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| Laura Smith reads her children's book to daughter, Dahlia. |
They twinkle when she talks about her two children, Lordan, 5 and Dahlia, 3. They are confident and clear when she talks about plans for her future. And they are earnest and intense when she shares her belief in living a life of optimism and positivity. Her eyes never show fear, anger or sadness.
Even when she talks about her ongoing battle with brain cancer.
“I think a lot of people freak out when they hear the “C” word,” says Smith. “But I think when you let that fear take over , your immune system will go down. The whole power of positive thinking is huge. And keep smiling. You smile at someone and then they’re smiling back. It’s that connection we have as human beings. Especially when it comes to illness and people who need help.”
Smith, 32, of Niagara Falls, has had 25 brain radiation treatments, 2 brain surgeries and multiple rounds of chemotherapy within the last 18 months. She was diagnosed with brain cancer after suffering from an intensely painful headache last August.
“One night at the end of August it got really humid and I got this headache,” she recalls. “I’m not one to even suffer from little headaches. I’ve never understood people who have migraines before, and wow, I will never say that again. My head was just so painful.”
Smith had just started a new job and was hesitant to take a day off, but the headache was “so nasty” that she went to the Greater Niagara Falls General Hospital . She says the doctor on call told her to take some ibuprofen until the pain stopped. But the headache never vanished.
“I’m popping these pills like crazy and they’re not touching a thing. And at the same time I don’t want to mess up my new job,” she says. “So I went back into work and my boss, who actually suffered from migraines, said ‘just go home and take it easy.’ He insisted I go home and take care of myself.”
Later that day, when the headache did not subside, she asked her mom to take her to St. Catharines General Hospital. A CAT scan was done and Smith was told she had a tumor.
“They said a tumor the size of a walnut was in my brain,” Smith says. “I said, ‘okay, let’s get in there and take it out so I can get back on with this thing called life.’ and that’s what they did.”
She says at the time there was “a bunch of stuff going on about people being against the health care system” but she felt fortunate to be living in Canada.
“What other country would you be able to get major brain surgery within 5 days of being told you have a tumor?”
Smith says the tumor, although unexpected, did not alter her positive attitude towards life.
“I was more upbeat than anything because a scare like that really does make you open your eyes and realize the value of life.”
After her surgery she was “feeling good physically and having a great time” until another “pounding headache” a few months later convinced her to go back to the hospital.
“The cancer was back and it was double the size,” Smith says. “ It had grown double the size while I was on chemo-therapy. And it was the strongest chemo-therapy they can give people. So they did a second brain surgery.”
She laughs when she recalls how she kept a sense of humor before the surgery.
“I joked with the surgeon, saying ‘hopefully we won’t have to put a zipper on my head because you can’t keep going in there.’”
After her operation Smith had 25 radiation treatments and was told she would probably have permanent hair loss.
“I showed them!” she proudly says as she rubs the new growth of hair sprouting over her scalp.
Smith says she had an MRI about three months ago and more cancerous clusters were discovered.
“It’s called non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. It’s brain cancer. It’s actually spread to a couple of different areas as well, so I was given rounds of cyber knife radiation. Now we are just waiting for another MRI and hopefully we’ll find out if this thing is stagnant or is disappearing by Christmas.”
Smith feels she is strong because she is “a born optimist.”
“I should be pretty thankful for everything I do have and everything I haven’t had to go through,” she says. “Other than a few physical things I feel good. When I see what other patients have gone through I honestly can’t say I’ve suffered from cancer.”
She says “the hardest thing” has been watching her friends and family deal with her illness.
“I try not to have others worry. My mom is actually an 11 year breast cancer survivor and she has been a great inspiration. I think we all need inspiration so we know that we’re not alone.”
And it seems Smith is an inspiration to those around her.
“Laura is an extremely positive person and we know in our hearts she will never give up hope,” says Smith’s aunt, Kim Sackfie. “She is a true inspiration.”
Sackfie has organized a fundraising event called “A Little Something for Laura” taking place on Friday, Dec. 2 in St. Catharines. She says they want to be “prepared for the next step if this last radiation does not work.”
All the proceeds will help Smith with “any medical treatment she wishes to pursue” and Sackfie says the support from the community has been overwhelming and she “had no idea how big” it would get.
Smith is “amazed” by the “huge outpouring of support” for the event.
“I thought there was going to be a little benefit, which was amazing and cool to begin with. And it’s just turned out to be this amazing thing,” she says. “There are people and businesses who don’t even know me donating prizes. The kindness of people in general is phenomenal.”
She is looking forward to having “an awesome night” and seeing friends. She will also be signing copies of a children’s book she self-published last year. She had originally sent the manuscript off to publishers, but after her first brain surgery she decided to “invest” in her self.
“I’m glad I did it and I made it real. I am very proud of it.”
It is called “Clarence and Carley- A Friendship so Knarley” and Smith also illustrated the book.
Smith says she is focusing on her future and one year from now she believes she will “have complete and total health.”
“I’m not going any where,” she says. “There’s too much to live for and there’s too much to do. I am going to do everything physically possible and everything in my power. I’m a mother and I won’t give up.”
She has been following an anti-cancer diet and juicing organic fruits and vegetables every day. She says “anything that helps make you feel more in control of your health and your well-being has a huge impact on your life.”
Smith feels “lucky to be able to stay upbeat and positive” and believes “that there is a reason for it all”
“This is my purpose,” she says. “I am going to get through all of this just so I can fulfill a need and help others who need support and positivity. Just like I tell my son, ‘I’m going to watch you grow up and go to school and have babies of your own. I am going to be a grandma.”
“A Little Something for Laura” is being held this Friday at the CAW Union Hall at 124 Bunting Road in St. Catharines between 7 p.m. and 1 a.m. There will raffles, silent auctions, guest speakers, food, alcohol and music. Tickets are $10 and can be purchased at the door or by calling Kim Sackfie at 905-938-1582.
Published in Niagara This Week- December 1, 2010
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