Cancer runs in my and my husband’s family. The most recent incident happened last year, when my father-in-law was diagnosed with bladder cancer. He’s fine now, but it did prevent him and my mother in law from flying to Hawaii to meet the baby, during her first year. He had surgery and recovery, and they had to postpone the trip until winter 2008.
My mother and her father also have histories of cancer. That’s why I’m more sensitive to cancer issues, and supportive of groups that either combat the disease or help the victims of it. When someone is affected by cancer, it sends a ripple effect throughout the community. Cancer doesn’t just affect one life, it affects entire families and networks of friends.
Thousands of new cases of cancer are diagnosed every year in Hawaii. Life after the surgery and treatment can be rough. That’s why I think the Ho’ola Cancer Exercise Wellness Program is doing such a good deed. It's helped nearly 100 people since 2005.
This free, 10-week exercise program is for people with cancer and those one to two years in remission, to improve and enhance recovery. It’s the first program of its kind in the state of Hawaii to offer an individualized exercise program to cancer patients and patients in remission - free of charge.
The Ho'ola Cancer Exercise Wellness Program partners with the medical and fitness community to empower cancer patients and survivors to improve their quality of life through exercise. One such partner is the Honolulu Club. The Honolulu Club lends its expertise in fitness training and its facilities, so the cancer survivors can work out there.
Thaela Catala, cancer survivor, is a recent alumnae of the program. "I was encouraged by a friend to join this. She knew I went through surgery and chemo, and wasn't what I was before. It was to help me feel better. I’m glad I did. With Ho’ola Cancer Exercise Wellness Program, I have a support group. There are other ladies who went through the exact same thing I did," Catala smiles, adding that she now has a new lease on life.
Honolulu Club trainer Brad Kryzkowski leads the twice-weekly workouts for these cancer patients. It's to help their recovery and quality of life. "We see usually quite a drastic change from beginning to end. Most of the time they come in with a low functional capacity. By the end, just getting up and doing a consistent exercise program for the 10 weeks we have in the class - we see quite a change in that amount of time," says Kryzkowski. “Our program is formulated for all cancer patients who have become chronically fatigued or de-conditioned from various treatments or disease symptoms.”
Not only do these patients show tremendous improvements in cardiovascular and strength fitness, they say it helped with significant improvements in their overall health and quality of life. Kryzkowski is pleased. "Our mission is to empower cancer patients to have a better quality of life through exercise."
Catala, who never liked to exercise before this, says she actually enjoyed working out, and that it wasn’t like what she expected. “Brad (Kryzkowski) is more like a doctor. He's helping me. He's telling me what to do to be healthy."
She breaks a small sweat on the treadmill as we talk. "Now I understand why people enjoy exercise and why they'd be members of the Honolulu Club. It feels good, really good."
Currently the Ho'ola Cancer Exercise Wellness Program is funded solely through both private donations and services. Your tax-deductible donation will facilitate Ho'ola's growth and continued establishment as a valuable service to the Hawaii community.
The class meets twice a week at the Honolulu Club. It's free, but you have to apply. Get more information and an application at www.cancerexercisewellness.org/. Or call the Honolulu Club trainers' office at 543-3986 for details.
