"I hadn’t had an exam since my last child was born…but I felt fine, and thought that was the only thing that mattered."

Zola Hestermann of Martell, Neb., began the fight of her life when she was diagnosed with advanced cervical cancer in 1996.

Then 53, Hestermann felt healthy and had no symptoms of cancer before the day she was rushed to the hospital. But she hadn't had a Pap test for the early detection of cervical cancer in years.

"I hadn’t had an exam since my last child was born, which I know didn’t help," Hestermann said. "But I felt fine, and thought that was the only thing that mattered." She grew up with an ethic of self-reliance. "Back then we didn't run to the doctor for every little thing," she said.

Today Hestermann dedicates her time to helping people with cancer by supporting local American Cancer Society events, and by working directly with patients. She hopes telling her story of missed check-ups will prevent other women from making the same mistake.

Many women past the age of childbearing think they no longer need screening tests or check-ups for gynecological cancers. In fact, as women grow older, the risk for ovarian and endometrial cancers increases. The risk for cervical cancer remains steady.

When tests find cancer in an early stage, it can usually be treated more successfully and with fewer side effects. This is especially true for cervical cancer, the kind Hestermann battled.

However, cervical cancer still remains a serious problem in the US. The American Cancer Society estimates that in 2002, 13,900 women will be diagnosed with cervical cancer and 4,100 women will die from the disease.

The first indication Hestermann was ill came when she passed out in June 1996. She was rushed to Lincoln General Hospital, and after three anxious days of testing got the news. She had stage III squamous cell cervical cancer and would start radiation therapy immediately.

"It wasn’t easy to accept, but you have to make up your mind to not let it get the best of you," she said. "The 'why me' thoughts enter your head, but having a defeatist attitude doesn't help you. Having a positive outlook does."

Oncologist Peter Morris, MD, noted Hestermann's extraordinary spirit. "Her fight can’t be described as anything but valiant," Morris said. "Her cancer diagnosis changed her life, but not in a negative way. She took charge of her future, and became a stronger person because of it."

The radiation treatments were followed by radiation implants and finally a 7 and one-half hour surgery at Nebraska Methodist Hospital in Omaha to remove her uterus and ovaries as well as parts of her bladder and rectum. Doctors then reconstructed what was damaged and created an artificial bladder.

It took a year for Hestermann to fully regain her strength; then six months later the cancer came back in scar tissue. "Radiation took care of that," she explained. While medical techniques treated her cancer, Hestermann didn't have anyone to talk with who'd been through the cancer experience — particularly the feelings and challenges of a gynecological cancer.

Today Hestermann helps provide what she couldn't find during her own cancer experience, psychological support for people going through cancer. She volunteers at the oncology and radiation therapy department where she was treated. She provides a sympathetic ear and practical advice to those undergoing cancer treatment.

She also helped start a support group for women with gynecological cancers and keeps it going today. Psychologist Stephanie Koraleski gives the group members professional guidance for difficult emotions

Hestermann and several other survivors are a lifeline for women newly diagnosed with cancer. "We talk about the feelings that we had as we went through the experience, so these women don't feel so alone," she explained. "It's a healing process. You're with people who understand."

The experience with cancer dramatically changed Hestermann's life — and her thoughts about life itself. "I've learned to accept what I've been dealt, and I'll never again take my life for granted," she said.