BY DANA DiFILIPPO
The Cincinnati Enquirer
LOVELAND -- It was the first time, Dani Grady admitted with a self-conscious laugh, that she'd donned a dress in more than a month.
"Don't I look beautiful?" she asked jokingly.
But to her audience of about 75 people, she would have looked just as lovely in rags.
The vivacious blond San Diego woman was a symbol of the hope her listeners have clung to since their diagnosis.
It was a pep rally of sorts for the cancer survivors and their relatives who gathered Sunday at the Shriners Oasis Banquet and Conference Center for the Regional Cancer Survivorship Town Hall Meeting.
The meeting was one of eight held nationwide to address concerns about cancer survivors' quality of life and raise awareness for "The March: Coming Together to Conquer Cancer," a rally planned for Sept. 26 in Washington, D.C.
"Our mission is simple: We need to make cancer the No. 1 national health care priority," Dr. Daniel R. White of the Oncology Partners Network told the audience.
Cancer survivors can encounter employment discrimination, insurance hassles and inadequate access to quality cancer care, Dr. White said. Speakers also cited several disturbing statistics: One in two men, and one in three women, will develop cancer in their lifetime.
About 1.5 million people will be diagnosed with cancer this year. More than 1,500 Americans die of cancer every day.
Insurance problems concern Arleen Schuman, a clinical nurse specialist from Colerain Township.
"Health care's not any fun anymore," she said. "You spend all your time figuring out what you can do and can't do (under insurance guidelines) and not as much time with patients."
In July, Ms. Grady and several supporters left California on a 70-day, 3,600-mile cross-country bicycle tour to bring attention to the need for early cancer detection, access-to-care issues and other cancer concerns. They will end their trek at the Sept. 26 rally in Washington.
