we had the opportunity to sit down with Sheila Sky Kasselman, founder of Sky Foundation, Inc. Sky Foundation, Inc. is a Michigan-based pancreatic cancer organization whose mission is to raise public awareness of pancreatic cancer, which by 2020 is predicted to be the second most deadly cancer in the United States. Sky Foundation, Inc. funds research for early detection, which can help save countless lives.
Sheila, now 78, found herself staring down the barrel of a pancreatic cancer diagnosis in 2006. Pancreatic cancer is so fierce and often undetectable, which is why it has claimed the lives of some of our most influential people including Steve Jobs and Patrick Swayze. The survival rate seems bleak; about 55,440 people will be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer this year and about 44,330 of those people will die from the disease. With the help of Sky Foundation, Inc., Sheila and so many others are hoping for early detection through research.
If it wasn’t for her observant granddaughter who said, “grandma, you look awfully yellow. Even your eyes are yellow”, Sheila may not have been diagnosed on that day in 2006. Jaundice is one of the symptoms of pancreatic cancer and Sheila had also lost about 25 pounds. Her granddaughter’s comment was the spark that got her to the hospital in Seattle, where she was visiting family. The attending physician’s advice was to leave immediately – don’t pack or anything – and get back to Michigan. This would start the grim cancer journey. As the sand began to fall through the hourglass, Sheila realized how important time is and how often it is taken for granted. She became a living example of truly living every thinking moment in your day.
Soon after the diagnosis, Sheila found herself a candidate for a rare and complicated surgery called a Whipple, named after Dr. Allen Whipple from Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in New York. In 1935, Dr. Allen Whipple performed what is now considered the hallmark of pancreatic cancer surgeries. This surgery, also known as pancreatic-duodenotomy is an extensive surgical operation of the pancreas, duodenum and other organs.
Today, 12 years later, Sheila has become quite the force to be reckoned with as the founder of the small but very impactful Sky Foundation, Inc. We are thrilled to be able to feature Sheila and her passionate network of researchers and doctors who will help us understand one of the most elusive but important organs (the pancreas: the glandular organ in the digestive system and endocrine system of vertebrates) and what happens when cancer attacks its life force.
To learn more about Sky Foundation, Inc. please go to https://skyfoundationinc.org/.