Survivor Stories:
Read Testimonials from RCCA Patients
At Regional Cancer Care Associates, when you or someone you love is facing the frightening reality of a cancer diagnosis, we provide a commitment to your care and a promise of hope. This means all of us — doctors, nurses, pharmacists, staff, etc. — are dedicated to ensuring you have access to the highest-quality, most comprehensive and most advanced treatments, just like we have for thousands of people from all walks of life.
See what RCCA patients are saying about our state-of-the-art, compassionate and community-based approach to fighting cancer for the win!
Survivor Stories:
Read Testimonials from RCCA Patients
At Regional Cancer Care Associates, when you or someone you love is facing the frightening reality of a cancer diagnosis, we provide a commitment to your care and a promise of hope. This means all of us — doctors, nurses, pharmacists, staff, etc. — are dedicated to ensuring you have access to the highest-quality, most comprehensive and most advanced treatments, just like we have for thousands of people from all walks of life.
See what RCCA patients are saying about our state-of-the-art, compassionate and community-based approach to fighting cancer for the win!
We’re here for you. Call us at 844-346-7222 or
Elaine Pantellas
Cape May Court House, NJ resident
Treated for ovarian cancer by Dr. Julianne W. Childs at Regional Cancer Care Associate’s Marmora office
“If something about your health or body doesn’t seem right, don’t ignore it, but don’t engage in self-diagnosis, either. Rather, see your doctor without delay.”
For Elaine Pantellas, following that straightforward precept saved her life by enabling physicians to promptly identify and treat her ovarian cancer.
Ms. Pantellas’ symptoms started with some bloating. But when her primary care physician sent her to the local hospital’s emergency department, physicians had to drain a significant amount of fluid from her abdomen. After some tests, she learned that she had cancer. While still coming to terms with her diagnosis, she was recommended to Dr. Julianne W. Childs at RCCA’s Marmora, NJ location. Ms. Pantellas was immediately impressed by the comfort and care shown to her by the doctor and staff.
“You felt like somebody was wrapping their arms around you and you were the only patient they had, because their caring was so unbelievable,” she said.
Her treatment included weekly visits to the hospital to have fluid drained — called ascites — which built up as a result of the cancer. She also started a chemotherapy regime and received infusions via a port inserted in her chest. She eventually was able to switch to an oral medication known as PARP, and today she is in remission.
“In those moments when you’re by yourself, you’re thinking, ‘Am I really going to be OK?’ but then I think of the support I have received, of the great care I have received, and it gives me cause to be encouraged,” Ms. Pantellas said.
Paulette Stallone
Manalapan, NJ
Treated for Stage IV cancer by Dr. Bhavesh Balar at Regional Cancer Care’s Freehold office
More than 16 years ago, Paulette Stallone had been suffering from debilitating fatigue, dangerously low potassium levels and other issues and struggled to find out why. She had undergone numerous imaging studies and blood tests, as well as antibiotic treatments and hospital stays and had no success. The next step in finding an answer was a 2009 colonoscopy. But immediately following the test, she knew something wasn’t right.
“I said to my husband, something is very wrong; they all seem really nervous,” she said after seeing the hospital staff’s reaction to the results.
The colonoscopy showed that the 44-year-old mother of two had rectal cancer. Further tests showed that it had spread to her lymph nodes. The news would eventually get worse, when Dr. Bhavesh Balar of Regional Cancer Care Associates ordered a test that showed that the cancer also had spread to her lung, meaning she had Stage IV of the disease.
While Dr. Balar broke the news gently, the regimen to help Ms. Stallone would be tough. She would be receiving chemotherapy five days a week for about six weeks, along with radiation.
“I wore a chemo bag 24 hours a day five days a week,” Ms. Stallone recalls. That initial treatment was followed by surgery, another six months of chemotherapy, and then a second surgery to resect the lung metastases.
Ms. Stallone credits her recovery to serval factors: the love and support of her husband, children, and extended family; the caring and skill of Dr. Balar and other physicians; the ramen noodles that were the only food she could keep down during the worst weeks of her chemotherapy; and, she adds, running three miles a day, four days a week, throughout most of her treatment!
