YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – When Anna Vrankovich-Olek was diagnosed with breast cancer in August 2019, she sought treatment at Mercy Health — St. Elizabeth Youngstown Cancer Center.
When she recovered, she wanted to help in some capacity.
“I knew from day one that I wanted to – if I made it through, if everything went well – that somehow I wanted to help other people that were diagnosed with breast cancer, because everybody was so amazing to me,” the Brookfield woman says.
She underwent surgery in New Castle, Pa., but her medical oncologist was at Mercy. Both the surgeon and the medical oncologist came highly recommended by Vrankovich-Olek’s maternal aunt, who also had breast cancer.
“They were just a really good fit for me,” she says. “Both just made me feel like, okay, we can do this. We’re going to do this together.”
It felt like everyone who cared for her – doctors, nurses and others – were part of her team, working toward the goal to beat cancer, Vrankovich-Olek says. It helped, for example, when infusion nurses she saw through her treatment explained what they were doing at each treatment, why they were doing it and the reaction Vrankovich-Olek might experience.
Going through cancer treatment is frightening, but it helps when someone takes the time to explain procedures step-by-step, she says.
A NEW CALLING
She had a job in an unrelated industry and thought she would volunteer to help others when she finished her treatment.
“Believe me, I hadn’t even thought that it would be a job at that point,” Vrankovich-Olek says. She just wanted to help.
Then about six months later, a friend who works at Mercy told her about an opening and urged her to apply.
She hesitated at first but didn’t allow herself to second guess. She applied and got the job. Vrankovich-Olek calls it the best career decision she’s ever made. She works as a front end specialist at the cancer center and is often the first face patients see when they arrive.
“I take care of checking the patients in, scheduling and things like that,” she says.
She’s tight with her co-workers, but what she loves most is connecting with patients. She doesn’t give medical advice, but Vrankovich-Olek shares her cancer story to try to ease their concerns.
If a patient worries about doctors inserting a port to deliver treatment, she shows them her port scar and assures them it’s not a major inconvenience.
“I’m an open book,” says the mother of two adult daughters. “I will tell anybody that wants to hear [about her cancer journey], anybody that has a question about it – anybody that comes in and I see that they have that look of fear on their face… Support is so important.”
BREAST CANCER AWARENESS
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. BreastCancer.org reports that breast cancer accounts for about 30% of all new cancer cases in U.S. women each year.
“In 2024, approximately 310,720 women and 2,800 men will be diagnosed with invasive breast cancer,” the website says. “About 66% of breast cancer cases are diagnosed at a localized stage – before cancer has spread outside of the breast – when it is easiest to treat.”
The National Breast Cancer Foundation website shows that survival rates have improved.
“Advances in early detection and treatment methods have significantly increased breast cancer survival rates in recent years, and there are currently over 4 million breast cancer survivors in the United States,” it says.
The American Cancer Society website lists a five-year survival rate of 99% for localized breast cancer, meaning the disease hasn’t spread beyond the breast. For regional breast cancer, or cancer that has spread to near lymph nodes or other areas, the five-year survival rate is 86% and for distant breast cancer, or cancer that has spread to distant parts of the body, the five-year survival rate is 31%. For all types combined, the five-year survival rate is 91%, the website shows.
IMPORTANCE OF MAMMOGRAMS
Vrankovich-Olek had neglected her annual mammogram for a few years, but she felt a twinge in her breast. She knew something wasn’t right. That led her to her doctor and then a mammogram. At the time of her diagnosis, the cancer had spread to her lymph nodes.
When she learned her diagnosis, Vrankovich-Olek’s first reaction was shock. Then she thought of her daughters, ages 18 and 21 at the time. She thought of wanting to be with them during pivotal times in their lives.
Then she decided to focus on doing what she needed to for treatment, and to heal and recover. She believes that mindset is important.
“You have to think I’m going to do every single thing I can to get through this,” she says.
She urges other women not to procrastinate and to perform monthly self examinations and to get annual mammograms at the recommended age.
“Go, go today,” Vrankovich-Olek says. “Call today, call today, and then stay vigilant. If you have a great mammogram with amazing results, yay. Now, let’s keep it that way, because you don’t want to end up with something, especially something that has gone somewhere else, like the lymph nodes, like I did.”
She told her husband the same day she was diagnosed, but that was the first day of college for her youngest daughter.
Her eldest daughter was in her third year of college and both were away at school. Vrankovich-Olek waited until the next day to share the news with them.
SUPPORT AND GRATITUDE
Once she had a treatment plan mapped out, she posted her diagnosis to Facebook and marveled at the outpouring of support. She heard from others who went through treatment. Many people offered encouragement.
“The one lady who lives down the street from me,” Vrankovich-Olek says. “I remember for years, our kids went to school together. She’s a 20-plus year survivor.”
Another survivor she knows baked some treats and left them in Vrankovich-Olek’s mailbox. Another made wedding soup for Vrankovich-Olek and her husband.
“People are amazing,” she says. “Survivors are amazing. Friends, or people in general, it’s like everybody rallies around you.”
She’s more grateful since her cancer journey started.
“I’m grateful to God. I’m grateful to just – everything,” Vrankovich-Olek says. “I know that sounds cheesy. Gratitude is, I take nothing for granted, and I’ll tell you that every day is a blessing.”
That’s wisdom she shares with patients, too.
“You have to be grateful,” Vrankovich-Olek says. “You have to embrace small victories and take them as they come. And some days, that’s what we tell patients all the time. It’s one day at a time, and sometimes it’s one hour.”
Vrankovich-Olek recently marked her four-year anniversary working at Mercy and she has no plans to leave.
“I want to retire from this job,” she says. “This is where I want to be for as long as I work.”
Pictured at top: Anna Vrankovich-Olek of Brookfield, a breast cancer survivor, now works as a front-end specialist at Mercy Health — St. Elizabeth Cancer Center. She wanted to help others diagnosed with cancer because she was so pleased with the treatment she received.