feature


Reconstructive Surgery


When it comes to BREAST RECONSTRUCTION,


Froedtert & The Medical College supports patient choices.


Confident Choice M


When Mary Ochowicz-Sczesny underwent a mastectomy, she also decided to have breast reconstruction using a technique called DIEP Flap. Froedtert & The Medical College of Wisconsin are among the few places in the country routinely performing the advanced microsurgery, which offers faster recovery than other reconstructions and fewer complications than its predecessor. So Mary can stay focused on caring for her family … especially her son, who also has cancer.


ary Ochowicz-Sczesny, 56, of Franklin, is a realtor, an avid cyclist and a long-time volunteer. She comes from a family of bike racers and speed skaters, including several


Olympians, and she runs and bikes year-round, indoors and out. In 2008, her husband, Gene, and their teenage son, David,


went to donate blood. Gene is a longtime blood/platelet donor and David was eager to start following that tradition.


“David called me and said, ‘Mom I can’t give blood today.


They told me I’m anemic,’” Mary recalled. Maybe it had to do with the typical teenager’s diet, but Mary’s instinct told her something wasn’t right. David went to the doctor, and eventually was diagnosed with myelodysplastic syndrome, (MDS), a bone marrow cancer rarely seen in children. He needed a bone marrow transplant to save his life.


Mary, Gene, and their daughter, Alexandra, were tested, and


each was only a half-match as a bone marrow donor for David. That started a worldwide search for a donor.


“I had to be proactive, that’s just my personality,” said Mary,


who started an organization called David’s Donors. They held drives to find a bone marrow donor and to raise awareness about the need for donors worldwide.


Doctors soon decided to use Mary’s bone marrow, even though she wasn’t a perfect match.


InstInct takes Over In the midst of planning for the transplant, Mary came due for her annual mammogram. She first thought of putting it off, but instinct kicked in. “I have very strong intuition that I’ve lived by my whole life,” Mary said. “And my gut said you better get in there.” That mammogram led to Mary’s breast cancer diagnosis, which


also meant she could no longer be David's bone marrow donor. 6 Froedtert Today May 2011 froedtert.com


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