Patient Goes From Siteman to Balloon Race in 24 Hours

September 18, 2006, ST. LOUIS – Patty Frankovich may yet beat cancer at the Siteman Cancer Center, but at the Great Forest Park Balloon Race she just couldn''t beat the weather.

High winds on September 16 derailed what would have been an incredible turn of events. Frankovich would have had a brain tumor removed one day and flown in a hot air balloon the next.

"If it''s meant to be, it''s meant to be," she said of her unlikely trip.

Frankovich, 58, of Theodosia, MO is a lung cancer patient at the Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine. Her cancer was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer on July 26 that had already metastasized to her brain. She has had fifteen radiation therapies to shrink the tumor in her brain, but on Friday, September 15 she underwent the Gamma Knife procedure to remove the tumor.

"It''s an outpatient procedure and the doctors said I''d be fine to fly," said Frankovich.

The name Gamma Knife is a bit of misnomer, as it doesn''t use a "knife" at all. It''s a machine that delivers 201 precisely focused beams of radiation to a targeted area of abnormal tissue within the patient''s head. The surrounding areas of the brain get very little exposure to radiation.

"The Gamma Knife can be a very aggressive way to treat various problems in the brain, with low side effects," said Eric Filiput, RN, Gamma Knife operations manager at Barnes-Jewish Hospital. The Gamma Knife of St. Louis at the Siteman Cancer Center is the only Gamma Knife in a 250-mile radius and one of about 90 nationwide.

That sort of equipment led Frankovich to be transferred from her hospital in Arkansas to Barnes-Jewish. She expressed to her family disappointment about not using a helicopter for transport. "After that I mentioned to my family how I always wanted to fly in a hot-air balloon," she said.

Her children sent e-mails to family and friends asking if anyone had contacts with hot-air balloon pilots. The e-mail wound up in the inbox of Denise Bizenberger, special projects assistant at the Siteman Cancer Center. Barnes-Jewish is a sponsor of the Great Forest Park Balloon Race and in turn is given a spot on a hot-air balloon. After the e-mail was sent around, Frankovich was asked if she would be willing to take the open seat in the Barnes-Jewish Hospital balloon.

"I''ve always wanted to do this, so I said yes right away," said Frankovich.

However, high winds at the balloon race limited only 30 of about 70 balloons to fly. Even the Energizer Bunny balloon couldn''t get going and going.

It led Barnes-Jewish balloon pilot Winifred "Winnie" Durham to tell Frankovich and her family a flight at the race wasn''t in the cards. "With winds this high it''s a really rough landing and I am just not comfortable taking someone up on their first ride – especially going through what she''s going through – on a flight like this," she said.

Durham promised she would make arrangements to get Frankovich in a balloon soon.

Still, it wasn''t a wasted day for Frankovich. With husband Ron and a few of her children by her side she watched balloons take off from the Barnes-Jewish Hospital tent. She wore a custom t-shirt her family made for her. It featured a sonogram of her soon to be born grandchild with the baby''s hand signaling back "I Love You."

"I am determined to beat this,'' said Franovich. "I have too much to look forward to."