Adventist Health Sonora | Health Living | Spring 2020

4  Healthy Living • AdventistHealthSonora.org T THERE IS NO GOOD TIME to learn you have cancer. But the timing of Chris Ives’ diagnosis last August upended his life in an especially difficult way. He found out he had stage II testicular cancer when his wife, Jennifer, was eight months pregnant with their first child. “Having cancer and a pregnant wife really makes you think about how precious life is,” says the 40-year-old Sonora resident. “I was so distraught by the uncertainty of my future.” After surgery, Chris was treated with three months of chemotherapy at Adventist Health Sonora. Jennifer was at his side for every treatment—both before and after their baby, Sawyer, was born. “I couldn’t have gotten through this if it wasn’t for her love and support,” Chris says. He is also deeply grateful to two members of his cancer team who provided crucial support after his diagnosis: Oncology Nurse Navigator Debbie Aventi, R.N., B.S.N., and Nurse Care Manager Susan Balcarcel, R.N., M.F.T. Very simply, their job is to help ease the stress of people facing cancer so that these patients can focus on what matters most. Their services are free and available to Adventist Health Sonora patients from diagnosis through treatment and recovery. Supporting the whole person Aventi helps patients in many ways, from coordinating tests and doctors’ visits to helping patients understand their treatment options. But this may be her most important role: She meets with every new patient to identify how best to support them—in big and small ways. Chris’ needs were complex. He and Jennifer were newly married. Neither one had expected to face such a serious health issue so soon in their life together. They were also responsible for two young children from Jennifer’s first marriage. What’s more, two months before his diagnosis, Chris had started a new job. He was underinsured medically— at the worst possible time. A helping hand makes all the DIFFERENCE Chris Ives with his wife, Jennifer; her two daughters, Sabrina and Jovanna; and their baby son, Sawyer.