy's introduction to the world of cancer survivorship was a dramatic one. One Monday in May 2002, she told her husband she was not feeling well. Tuesday, she saw her physician, and Wednesday her blood work came back as abnormal. However, citing work responsibilities, she rescheduled her appointment with a specialist a week later. Unfortunately, Nancy couldn't wait a week.

Early Thursday morning, she fainted, breaking two bones in her leg.  An ambulance rushed her to the emergency room at a local hospital where her broken leg was casted and her abnormal blood counts evaluated. The diagnosis was acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Nancy chose Roswell Park for her treatment. She also opted to participate in a clinical trial.

 "I knew the importance of clinical trial research and found the idea of being a participant exciting. I thought that as well as receiving care for my cancer, I would be able to help others," she said.

Nancy received multiple rounds of chemotherapy during a five-month stay in the hospital. "Losing my hair was emotionally difficult. I had long thick hair and when my hair began to fall out, it was a confirmation that I actually did have cancer," she recalls.

Then on the day she was to be discharged, Nancy received more bad news. She was seen in the Gynecologic Clinic where a biopsy revealed endometrial cancer. Nine days later, Nancy was back at Roswell Park for surgery.

"This was a very difficult time. But through it all, Roswell Park has always made me feel safe. I think I am alive because of this hospital. The doctors, nurses, aides, even the janitorial staff were comforting and compassionate. Most of all they treated me as a real person, not just a cancer patient. These caring professionals became a second family to me," she says.

Today, Nancy serves as the development manager for the Buffalo chapter of Gilda's Club, a place where cancer patients and their families find social and emotional support. "Here there is an unspoken bond among cancer survivors. As a survivor, I can speak authoritatively and passionately about the need for more donations to cancer research and treatment," she says.

Nancy's message of hope for the holidays: "Each patient's journey with cancer is unique. The reality is you can't go back. Accept your new life as normal. There may be set backs and days of uncertainty but it is vital to get on with the business of living and making every day count."