Ms. Stallone said receiving care at an RCCA practice that was just 20 minutes from her home played a big role in her treatment and recovery. “The nurses would come out to get me and set up my treatment right away. They were wonderful and kept a close eye on me and took care of whatever I needed,” she said.
Elizbeth Whalen
Cape May Court House, NJ
Three-time cancer survivor, treated by Dr. Julianne W. Childs Regional Cancer Care Associate in Cape May Court House for Stage 4 metastatic breast cancer
What do you do when you’ve been diagnosed with cancer for the third time in seven years? Well, if you’re an action-oriented, tough-minded, life-loving woman from South Jersey like Elizabeth Whalen, you get an exercise bike, pick a fight song, and make a plan.
“The first thing I did after this last diagnosis was buy a Peloton and sign up for a 150-mile ride on the Peloton to support St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital. Unfortunately, I was only able to do 100 miles because I was on chemo, but I was still able to raise some money for St. Jude’s, which was important to me,” she said.
In 2022, Ms. Whalen had been feeling unexplained pain, but tests found nothing. But a “break” came after she fell and fractured her rib. Due to the injury, her insurance approved a positron emission tomography (PET) scan (something that had been denied previously), which discovered that her bone broke because it had been weakened by cancer cells — metastases from her breast cancer, which had returned and spread. The findings came just after she’d undergone extensive surgery to treat her pancreatic cancer and four years after she had a mastectomy and subsequent treatment for her Stage 2 breast cancer.
During previous treatments, Ms. Whalen had traveled to Philadelphia for care, but the Cape May Court House resident knew that the daily commute would be grueling. Her oncologist recommended the nearby RCCA’s Hope Community Cancer Center and Dr. Julianne Childs.
Shortly after reaching out, “Dr. Childs was on the phone with me, asking questions, providing encouragement, and making the arrangements to get my treatment started,” Ms. Whalen said.
That treatment began with a grueling 12 rounds of chemotherapy per week. Today, almost three years later, it entails receiving a targeted treatment every 21 days at Hope Community Cancer Center and taking pills at home each day.
“I’m so blessed that Hope Community Cancer Center is here, near my home, and I believe that I probably wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for Dr. Childs and her nurses and other staff,” Ms. Whelan said. “My cancer is Stage 4, meaning that it is incurable, but there has been no progression, and I attribute that to Dr. Childs. She’s a brilliant person, but what makes her different from other brilliant doctors is her empathy.”
Joanne Teeney
Upper township, NJ
Stage 4 lung cancer, treated by Dr. Kaleem Ahmad at Regional Cancer Care Associates in Cape May Court House
In 2020, Joanne Teeney was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer. The bad news got worse when she learned that it was small cell lung cancer (SCLC), an uncommon, aggressive form with fewer treatment options and a worse prognosis than non-small cell lung cancer.
But this self-described “defiant little woman,” has learned to thrive in that time, defying grim odds and living her life with zest and sharing her experience and message of hope with others at the start of their cancer journeys.
Ms. Teeney’s own journey began after a trip to Penn Medicine to determine why lingering respiratory symptoms were not responding to medication. After being told it was bronchitis, then pneumonia, sophisticated imaging tests showed the cancer.
“I just lost it,” Ms. Teeney recalls, adding, “Two of my children were with me and they were trying to support me, but they were shocked, as well.”
Treatment included radiation therapy, participation in a clinical trial of immunotherapy, and monthly chemotherapy. It also has included shifting her care from Philadelphia to nearby RCCA’s Hope Community Cancer Center in Cape May Court House.
“My kids were taking turns driving me to Philadelphia and it was an all-day affair. I would get a scan in the morning and then I would get my treatment and then I would see the doctor. It was exhausting, but I thought I could only receive good care there. I was wrong about that,” Ms. Teeney said.
Receiving treatment at a comprehensive cancer center 10 minutes from her home has made a major difference. “You’re not dealing with getting to the city and the traffic and the parking there. And if you don’t feel well, it’s great to be back home quickly,” she said.
