Most everyone is touched by the tragedy of cancer at some point. Some have faced it head-on themselves. Others have  lost a family member, co-worker, classmate or best friend.

Gibault Catholic High School knows this all too well. A recent graduate, 19-year-old Zac Epplin, passed away July 1 from a rare form of bone cancer.

Gibault happens to be the host site for the annual Monroe County Relay For Life, which takes place this Saturday starting at 4 p.m. The public is welcome to attend this family-friendly event.

Epplin will be remembered during this year’s relay by Gibault’s Hope For Tomorrow Club, which will lead special “memory laps” around the track starting at 7 p.m. Club members are asking for sponsors to pay per lap, with a goal of 19 laps in honor of Epplin’s age.

Spearheading this special Epplin tribute at the relay is Gibault’s Janet Thomas, a cancer survivor who serves as sponsor of the student-led Hope For Tomorrow Club at Gibault.

“Our club has grown over the years, mostly because their cancer connection has grown — the number of family members, friends and even classmates that they know who have been touched by cancer,” Thomas said. “Each year, our club participates as a team in Relay For Life. It’s become our club’s main event. We feel it’s important to help raise cancer awareness, help those with cancer, and raise money for research and a cure. That’s why we relay.”

Thomas was diagnosed with breast cancer 11 years ago. Her son, John, had just entered his freshman year at Gibault. The company she was working for at the time was in the middle of a sale to an out-of-town firm. Her parents had just moved to St. Louis so she could help take care of them.

“A cancer diagnosis changes your life forever,” she said. “It’s never a good time to get seriously sick, but I felt this was bad timing. Immediately, my world turned upside down as I went through numerous tests and three surgeries.”

Thomas turned to the American Cancer Society, using their website and phone line for information and to answer questions.

Before Thomas began treatments, she heard from Marie McMullan, an ACS Reach To Recovery volunteer.

“We met and she shared her cancer experience, answered my questions and continued to call me to check on me during my treatments,” Thomas said. “She also offered to drive me to and from treatments and appointments if I needed a ride.”

The chemotherapy treatments were very difficult, Thomas recalls.

“I ended up in the emergency room with what was feared to be a heart attack,” Thomas said of one such treatment. “I relied on my faith, my husband, Dennis, our son, John, and other family members and friends for support.”

Following her final chemo treatment, she began weeks of radiation. These made her tired, but not sick.

After the last radiation treatment, Thomas was ready to celebrate the end of treatments. She had a follow-up doctor’s appointment the same day and her oncologist mentioned a drug that had just been approved to be used as a preventative treatment.

“She recommended I take it, but it meant another year of treatments,” Thomas said. “I decided that I might regret it someday if I didn’t, so I committed to 52 more treatments.”
Thomas said her oncologist never talked about her being “cured” of cancer.

“She always said that it’s a disease you learn to live with,” Thomas said. “I’ve interpreted that as that your cancer may not be active, but that you’re living with some of the experience, the everlasting side effects and ongoing appointments, tests and scans.”

Thomas joined the “Survivors Working For A Cure” Relay For Life team and from her first event, she’s always found it to be really beneficial.

“It’s very inspirational to see the number of survivors participating,” she said. “Everyone comes together to celebrate each other’s successes. People ask questions, compare treatments, and share stories. There’s a lot of understanding, sharing, and support.”

Thomas said the annual Survivor Dinner and Survivor Lap at each Relay For Life event feel like a celebration for all she’s lived through.

“You’re made to feel very special. As a survivor, I’d like to think that I might be an inspiration to someone recently diagnosed with cancer and give them help and hope like others did for me,” Thomas said. “I’m glad I can give back to the ACS, because I know how their programs helped me when I needed it.”

The theme for this year’s relay is “Operation: Get a Clue, Cancer! The Masterminds are Done with Your Games!”

For more information, visit www.relayforlife.org/monroeil, email monroecountyrelayforlife@hotmail.com, or call 618-288-2320, Opt. 3.

To become a sponsor for this year’s “Laps for Zac” tribute, contact Thomas in the Gibault school office at jthomas1@gibaultonline.com or 939-3883.