Kathy Corso is the executive director of The Cancer Center for Healthy Living. A previous board member of the Center, Corso was named executive director in 2000. The Center serves the tri-County area and beyond with emotional support and information. In 2000, the Center offered 30 professionally led programs each month, serving nearly 2,200 people. She received her bachelor’s degree in social work from the University of Oklahoma in Norman, OK and her master’s degree in educational leadership and human development counseling from Bradley University. She worked as the director and office manager for the Alzheimer’s Association form 1989 to 1993 and the coordinator of volunteers from the Peoria Park District form 1993 to 1995.
Corso currently is involved with the American Cancer Society; Illinois Central College Professional Development Institute, where she has been involved since 1995; and the Bradley University Educational Leadership and Human Development counseling Clinic since 1997.
Tell us about your background, schools attended, family, etc. Who/what influenced your career path in social work?
I am the youngest of five, from parents born at the turn of the 20th century, in Philadelphia. I was raised in blue-collar family tempered by living through the depression.
Higher education was a given, and my oldest brother was the first on my father’s side to earn a college degree. I believe this family setting, as well as an excellent parochial and public education in the 1960s impacted my career choices.
When I was in junior high my father developed cancer and passed away. My interest in social service and health had very early roots. I finished my bachelor’s degree in social work at the University of Oklahoma, where I met and married my husband, with whom I came to Peoria in 1971.
My career has involved social service for young children, handicapped children, after school programming for children, and the special needs of families dealing with Alzheimer’s Disease.
You are the first executive director for the Cancer Center for Healthy Living. Nine people—six of whom were cancer survivors, including yourself, founded the center. Talk about your challenge with cancer.
My personal experience with cancer had a shocking and traumatic impact on my family and myself. At the time, my children were in grade school and high school, and I was in denial.
My response was pretty average. I worked very hard to keep life as normal as possible, and tried to hide my fear. The incredible patience and support of my husband, Frank, kept me pumped with hope and optimism—an essential element in my family’s quality of life at the time.
My chemo slowed me down despite my resolutions, and only through my later interaction as a counseling student in the Educational Leadership and Human Development program at Bradley did I begin to share with my children more feeling-based discussions of the cancer experience.
Many of my priorities changed as my family pulled together and I, like many other cancer patients, experienced having to rely on others for many, many things I normally would handle easily.
When my family was most in need, the parents of my children’s classmates at St. Bernard brought dinners and offered the best support anyone could experience—they looked out for my children. Another lesson learned: “it is easier to give help than to accept the generosity of others.”
Through my education as a licensed professional counselor, and my own personal experiences as well as those shared by other survivors, it became apparent there was something missing in the circle of cancer care.
There was important clinical care for surviving or managing the growth of cancer, but there was a wonderful component mission—peers helping each other through the cancer journey. The vision that cancer survivors could help each other by inspiring hope became the driving force that helped the original survivors create the Cancer Center for Healthy Living.
Because of my support for this vision, I facilitated support groups at CCHL, and then joined the CCHL board in 1998. Only three of the original founders are still with us—Stella O’Hanlon, Barbara Walvoord, and Mary Malson—but the legacy they left to others is unique and purposeful.
What support other than your oncology physicians did you seek? As a survivor, what are your greatest fears?
The support I sought during my cancer treatment was from friends and family. My personal resolution to keep life as normal as possible for my family left many of my own emotional needs to surface later. About five years later I was more able to discuss personal issues.
As a survivor, I think the hardest days are check-up days. These days often create anxiety that is hard for cancer survivors to rationalize or explain. Even the calmest of personalities often experiences such anxiety. This leads me to assume that like myself, other cancer patients fear more cancer, treatments and premature death.
What are the best ways friends and family can support someone recently diagnosed with cancer? Their loved ones?
Friends and family can support a newly diagnosed cancer patient by being there. If a friend shares hopefulness, and courage enough to say the words “cancer” and “survival,” this is very comforting. Beware of offering unsolicited advice, but as a friend, you can help someone find credible resources.
Helping a cancer patient feel in control of some choices, to advocate, and to be informed is a wonderful asset to the patient. Often a patient is too overwhelmed; the need for someone at appointments and treatment to listen and advocate is necessary.
What misperceptions might people have regarding the challenges survivors face? During treatment? During remission?
Every individual handles cancer in their own way, and should be empowered to do so.
As a rule, most fear new cancer, and this is a cloud in the back of their minds. Others are often more free of anxiety, but still have real concerns.
When it comes to emotional support during treatment and remission, many individuals avoid burdening friends and family with their side-effects and fears. Many have long treatment regimes, and many have treatments that only manage to keep the cancer from growing. Here is where support groups and peer counseling can help the cancer survivor express and support their feelings with those who have walked similar paths.
