“I went through a number of years without any evidence of contamination, but in my later years I found that I had a very aggressive and rapidly growing form of prostate cancer that they’ve associated with that exposure,” Smeltzer said.
Seeking treatment, he went somewhere new: The Dayton Veterans Affairs Medical Center.
On Friday, he attended an event at the VA Medical Center to celebrate cancer survivors. Through all of his treatment and surgeries, Smeltzer said, the VA has supported and served him.
“They go out of their way to find ways to help you,” Smeltzer said. “They waste no time.”
Smeltzer said it appeared that doctors had gotten all of his cancer before it metastasized, but he said they’re not yet entirely sure.
“There’s always that uncertainty,” he said.
One thing both cancer patients and survivors can be sure of, Dayton VA Associate Medical Center Director Jennifer DeFrancesco said at the event, is support from the VA community.
“There’s much more to healing (than medical treatment),” DeFrancesco said. “It takes family, it takes friends, it takes community.”
Staff members say cancer treatment goes beyond chemotherapy and radiation. Joe McCollom, a hematology and oncology fellow at Wright State who works with the Dayton VA, said cancer care doesn’t end when treatment ends, but requires a continued network of support.
“It’s going to be a holistic care that includes not just them, but a whole community,” McCollom said.
The Dayton VA has taken steps to ensure veterans’ whole circle of family and friends are involved with their care. A Fisher House, which will house families of patients, is being built on its campus.
The VA Medical Center also offers conventional treatments and has invested $5.5 million in new equipment recently, including a radiology suite to help make cancer treatment less invasive and make recovery easier, DeFrancesco said. If patients need special treatment, like Smeltzer needed for his aggressive cancer, they can go to a tertiary care center like The Ohio State University.
While Friday’s event was a celebration of survivors, it was also a message to newly diagnosed patients. Keith Harrison, a Dayton-area Air Force veteran and cancer survivor, said veterans who receive a diagnosis should have hope.
“It’s not the end,” said Harrison, who had surgery in 2014 to treat prostate cancer and is now living without that cancer.
Harrison also encouraged people who haven’t been diagnosed to be screened.
For Veterans who receive a diagnosis, Smeltzer said, the VA is a helpful resource.
“I know that these facilities out there across the United States have gained a bad reputation, but my experience with the Veterans Administration as a whole and with this facility has been excellent,” Smeltzer said. “I encourage any veteran that is in a situation where they need to be attended to, to not hesitate and come here.”
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