Three-time cancer survivor named Honorary Co-Chair

• Jensen to speak at relay for life

Leslie and Dan Jensen stand before Dan’s collection of guitars. A three-time cancer survivor, Dan Jensen has been selected as the 2009 Nobles County Relay for Life Honorary Co-Chair. He will speak during opening ceremonies Friday night at the Nobles County Fairgrounds in Worthington. (Julie Buntjer/Daily Globe)

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WORTHINGTON — When Dan Jensen learned he had cancer for the third time in 15 years, doctors told him that without treatment, the cancer could be fatal within three months.

He had been battling a sore throat for more than a month when he noticed one of his tonsils was enlarged. Because of his previous history with cancer, Jensen’s local doctor encouraged him to see an ear, nose and throat specialist in Sioux Falls, S.D.

The trip resulted in doctors performing a painful punch biopsy in Jensen’s throat, and two days later he met with an oncologist to begin discussing chemotherapy to attack the diffused, large B-cell Non-Hodgkins lymphoma, a Stage 4 cancer.

“I’m just thinking, this is going so fast,” said Jensen of the diagnosis and treatment options they covered that Friday morning. “The first time, the second time, the third time ... it was just blowing me away. It didn’t seem real.”

Doctors feared that surgery would do more harm than good this time, and explained to Jensen that a combination chemotherapy and radiation treatment could be used to address the cancer.

Over the course of five months, Jensen received eight R-CHOP chemotherapy treatments that targeted his tonsils, upper body lymph nodes and his bone marrow, where the cancer was also discovered. The special combination of chemo drugs included Rituximab and Prednisone.

“My doctor told me that if I’d had this B-cell cancer 15 years ago or even 10, there was a good chance I wouldn’t survive it,” said Jensen.

“R-CHOP, in its combination, didn’t exist before,” added Jensen’s wife, Leslie.

The drug combination was developed by researchers who are funded by the American Cancer Society. Those funds are raised in Relay for Life events around the country, such as the one that will take place Friday night at the Nobles County Fairgrounds in Worthington.

“Because they continue to do research and trials, treatments are being discovered,” Jensen said. “(The R-CHOP) was nasty, but it wiped this stuff out.”

On Aug. 21, 2008, Jensen received his last chemotherapy treatment. Three months later, right before Thanksgiving, a PET scan showed the all-clear. It was the news they’d been hoping for.

Jensen returned to his job as parts department manager at JBS on Dec. 3, after missing eight months of work. He continues to see his doctor every four months for check-ups, and his life is getting back to normal.

“That first six months was really tough, but even now ... I can definitely tell that it took something out of me,” Jensen said. “On the other hand, I’m extremely fortunate. I’m able to live a normal life.”

Trials of life

Jensen’s first encounter with cancer was in 1993 when, while living in the Twin Cities, he was diagnosed with testicular cancer. He had surgery to remove the slow-growing tumor on his 38th birthday, and then went through 20 radiation treatments focused on the lymph nodes in his mid-section.

For 11 years, Jensen celebrated a cancer-free life. Then, in early 2004, he noticed a lump in his groin. After a biopsy, doctors diagnosed Jensen with a lymphoplasmacytic tumor, a relatively non-aggressive form of cancer.

Surgery was scheduled, along with 18 radiation treatments. Living in Worthington by then, Jensen traveled to Sioux Falls for treatment.

When the third cancer diagnosis came in 2007, Jensen said they knew enough about cancer to understand that his non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma was more serious.

“I just felt from the first time, when a challenge is set before you, you just do what you got to do,” said Jensen. “Everyone has challenges in everyday life.”

With hope and a positive attitude, Jensen faced his cancer alongside his family, including his wife, four daughters and three grandchildren.

Just like his first two encounters with cancer, the third diagnosis meant Jensen’s wife would once again take on the role of caregiver.

“Leslie, obviously she’s been there. When I think of all the surgeries that she’s dragged me to and from and all the treatments and procedures,” he said with glistening eyes. “She was with me through all of that — never once complained.

“I thought this last time, when I was taking off work, that it was easier for me than it was for her,” he added.

Thanks to excellent health and disability insurance coverage from his employer, Jensen said he didn’t have to worry about how to pay the bills while he was enduring chemotherapy treatments. Meanwhile, Leslie’s employer, Echo Lighting, was willing to work out a schedule for her to get her husband to his appointments.

During Friday’s Nobles County Relay for Life in Worthington, a special caregiver recognition program is planned.

“They definitely deserve that recognition,” Jensen said. “The kids too — they did whatever they could to help.”

Tags: state and region, relay for life, news