Nate Nathanson

The friend’s words struck a chord, and Nate soon moved forward with chemotherapy using FOLFIRINOX with the hope that the medicine would shrink his tumor enough for it to become operable. It’s a strong medication, and Nate was among the many who experienced side effects. His energy and appetite dropped and neuropathy developed. He also experienced severe leg, body and even tongue cramps amid treatment.

Almost 15 years later, numb fingers and toes persist.

“I drop stuff all the time,” Nate said. “But it does put things in perspective. Think of all the people no longer around from the disease who’d love to have numb fingers.”

After six months of FOLFIRINONOX, Nate’s team took another look at his condition and determined the chemo had worked well enough for him to have a Whipple procedure. He traveled from Boca Raton to Miami for the complex abdominal surgery, which he now credits – alongside chemotherapy and the widespread support he received through the Caring Bridge website – as factors that were central to his survival. He also credits his positivity and optimism.

Recovery from a Whipple is never easy, but Nate was lucky in that he had his wife of 56 years, Dena, lending support every step of the way. The pair have been together since the age of 15, with Dena seeing Nate through successes and struggles, from his early retirement to his pancreatic cancer diagnosis and beyond.

“Nothing makes me happier than making Dena happy,” Nate said, noting his good fortune in having 13 years of retirement before his diagnosis, when he got to spend time with Dena because, “We’re on this earth for a short while and gone for a very long time. We have an unbelievable relationship…we still hug several times a day. How lucky are we?”

While Nate feels gratitude for his successful marriage, he’s also quick to acknowledge the fresh perspective pancreatic cancer gave him.

“Cancer was a gift that opened my heart in ways I never could have imagined,” Nate said.

Nate also recognizes how fortunate he was to have doctors identify his cancer relatively early, acknowledging that too few people experience the same. Inspired to pay his good fortune forward, for several years, Nate has been fielding calls from people facing all types of cancers, recommended by friends, relatives, doctors and nurses. He offers an educated perspective rooted in personal experience. While he acts as a sounding board, giving them a place to voice their fears, he also encourages them to stay positive and grounded.

“Worry is like a rocking chair,” he said. “It gives you something to do, but it gets you nowhere.”

Nate also encourages others facing pancreatic and other cancers to avoid drifting into what he calls “what if” land, and to do their best to keep their focus on the present moment.

“Focus on what you’re doing right now,” he said, noting that most of what people fear involves the future and things that haven’t even happened yet. “Whether it’s tying your shoes or washing the dishes, it brings you back to right now.” It begins as a voluntary, mental process returning the patient to now and away from tomorrow’s concerns. Done enough times, it becomes involuntary, like blinking and breathing.

Nate did just that in the weeks following his Whipple procedure, even after his oncologist determined he’d require follow-up, or adjuvant, chemotherapy. Nate believes his survival is due, at least in part, to his active lifestyle, and he continues to ride his bike regularly to help keep his strength intact.

It hasn’t been all sunshine and roses since his surgery, though – Nate, like many people, developed diabetes in the aftermath. In his case, it took 11 years after his operation to develop. He now manages his condition with insulin and sees it as a small price to pay to be living and thriving almost 15 years post-diagnosis.

Nate suggest patients with whom he interacts be “grateful for modern medical science! There’s stuff to fight this disease that didn’t exist 14 years ago.”

While Nate is hopeful about ongoing advancements in pancreatic cancer care, he hopes to see better diagnostic tests and systems emerge in the coming years, just like how colonoscopies are helping identify colon cancer. While Nate’s initial symptoms were severe enough to send him to the ER, many people experience only mild, if any, symptoms until their cancer has reached an advanced stage.

Nate also acknowledges how important it was to have a top-notch surgeon and medical team and is grateful for the opportunity he was given to speak at a surprise retirement party for his own surgeon, Dr Levi, several years back. He began with, “How do you thank someone who’s given you extra years of life?”

Nate also wrote a limerick for Dr Levi.

“There once was a humble Doc Levi.
Cut open my gut and made me cry.
He said, “Get over it…
Don’t hand me your shit.
It’s my brilliance that’s kept you alive!”

These days, Nate lives a happy, active lifestyle as a healthy 76 year old who’s incredibly grateful to still be around and enjoy interacting with friends and loved ones. He also makes a point to practice gratitude and has a sign on his desk that reads, “The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to give it away.”

He believes that the perspective cancer gave him is one of those gifts, and he lends it to others facing similar diagnoses.

“I have a new appreciation for life – I can’t even put into words,” Nate said. “I was always an optimist, but now, it’s off the charts.”

After all, as a wise friend once told, him, someone had to be in that 5%.

Why not him?