We have all wondered at some time or another if our doctor really understands what we are going through.
Where his patients are concerned, Dr. Amir Steinberg can honestly say he does, and it makes a difference.
"From the moment I had cancer, I felt it was fate. I should help others like me. I began to contemplate," Amir said.
Steinberg wrote this poem called "Hope." it was hope that helped him. He was just 17 when he was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma. Almost two decades later, he remembers the chemo, the radiation -- what it took to kill his cancer.
"When it was over, I felt life so much more and appreciated every moment, and couldn't wait for what's in store," the poem continued.
He is now an oncologist at Cedars-Sinai and has dedicated his life to helping people like him battle for their future.
"When I care for patients, I listen to their fear and their courage and their hope. I'm here to lend an ear," he read from his poem.
Javier Mandujano has been fighting t-cell lymphoma for five years. He said Steinberg knows the small details -- the side effects, the daily struggle -- that others may not.
"You will definitely communicate better with someone who went through this," Mandujano said.
One key point this cancer survivor makes with all his patients is in his poem. "Live life as if the cancer is not around. Live as normally as you can, as if it was never found."
That's exactly what Louie Rosas did to beat leukemia. Steinberg set a course of treatment.
"Even when I was having bone marrow biopsies, as he's putting the needle in, he's saying 'Good job. Way to go. Keep it up. Stay positive,'" Rosas said.
It helped him focus on getting back to what he loves.
"The next time you see a new patient with cancer, when they ask if there is hope, now you know the answer," Steinberg read from his poem.
Dr. Steinberg is sad to report that Rosas passed away shortly after he was interviewed. Steinberg said that once a cancer patient, you're always a cancer patient.
To this day, he still has yearly visits with his oncologist, who is one of the most important people in his life, and said it would be a pleasure to see his cancer patients 20 years down the road as well.
DR. AMIR STEINBERG: Amir Steinberg, M.D., is a hematologist/oncologist who practices at Cedar-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, Calif. During Dr. Steinberg's senior year of high school, he was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma. During his treatment, Steinberg didn't miss much school but was unable to play basketball for mere exhaustion. Dr. Steinberg stayed positive throughout his cancer battle and now tries to motivate others who are battling cancer. He tells his patients "don't give up. Keep on fighting." Dr. Steinberg believes that thinking positively has unimaginable benefits, especially when facing any serious medical diagnosis. "I may not have become a doctor had I not gotten cancer, and I appreciate life more. Everything is beautiful to me: the flowers, my co-workers, family and friends," Dr. Steinberg said in an interview with Jewish Journal.
HODGKIN'S LYMPHOMA: Hodgkin's lymphoma is cancer of the lymphatic system, which is part of the immune system. Some symptoms include itching, loss of appetite, coughing, trouble breathing, unexplained weight loss, night sweats, fever/chills, persistent fatigue, painless swelling of lymph nodes and an increased sensitivity to the effects of alcohol. Hodgkin's lymphoma usually begins in the lymph nodes located in the upper part of your body and can eventually spread outside your lymph nodes to any part of the body. People who are between the ages of 15 and 40 and those older than 55 have a higher risk of Hodgkin's lymphoma. Men are also slightly more at risk. The disease is most common in the United States, Canada and northern Europe. People who have Hodgkin's lymphoma are at risk of developing cardiovascular disease, second malignancies -- leukemia, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, and tumors -- vascular disease, thyroid dysfunction and sterility. (Source: Mayo Clinic)
For More Information:
Simi Singer
Senior Media Relations Specialist
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Los Angeles, CA
(310) 423-7798
simi.singer@cshs.org
