A patient educator/cheerleader will be honored as the recipient of the 2010 Scott Brown Memorial Seeds of Hope Award by H.O.P.E.  Dr. Lisa Fritz, Director of Medical Education at Memorial Hospital, will be recognized at the Voices for Hope event to be held Thursday, May 13, at the Valencia in York.

Fritz, whose career as an obstetrician was cut short by the after-effects of cancer, takes comfort in the fact that she has since become the very resource for women that she once so desperately needed.  "As soon as you receive a cancer diagnosis, your brain goes on auto mode and you really do not absorb anything else," she recalls. "Those months following my diagnosis were a blur. I went from one test to another to surgeries." Diagnosed with Stage 3 breast cancer just two days after her 48th birthday, Fritz underwent multiple surgeries, chemo and radiation. The treatments left the physician with peripheral neuropathy, a condition that destroyed sensation in her hands and made it impossible to continue her practice. But her interaction with patients continued, in a new role in which she has much to offer.

Almost all cancer patients go through a period of denial. "None of us wants ownership of the disease. No one wants to call someone else and say, "I have cancer." I was fortunate in that my physician linked me with a survivor…similar age, type of cancer, family dynamics, etc. This was the greatest gift because I could talk with her about all my fears. She actually addressed them before I had to say anything.

"It has been my dream to be there for other women," continues Fritz, a native of Schuylkill County (Orwigsburg) who studied medicine and graduated from the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science and Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. She moved to York in 1982 for an internship and residency at Memorial Hospital and was then on staff with White Rose OB/GYN Associates for 17 years prior to her diagnosis and subsequent complications. "Cancer of any form is a devastating diagnosis and HOPE has been an inspiration (especially all of Barb Titanish's efforts). I am in awe of the resources and aid that HOPE provides. We of PINK commend HOPE for its wonderful work and I am certainly proud of this award."

PINK, founded by four cancer survivors, makes outreach specifically to breast cancer patients. "Our goal is to make sure that every person diagnosed has someone to listen, a shoulder to cry on and a hand to support them through their therapies and then have them "pay it forward." The best therapy after cancer treatment for many survivors," says Fritz, "is to be there for another survivor."

"We are very proud of Dr. Fritz and her work on behalf of cancer patients in our community.  Through her individual efforts and her work with P.I.N.K.," said Sally Dixon, Memorial Hospital president and CEO, "she has helped to create a peer support group for women dealing with breast cancer. Her ability to find a positive outcome from her personal battle with breast cancer is an inspiration to all of us."