Icing Cancer
Olympic Champion Scott Hamilton Is Empowering People Fighting The Disease
In the early 1980s, Scott Hamilton dominated the world of menʼs figure skating. From October 1980 to March 1984, Hamilton was undefeated on ice, winning four world figure skating championships and then the Olympic gold medal at Sarajevo, Yugoslavia, where he carried the American flag during the opening ceremonies. But in 1997, Scottʼs world was turned upside down when he was diagnosed with testicular cancer. MyHealth recently sat down with Hamilton to talk about his battle with cancer, the lessons he learned, and the many ways heʼs helping others fight the disease.
How did you find out that you had cancer?
It was St. Patrickʼs Day, and I was touring with Stars on Ice. We were in the middle of a 72-city tour, and I was feeling lousy. A tightness and pain in my abdomen had become so severe that I couldnʼt stand up straight. I thought it was probably just an ulcer, so I went to a local emergency room, thinking theyʼd give me some medicine and Iʼd be good to go. When the doctor told me they had found a mass that was benign, malignant or something else, I knew right then he was talking about cancer.
How did you feel when you heard the diagnosis?
At first, I was enveloped in fear. My mother died from cancer, and my image of the disease was very gloomy: you got treatment, suffered, suffered some more, and then died. But somehow, just a few minutes after I heard the bad news, I felt strong and powerful and focused. I told myself, “Iʼm not going to let this thing get me. Iʼm going to get it.”
Somehow, Scott was able to skate that nightʼs performance. Five days later, doctors confirmed the diagnosis: Stage 3 testicular cancer. Scott underwent four
␣rounds of chemotherapy, followed by surgery on June 23. Just four months later, he returned to professional skating with a nationally televised performance at the Los Angeles Forum.
Looking back, what lessons did you learn from your battle with cancer?
When the surgery was over, I felt like I was the on top of the world. I felt renewed, with a new appreciation for life. I also knew I had a responsibility to give something back. My mother had lost her battle with cancer, but I had beaten it. So I had to ask myself “What does that mean? How could I participate in the cancer community and thank all the people who helped me fight the disease and win?”
Is that the reason you founded the Scott Hamilton CARES Initiative?
Yes, exactly. During my treatment I noticed there were two gaps in my care. The first was a lack of understandable information about chemotherapy. Everything I found on the web was written in an academic style. So we created a web site – chemocare.com – that gives cancer patients user-friendly information to help them understand chemotherapy, manage its side effects and maintain a healthy diet during treatment. In fact, weʼve had more than 16 million visits so far. The other gap I experienced in my care was a lack of support. During my treatment, I discovered that what I really needed was a role model, someone who had overcome the same challenges I was facing and understood the emotions I was feeling. Thatʼs the reason we created the 4th Angel Patient and Caregiver Mentoring Program (www.4thangel.org). Newly diagnosed cancer patients are paired up with specially trained cancer survivors, who provide free, one-on-one support. We already have 400 mentors trained in 35 states, and weʼre now also pairing caregivers with other caregivers.
Any final thoughts?
I encourage people to talk to their doctor about scheduling regular cancer screening tests. After all, Iʼm living proof that the best way to beat cancer is to detect it as early as possible.