Author: Leslie Toldo
Cancer has darkened Donna Ross’ door five times, and it all started with a lump in her left breast.
“The cancer had spread to my lymph nodes,” Donna said. “I had a mastectomy at Karmanos Cancer Institute in Detroit, and I felt grateful I beat the cancer.”
However, in 2018 doctors discovered the cancer had spread to Donna’s brain, putting her life on the line once again.
“That time I was treated at Karmanos Cancer Institute at McLaren Flint,” Donna said. “And I have been fighting cancer with my care team there ever since.”
Donna was successfully treated with radiosurgery- a form of radiation therapy. But, less than a year later, in 2019, Donna developed a new brain tumor, requiring another round of radiosurgery.
“Hearing you have brain cancer is scary because a lot of people don’t survive it, but I beat it twice thanks to my team, especially Dr. Hesham Gayar,” Donna said.
That feeling of victor was interrupted again in 2023, when Donna’s doctors had to give her the heartbreaking news once again. This time, she had small cell lung cancer, the most aggressive and deadly form of the disease.
“My doctors decided chemotherapy and radiation would be my best choice, and I trusted them,” Donna said.
Against all odds, Donna once again beat cancer, only to get a new diagnosis in 2025. This time the cancer was in her neck. She once again turned to Dr. Gayar and the team that had carried her through all the years and all of the battles.
Dr. Gayar, a radiation oncologist and the medical director at the McLaren Proton Therapy Center, got Donna’s attention when he told her she was a candidate for proton therapy instead of standard photon (x-ray) radiation. The best news- she had less risk for side effects.
“That is because of the way protons travel through the body versus traditional x-rays,” said Dr. Gayar. “Protons travel to the tumor, deliver the radiation and stop. X-rays continue moving through the body, past the tumor and leave an exit dose of radiation that can damage healthy surrounding tissue and organs. “
Because of the risk of residual damage to healthy tissue, it can be risky to treat patients with traditional radiation who have been treated with it in the past.
“In Donna’s case, with all of the previous exposure, it was imperative to limit the risk to healthy tissue as much as possible, which made proton therapy the best choice for her,” said Dr. Gayar. “In spite of previous radiation, we could still treat her safely with protons.”
After talking with Dr. Gayar, Donna was convinced proton therapy was her best option. “I trust him from my heart. He is caring and he is the best because he tells it like it is,” Donna said.
Once she began her proton treatments, Donna knew she had made the right decision, and she never looked back.
“I felt like there was a night and day difference between regular radiation and proton therapy,” Donna said. “Proton is not so invasive, and it was kind of easy on me. I didn’t really have many side effects. And the staff at the McLaren Proton Therapy Center was fantastic. They are all so caring.”
Today Donna is cancer free, after beating the disease five times, and doing her best to live her life to the fullest and sharing her story with others, in the hope she will help someone else who is facing a cancer journey.
“I tell them not to give up. I had a great experience. God has been so good to me,” Donna said.
To learn more about proton therapy and to find out whether you might be a candidate or to set up a consultation, visit mclaren.org/protontherapy.