She also credits the care she received from Dr. Kaleem Ahmad. “He is upfront and honest and compassionate, and the women in the office have been unbelievable. I couldn’t ask for a better care facility,” she said.
Today, Ms. Teeney shares her story by participating in a support group operated by Gilda’s Club, a nationwide non-profit organization named for the late Gilda Radner that offers a range of services to people with cancer and their families. She also agreed to appear in a video in which she shared her hard-won insights on living with cancer.
When asked to participate, she was hesitant, “Then I thought, how dare I not talk about what I’ve been through if it gives one person hope? I think a lot about my purpose, and I say, ‘OK, Lord, use me … but please use me for at least the next 15 years,’ ” she said with a laugh.
Valerie Freeman
Paterson, NJ resident
Treated for triple-negative breast cancer by RCCA’s Stanley Waintraub, MD, at the John Theurer Cancer Center (JTCC) at Hackensack University Medical Center
After undergoing an lumpectomy at another area hospital, Valerie Freeman turned to the John Theurer Cancer Center (JTCC) at Hackensack University Medical Center because she had been very impressed with the way that the RCCA doctors, the nurses, and others there had cared for her mother. Further, she adds that in battling triple-negative breast cancer, she wanted access to the medical expertise, comprehensive services, and wide-ranging clinical trials offered by JTCC and RCCA, one of the largest oncology physician networks in the United States.
“They didn’t make me feel like a patient. They knew me – Val. They knew my likes and dislikes. When I go for follow-up visits, I still get a sick feeling in my stomach when I’m outside the center, because it brings back memories of everything I had to go through, but that goes away the minute I’m inside and seeing all the people who know me and took care of me.”
Vincent Stasio
Manasquan, NJ resident
Treated for lung cancer by RCCA’s Bhavesh Balar, MD at CentraState Medical Center in Freehold, NJ
“By the grace of God I got connected with Dr. Balar,” Vincent Stasio says, explaining that when the oncologist did not agree with the initial findings of another physician, Dr. Balar undertook his own in-depth assessment and consulted another expert at Johns Hopkins Medicine. It was determined that the cancer originated in the lung, not the colon, which had important ramifications for Stasio’s treatment.
“I have nothing but great things to say about Dr. Balar,” Stasio says. “He is incredibly conscientious and always open to dialogue. He truly has the best interests of his patients in mind.”
Sandra Hampton, PhD
Englewood, NJ resident
Treated for triple-negative breast cancer by RCCA’s Stanley Waintraub, MD, at the John Theurer Cancer Center (JTCC) at Hackensack University Medical Center
Dr. Hampton chose to receive care at the John Theurer Cancer Center (JTCC) of Hackensack University Medical Center in part because, “I grew up in Hackensack, I delivered my daughter at Hackensack University Medical Center, and I was very familiar with and confident in the care I would receive there.” Another factor was the cutting-edge treatment provided at JTCC by Regional Cancer Care Associates (RCCA) oncologists such as Stanley Waintraub, MD, JTCC’s Co-Chief of Breast Oncology and Dr. Hampton’s physician.
For Dr. Hampton, Dr. Waintraub’s skill and style were just what the patient ordered. “I loved that he was so straightforward about what we were going to do to help me beat cancer. I’m a ‘shoot from the hip’ type of person myself, so to have someone who could talk to me about what I was facing without sugarcoating it, while also being compassionate, was amazing,” says Dr. Hampton, who has high marks not only for Dr. Waintraub but for the entire staff at JTCC.
“Perfect’ seems like a strange word to use for this type of experience, but that’s almost what it was in terms of the care I received, not only medically, but from the way everyone took the time to care for me as a person,” she says’
Contact RCCA Now
For more information, or to schedule an appointment, call 844-346-7222. You can also schedule an appointment by calling the RCCA location nearest you.
Regional Cancer Care Associates is one of fewer than 200 medical practices in the country selected to participate in the Oncology Care Model (OCM); a recent Medicare initiative aimed at improving care coordination and access to and quality of care for Medicare beneficiaries undergoing chemotherapy treatment.