One brain cancer survivor once said to me: “Everyone thinks I am well because I look well; this makes it hard for me to share how fearful I am with them.”
What I recommend when greeting a friend with cancer is to ask, “How are you doing today?” rather than saying they “look better,” and help them focus on living each day to the fullest.
Where do those with a cancer diagnosis go for information? How does one decipher the credible sources of information?
With the diagnosis of cancer comes a barrage of information and well-wishers with many suggestions. Each cancer patient must find their own path, and each patient should have some help navigating these often confusing waters. As a survivor and director of CCHL, we recommend good communication with physicians involved.
Asking them your important questions and concerns is your best source of credible information. If more information is sought, there are major medical helplines through the American Cancer Society, National Cancer Society, and others.
The CCHL has a resource library and Internet access to many credible sites for up-to-date information on research, treatments, and complementary care. If the patient is looking for emotional support, information, stress reduction programs and wellness programs, they can call the Cancer Center for Healthy Living at 693-8139.
You said in an earlier interview “It’s my goal to help those interested recognize the importance of the mind/body connection.” Tell readers your thoughts on “mind over matter” when dealing with cancer.
Research today supports the impact of stress, anxiety, fear and depression on the body’s physiology, especially the immune system. We live in a very over stimulated frenetic society that often creates additional stress in our very busy lives. When stress is reduced in a systematic way, regularly each day, such as a daily walk, 15 minutes of meditative time, a swim, yoga, or whatever is appropriate for the individual, a balance of systems is attained. This allows the natural systems of the body to promote healing.
There are many studies on stress reduction, emotional expression, and learning coping skills as they relate to cancer patients.
Many of the general public are familiar with the books by Dr. Bernie Siegal, such as Love, Medicine and Miracles, and Greg Anderson, cancer survivor and author of The Cancer Conqueror. Their books are anecdotal regarding the impact of attitude and personal beliefs on the quality of life and survival of cancer patients.
As author Caroline Myss, Ph.D. states in her book, Anatomy of the Spirit, it is important to accept that every part of your life, from your physical history, to your relationships, to every attitude, opinion and belief you carry inside yourself is part of the healing process.
Many major universities have research projects related to “psychoneuroimmunology,” the clinical terminology for mind-body connection. Dr. David Spiegel of Stanford was the first to design a longitudinal study on the impact of support groups on metastic breast cancer patients. His study rated improved quality of life, improved hopefulness, less family distress, and some improvement in longevity for participants.
There is a center for Mind Body Medicine in Washington, D.C., which sponsors an annual workshop—with the National Cancer Institute and the American Cancer Society—on Comprehensive Cancer Care attended by CCHL and Oncology/Hematology Associates staff members to further understand how to best provide the most comprehensive cancer care to thee central Illinois area and beyond.
How is the Cancer Center for Healthy Living helping to meet the needs of those with cancer? The friends and families of those with cancer?
The CCHL has created a comfortable warm atmosphere with wonderful resources (more than 500 books, videos and audio) and emotional support and wellness programs.
Once a month, the “coping with Cancer” program is offered for patients and family members by co-founder Stella O’Hanlon. CCHL offers support for caregivers also.
We currently offer a greater variety of programming than in 1997, trying to support the cancer patient and family mentally and emotionally. Our participants fill out surveys on topics of interest so CCHL can best meet the needs of the current patients.
I personally participated in a conference at Duke Medical School in 1998: Integrating Mind Body and Spirit in Medical Practice. This exposed me to a great deal of clinical research on the broadened spectrum, or holistic care of patients, offering a cadre of programs and workshops to help and empower cancer patients on their journey, no matter the duration.
This spring, Rep. David Leitch announced grant money would be available for a cancer treatment and research facility at the University Of Illinois College Of Medicine at Peoria campus. How will the Cancer Center for Healthy Living have a presence? What future plans for expansion are being made for the CCHL?
Thanks to a unique and innovative vision of a number of health care providers and administrators in this community, we are able to work towards a comprehensive cancer care center to be located on the campus of the school of medicine. With the consistent patience and conversation of Dean Don Rager of the UIC Medical School and the collaborative spirit of the Oncology Hematology Associates, a very new and creative collaboration has arisen. CCHL was asked to locate in this center and work with the other entities to provide an integrated, patient centered experience for the cancer patient and their family.
The CCHL will expand to more than 5,000 square feet in the new center. The programs will expand, and making the connection with more cancer patients is the top priority.
As director, I am honored to work with all of the CCHL staff and facilitators providing emotional support, counseling and wellness programs, offering hope to “help those touched by cancer live life to the fullest”!
The Cancer Center for Healthy Living (CCHL – is a 501 ©3, affirming that healing occurs at the emotional, mental, and spiritual, as well as physical levels and offers wellness programs and resources that contribute to the healing process. TPW
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